Call of Duty statistics 2026: Sales, revenue & franchise records

Call of Duty has sold 500 million copies and generated $35 billion in lifetime revenue. Black Ops 6 was the biggest CoD launch ever.

By Oliver GrantUpdated
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call of duty statistics

Call of Duty is the best-selling FPS franchise in history and one of the top-selling game franchises overall, with 500 million copies sold and over $35 billion in lifetime revenue. In the span of just over a year, it produced both its biggest launch ever (Black Ops 6, October 2024) and its worst sales year since 2008 (Black Ops 7, November 2025). The franchise’s transition to Game Pass under Microsoft’s ownership is reshaping what “successful” means for individual CoD releases. For broader market context, see our video game industry statistics. Here are the verified numbers.

Call of Duty key statistics

  • 500 million+ copies sold across the franchise (October 2024).
  • $35 billion+ in lifetime revenue.
  • ~100 million monthly active players at peak (2022).
  • Black Ops 6 (October 2024) — largest launch weekend in franchise history; 50 million players by July 2025.
  • Black Ops 7 (November 2025) — worst paid sales performance since 2008; outsold by Battlefield 6.
  • Call of Duty has been the #1 selling game in the US for 16 consecutive years through 2024.
  • 43 million Black Ops 4 (2018) — the highest individual CoD entry confirmed in court filings.

Call of Duty franchise sales

Call of Duty has sold over 500 million copies — the best-selling FPS franchise ever

(Source: Activision / Washington Post, October 2024; VGChartz)

  • The Call of Duty franchise crossed 500 million copies sold in October 2024, confirmed by Activision Blizzard to the Washington Post at Black Ops 6’s launch.
  • This is up from 425 million as of June 2022 — a growth of 75 million copies in just over two years.
  • The franchise surpassed $30 billion in lifetime revenue by 2022; current estimates put lifetime revenue at $35 billion+.

Best-selling individual Call of Duty entries (confirmed figures)

(Source: Take-Two SEC filing 2024; Activision; Washington Post)

GameYearSalesSource
Black Ops (2010)201043M+Court filing (2024)
Modern Warfare (2019)201941M+Court filing (2024)
Black Ops II2012~30MCourt filing (est.)
Warzone2020–125M+ registered (F2P)Activision
Black Ops 6202450M players (Jul 2025)Microsoft/Activision

Note: Activision has not disclosed unit sales per title except in FTC/court proceedings. The 2024 Activision-Microsoft FTC trial surfaced internal figures including Black Ops (2010) at 43M as the highest-selling paid entry.

Call of Duty was the #1 best-selling game in the US for 16 consecutive years

  • From 2009 through 2024, a Call of Duty game was the #1 best-selling game in the United States every year — 16 consecutive years (NPD Group).
  • This streak ended in 2025, when Black Ops 7 finished behind Battlefield 6 for full-year US sales.

Black Ops 6

Black Ops 6 had the largest launch weekend in franchise history — 50 million players by July 2025

(Source: Activision / Microsoft; Wikipedia; Game World Observer)

  • Black Ops 6 launched October 25, 2024 and set the record for the largest launch weekend in franchise history.
  • PS4/PS5 and Steam sales increased 60% year-over-year compared to Modern Warfare III.
  • By July 2025, Black Ops 6 had reached 50 million players — combining Game Pass subscribers, purchasers, and Warzone players.
  • It was the #1 best-selling game in the US in 2024 (NPD).
  • Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella cited record single-day Game Pass subscriber additions following BO6’s launch.

The 50M players figure is a combined count across Game Pass and direct sales. The Game Pass inclusion makes comparable sales-count comparisons with pre-Microsoft CoD entries difficult — BO6 may have had lower paid unit sales than BO (2010)‘s 43M while still producing more “players.”

Black Ops 7

Black Ops 7 was the worst-selling Call of Duty since 2008 — outsold by Battlefield 6 for full-year 2025

(Source: GameSpot; Game Rant; Reddit/NPD)

  • Black Ops 7 launched November 14, 2025 and finished as the #5 best-selling game in the US for 2025 — behind Battlefield 6.
  • On Steam, Black Ops 7 sold approximately 1.3 million copies in its first three weeks versus Black Ops 6’s 2.3 million in the same period — a 43% decline.
  • US paid sales were reportedly 60% lower than Black Ops 6.
  • It is the worst-performing Call of Duty entry in paid sales since 2008.

The context matters: CoD’s move to Game Pass means many players who would previously have purchased the game now access it via subscription. Declining paid sales don’t necessarily reflect declining players — but the scale of the decline (60% vs. BO6) suggests something beyond just substitution.

Warzone

Warzone peaked at 125 million registered players — now declining on PC

(Source: Activision 2022; Steam Charts; GamesHub 2025)

  • Warzone launched March 10, 2020 and reached 125 million registered players at its peak (Activision, 2022).
  • Activision has not published an updated player count since 2022.
  • Steam Charts data shows Warzone averaging approximately 30,000–100,000 daily concurrent players on PC in 2024–2025, down significantly from its peak.
  • Third-party estimates put total daily active users (all platforms) at approximately 1–3 million in 2025.
  • Warzone peaked at 313,313 concurrent Steam players in November 2024 (Black Ops 6 integration).

Call of Duty historical milestones

  • 2003 — Call of Duty launches on PC.
  • 2007 — Modern Warfare revolutionises the genre; becomes the franchise’s cultural turning point.
  • 2009 — Modern Warfare 2 launches; franchise begins its 16-year US #1 streak.
  • 2010 copies — Black Ops launches; eventually confirmed at 43M — the franchise’s highest-selling paid entry.
  • 2020 players — Warzone launches as free-to-play; reaches 50M in first month, 125M by 2022.
  • 2022 — Franchise surpasses $30 billion lifetime revenue and 425 million copies (June).
  • October 2023 — Microsoft completes $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
  • October 2024 — Black Ops 6 launches; franchise crosses 500 million copies. Biggest CoD launch weekend ever.
  • November 2025 — Black Ops 7 launches; worst paid sales year since 2008. Battlefield 6 outsells CoD for full year 2025.

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