Meta Burned $19 Billion On VR Last Year, And 2026 Won’t Be Any Better

Meta Reality Labs lost $19.1 billion in 2025 as VR division struggles despite Zuckerberg's metaverse ambitions and strategic pivots.
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Meta Burned $19 Billion On VR Last Year, And 2026 Won’t Be Any Better
Meta Reality Labs Losses Hit $19 Billion in 2025—And Relief Isn't Coming Soon Meta's virtual reality dreams cost the company $19.1 billion last year—a staggering sum that exceeded even its 2024 losses. Reality Labs, the division behind Quest headsets and Horizon Worlds, generated just $2.2 billion in revenue while hemorrhaging cash at an accelerating pace. CEO Mark Zuckerberg confirmed these losses will persist through 2026, calling it likely "the peak" before gradual improvement. For investors and VR enthusiasts alike, the question isn't whether Meta will abandon the metaverse—it's whether the technology can ever justify its astronomical price tag. Credit: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg / Getty Images The Bleeding Continues: A Closer Look at the Numbers Reality Labs posted a $6.2 billion loss in Q4 2025 alone, pushing its annual deficit to $19.1 billion—up from $17.7 billion the previous year. That means for every dollar the division earned selling Quest 3S headset…