Kakao (kakao.com)
Operator of KakaoTalk and a diversified internet conglomerate spanning messaging, fintech, mobility and content.
Kakao at a glance
Kakao is a technology website and one of the most visited sites in South Korea, currently ranked #8 in the country. It was founded in 2010 (as Kakao; merged with Daum in 2014) by Kim Beom-su and is headquartered in Jeju/Seongnam, South Korea. Today Kakao is owned by Kakao Corp. Our estimates put its audience at ≈ 40 million visits per month. The business earns money mainly through kakaotalk advertising (kakao biz board, talk channel), kakao pay and kakao bank fintech services, kakao mobility ride-hailing and navigation. Its closest rivals include Naver (Line, Naver Pay), Toss, Coupang Pay, Google Korea.
Traffic statistics
Traffic history
| Period | Visits | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | ≈ 39 million / month | +1% |
| Q2 | ≈ 40 million / month | +2% |
| Q3 | ≈ 41 million / month | +2% |
| Q4 | ≈ 40 million / month | -2% |
Traffic sources
- Direct40%
- Organic search28%
- Referral (subsidiary sites)20%
- Social & other12%
Audience & demographics
- Men50%
- Women50%
- Age 18-2414%
- Age 25-3426%
- Age 35-5440%
- Age 55+20%
KakaoTalk is used by nearly all Korean smartphone owners, making Kakao's broader ecosystem one of the most universally adopted digital platforms across every age group in the country.
Geographic reach
- South Korea92%
- United States2%
- Japan2%
- Other4%
SEO profile
- Organic keywords
- ≈ 600,000
- Estimated organic traffic
- ≈ 12 million visits / month
- Strongest clusters
- Messaging, corporate/investor information, fintech services
Top organic keywords
| Keyword | Position | Volume | Traffic share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 카카오톡 | 1 | Very high | — |
| kakao pay | 1 | High | — |
| 카카오뱅크 | 1 | High | — |
Backlink profile
- Referring domains
- ≈ 400,000
- Link profile
- Linked extensively from Korean news, fintech and developer sites
Top referral sources
- Direct45%
- Naver20%
- Google18%
- Other17%
Technology stack
Website technologies
Advertising & analytics technologies
Kakao builds most services on Java and Kotlin backends, increasingly hosted on its own Kakao i Cloud, with an in-house advertising stack spanning KakaoTalk chat lists and partner sites.
Mobile app statistics
- KakaoTalk downloads (cumulative)
- ≈ 100 million+
- Daily message volume
- Billions of messages
Company information
- Website
- kakao.com
- Sector
- Technology
- Owner
- Kakao Corp
- Owner type
- Public company (KRX: 035720)
- Founders
- Kim Beom-su
- Founded
- 2010 (as Kakao; merged with Daum in 2014)
- Headquarters
- Jeju/Seongnam, South Korea
- Employees
- ≈ 4,000 (Kakao Corp), ≈ 17,000+ across group
- Ownership
- Publicly traded on the Korea Exchange; Kim Beom-su remains the largest individual shareholder
- Valuation
- ≈ USD 10-15 billion market capitalisation
- Revenue
- ≈ KRW 7.9 trillion (≈ USD 6 billion) annually across the group
- Languages
- Korean, with limited English support for overseas services
- Top traffic sources
- Direct navigation, app deep-links, investor and corporate search
Ownership, investors & funding history
| Date | Round | Amount | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | KakaoTalk launched | N/A | Kim Beom-su |
| 2014 | Merger with Daum Communications | N/A | — |
| 2017 | IPO of KakaoBank subsidiary | N/A | — |
Financials
- Group revenue
- ≈ KRW 7.9 trillion / year
- Operating profit
- ≈ KRW 500-600 billion / year
Business model & revenue
Kakao operates as a mobile-first internet conglomerate anchored by the KakaoTalk messaging app, expanding into advertising, fintech, mobility, gaming and entertainment through a network of listed and unlisted subsidiaries.
- KakaoTalk advertising (Kakao Biz Board, Talk Channel)
- Kakao Pay and Kakao Bank fintech services
- Kakao Mobility ride-hailing and navigation
- Kakao Entertainment content (music, webtoons, drama)
- Kakao Games publishing
Products & services
Dominant Korean messaging app used by nearly all smartphone users.
Digital payments and fintech services.
Mobile-only internet bank.
Ride-hailing, taxi-calling and navigation services.
Webtoons, web novels, music and drama production.
Related deals on Amazon
As an Amazon Associate, Global Site Index earns from qualifying purchases.
Seller ecosystem
- Talk Channel business accounts
- Hundreds of thousands of brands and merchants
International presence
- Piccoma
- Kakao's webtoon/manga platform, popular in Japan and France
Employee statistics
Customer statistics
API & developer information
- Kakao Developers API
- Public APIs for login, maps, share and payments integration
Website rankings
- South Korea messaging
- #1 by a wide margin
- Group scale
- Among Korea's largest internet conglomerates
Main competitors
Website comparisons
| Website | Monthly visits | Rank | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naver | Comparable ecosystem scale | — | Kakao leads in messaging, Naver leads in search and portal traffic |
| Toss | Smaller fintech-focused traffic | — | Kakao Pay competes directly in payments and banking |
Overview
Kakao is the internet conglomerate behind KakaoTalk, South Korea's dominant messaging app, and operates a diversified group spanning fintech, mobility, gaming and entertainment.
Traffic Statistics
Kakao's corporate and services domain attracts an estimated 40 million monthly visits, though the KakaoTalk app itself reaches roughly 47 million monthly active users in South Korea.
Traffic Sources
Direct navigation and app deep-links dominate, reflecting Kakao's role as a habitual daily utility rather than a search-discovered destination.
Audience & Demographics
KakaoTalk is used across virtually every age group in South Korea, with particularly heavy engagement among users aged 25-54.
Geographic Reach
Around 92% of traffic to Kakao's web properties originates in South Korea, with smaller audiences in the United States and Japan.
SEO Profile
Kakao ranks for roughly 600,000 Korean keywords, concentrated around messaging, fintech and corporate/investor information.
Technology Stack
Kakao's services are built on Java and Kotlin backends, increasingly hosted on its own Kakao i Cloud infrastructure with React-based front ends.
Social Media Statistics
Kakao maintains official YouTube and Instagram presences, though most user engagement happens within KakaoTalk itself.
Mobile App Statistics
KakaoTalk has been downloaded over 100 million times cumulatively and handles billions of messages daily.
Company Information
Founded in 2010 by Kim Beom-su and merged with Daum Communications in 2014, Kakao Corp employs around 4,000 people directly and over 17,000 across its group of subsidiaries.
Ownership & Investors
Kakao is publicly traded on the Korea Exchange, with founder Kim Beom-su remaining its largest individual shareholder.
Financials
The Kakao group generates approximately KRW 7.9 trillion in annual revenue, with operating profit of roughly KRW 500-600 billion, spanning advertising, fintech, mobility and content businesses.
Business Model
Kakao monetises through KakaoTalk advertising, fintech services like Kakao Pay and KakaoBank, Kakao Mobility ride-hailing, and entertainment content via Kakao Entertainment and Kakao Games.
Products & Services
Key products include KakaoTalk, Kakao Pay, KakaoBank, Kakao Mobility and Kakao Entertainment.
Competitors
Key competitors include Naver (via Line and Naver Pay), fintech app Toss, Coupang Pay and Google Korea.
Company History & Milestones
From KakaoTalk's 2010 launch and 2014 Daum merger through KakaoBank's 2017 debut and Kakao Pay's 2021 listing, Kakao has grown from a messaging app into one of Korea's largest internet conglomerates.
Latest News
Kakao continues integrating generative AI features across KakaoTalk while Kakao Pay reports steady growth in payment volumes.
User Reviews & Ratings
Kakao is regarded as an essential part of daily life in Korea through KakaoTalk, though the wider conglomerate faces recurring scrutiny over market power and governance.
Pros & Cons
Pros: near-universal messaging adoption, diversified ecosystem, strong brand trust. Cons: regulatory scrutiny over dominance, complex conglomerate governance, past service outages.
Key Statistics
≈47 million KakaoTalk monthly active users, ≈KRW 7.9 trillion annual group revenue, and over 17,000 employees group-wide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who owns Kakao? A publicly traded company on the Korea Exchange, founded by Kim Beom-su. Is KakaoTalk free? Yes, monetised through advertising, fintech and content subsidiaries. What else does Kakao operate? Kakao Pay, KakaoBank, Kakao Mobility, Kakao Entertainment and Kakao Games, among others.
Data Sources
Kakao Corp Annual Report, Korea Exchange filings and Similarweb estimates.
Last Updated
September 2026
Related Websites
Daum, KakaoBank, Tistory and Naver.
Website Rankings
#1 in messaging in South Korea and among the country's largest internet conglomerates by scale.
Revenue & Funding History
KakaoTalk launched in 2010, Kakao merged with Daum Communications in 2014, and subsidiaries KakaoBank and Kakao Pay have since listed separately on the Korea Exchange.
Employee Statistics
Kakao Corp employs approximately 4,000 people directly, with the wider group employing more than 17,000 across subsidiaries.
Customer Statistics
KakaoTalk reaches around 47 million monthly active users in South Korea, with Kakao Pay counting approximately 40 million registered users.
Backlink Profile
Kakao's web properties have around 400,000 referring domains, linked extensively from Korean news, fintech and developer sites.
Top Organic Keywords
Leading keywords include "카카오톡", "kakao pay" and "카카오뱅크".
Top Referral Sources
Direct traffic dominates, with Naver and Google search also contributing meaningful referral volume.
Website Technologies
Java, Kotlin, React front ends, the Kakao i Cloud platform and Nginx.
Advertising & Analytics Technologies
Kakao Moment, Kakao's in-house advertising platform, alongside Kakao AdFit for partner site monetisation.
API & Developer Information
The Kakao Developers API supports login, maps, sharing and payments integrations for third-party developers.
Company history & milestones
- 2010
KakaoTalk messaging app launched
- 2014
Kakao merges with Daum Communications
- 2017
KakaoBank launches as a mobile-only bank
- 2021
Kakao Pay lists on the Korea Exchange
- 2026
Continues expanding AI features across KakaoTalk and subsidiaries
Latest news
- Kakao integrates generative AI features across KakaoTalkKakao Newsroom · 2026
- Kakao Pay reports steady growth in payment volumesKakao Pay Investor Relations · 2026
Pros & cons
Pros
- Near-universal adoption of KakaoTalk in South Korea
- Diversified ecosystem spanning fintech, mobility and content
- Strong brand trust built around messaging
- Multiple listed subsidiaries providing capital access
Cons
- Regulatory scrutiny over market dominance and antitrust concerns
- Complex conglomerate structure criticised for governance issues
- Slower international expansion outside messaging-adjacent content
- Past service outages affecting critical national infrastructure
Key statistics
Frequently asked questions
Who owns Kakao?
Kakao Corp is a publicly traded company on the Korea Exchange, founded by Kim Beom-su, who remains its largest individual shareholder.
Is KakaoTalk free to use?
Yes, messaging is free, with Kakao monetising through advertising, fintech and content subsidiaries.
What other services does Kakao operate?
Kakao operates Kakao Pay, KakaoBank, Kakao Mobility, Kakao Entertainment and Kakao Games, among others.
Popular searches
Data sources & confidence
- Kakao Corp Annual ReportKakao
- Korea Exchange filingsKRX
- Similarweb estimatesSimilarweb
- Data confidence
- High for ownership, financials and public milestones; traffic figures for the corporate site are third-party approximations.
- Last updated
- September 2026
Traffic and audience figures are modelled estimates based on public industry reports and third-party analytics tools.
Social media profiles & statistics