Call of Duty continues to boast one of the biggest and most loyal player bases in gaming year after year. But with Warzone operating as its own standalone battle royale experience, the big question is: how many players are actually dropping in?

The original Warzone was a massive win for Activision and completely reshaped the Call of Duty franchise. At its peak, it dominated the online gaming scene, reaching huge levels of popularity and paving the way for a sequel.

Warzone 2 — later rebranded back to simply Warzone — was designed as a major overhaul. Players were excited about new maps and weapon metas, but the transition wasn’t smooth. Over time, controversial gameplay changes and unpopular map decisions led to backlash, with some players stepping away entirely. Heading into the Black Ops 6 era, Warzone found itself in a tougher spot than before.

As of January 2026, the average player count for Call of Duty on Steam sits at 35,168, according to Steam Charts. That’s a noticeable drop from the 69,000 average seen in April. On Twitch, Warzone averaged 16,230 viewers in January, based on TwitchTracker data.

There was a major resurgence on April 3, 2025, when the original Verdansk map returned. Player numbers surged past 113,000 on average — the highest since 2024 — and peaked at nearly 140,000 concurrent players on April 6. However, as the excitement faded and new seasons rolled out, the numbers gradually declined again.

It’s important to note that these Steam figures represent the entire Call of Duty launcher. That includes Warzone alongside Black Ops 7’s campaign, multiplayer, and Zombies modes. There’s currently no way to separate player counts for individual modes. Additionally, these stats only reflect PC players, as PlayStation and Xbox data isn’t publicly available.

Historically, the highest recorded peak for the Call of Duty launcher on Steam came in October 2022, when 488,897 players jumped in at once following the launch of Modern Warfare 2. A post-launch drop-off is typical for any CoD title, and Black Ops 6 followed that pattern, although its integration into Warzone during Season 1 brought a fresh wave of players back thanks to new weapons and features like Omnimovement.

Before Season 3, Warzone was arguably facing one of its most difficult periods. Cheating issues and persistent gameplay frustrations pushed even longtime fans away. The return of Verdansk briefly reignited interest, with player counts climbing to their highest levels in over a year. That momentum carried into May, but by June, averages began sliding once more.

When compared to other major titles in the genre, Call of Duty’s recent performance shows it slipping behind some competitors. In January, the 30-day average player counts on Steam were:

• Call of Duty: 35,168

• Marvel Rivals: 90,183

• Apex Legends: 86,728

• PUBG: 288,706

• Overwatch 2: 28,132

While Warzone still outperforms some titles, it now trails behind heavy hitters like Apex Legends and Marvel Rivals, and sits far below PUBG’s massive numbers.

That said, things can shift quickly in the live-service space. With Verdansk back in rotation and community sentiment starting to improve, Warzone could easily see another surge.

That’s the current state of Warzone’s player count. If you’re curious how it stacks up elsewhere, you can also check the active player numbers for games like Valorant, Destiny 2, Diablo 4, and World of Warcraft.