Here's everything you need to know about Worldometer, the data site that gives updates on Covid-19

Chances are you’ve logged on to Worldometer in the past.

You likely remember it as the website that displays a live count of the world’s population, with births ticking up in real time as deaths morbidly balance out the numbers.

But in recent weeks, the site – now one of the biggest on the internet – has taken on a slightly different mantle.

In the age of coronavirus, the website now displays highly detailed statistics on just about every facet of the disease’s spread, from individual countries’ death tolls to the number of active cases in certain regions.

Its prominence is such that Worldometer is now regularly quoted in official government press briefings. But where does its data come from?

Here’s everything you need to know:

What is Worldometer?

Worldometer has humble beginnings that date back to 2004, when teenage programmer Andrey Alimetov created the first iteration of the site before his 20th birthday.

It was a simple project (Alimetov told New Scientist it “took only about two to three days to make”) using basic programming and your computer’s clock to generate a live count of the world's population.

Alimetov sold the website in $2000 a year later (“it was a lot of money), and now the site is owned by American-based Dadax LLC.

Worldometer – which generates its revenue through advertising – has grown exponentially over the years, and now covers subjects as diverse as world population, government, economics, society, media, environment, food, water, energy, and health.

Why has it come to prominence?

Worldometer always provided interesting statistics, but for many served as nothing more as an internet curio for many years.

But in recent months, its figures have been cited in official government press briefings from across the world, including those by the UK Government, who regularly used Worldometer figures for a global comparison of Covid-19 deaths at their daily press conferences.