erkThe state of IRC, at a glance.
erkstats tracks live and historical statistics for 100 IRC networks and 17,148 active channels: how many people are online, which communities are largest, and how that is changing over time. Updated every few hours.
Right now the biggest networks are Libera.Chat, HybridIRC and Undernet, and the busiest channels include #kampung, #linux and #KualaLumpur.
Climbing fast beyond the headline names: #spectrum on Libera.Chat is up 335% and AyoChat is up 355% in the last day.
People online
181,888
-1.1% vs yesterday
Active channels
81,103
+0.1% vs yesterday
Networks tracked
100
96 reporting · updated 6 mins ago
179k
183k
187k
190k
07:3613:3619:3601:36now
No data in this period yet.
Largest networks
Browse all IRC networks →The biggest IRC networks by users online, with a 30-day trend for each. Click any network for its full history, server list and channels.
Libera.Chat
+1.9%
30,681
HybridIRC
-1.7%
21,881
Undernet
+1.4%
15,607
SkyChatz
-17.8%
13,183
OFTC
-2.5%
12,455
FreeUniBG
+34.5%
12,118
Rizon
-1.2%
9,260
EFnet
-0.2%
8,338
Largest channels
See the busiest channels →The most active IRC channels across every tracked network, ranked by the number of people in them right now.
#kampung
+1.9%
2,711
#kampung
+0.3%
2,618
#linux
+0.9%
2,474
#KualaLumpur
+185.5%
1,887
#libera
+0.8%
1,732
#archlinux
+0.6%
1,595
#SpiderMaster
-14.5%
1,519
#cisco
+14.0%
1,505
Frequently asked questions
Is IRC still used in 2026?
Yes. IRC is still active: erkstats counts 181,888 people online right now across 100 networks and 17,148 channels, refreshed every few hours.
What is the largest IRC network right now?
Libera.Chat is currently the largest IRC network erkstats tracks, with 30,681 users online. See the full ranking of IRC networks.
How many IRC networks are there?
erkstats tracks 100 public IRC networks that it has connected to and gathered statistics from. Browse them all on the networks page.
What are the most active IRC channels?
The busiest channels right now include #kampung, #linux and #KualaLumpur. Explore the largest IRC channels across every network.
How often are the statistics updated?
Network and channel figures refresh every few hours. The most recent sweep was 6 mins ago.