Social media has changed the way we connect, talk to each other, and conduct business. It provides a space for sharing information, entertainment, marketing, and even making money. Popular social platforms have made information accessible to everyone and allowed people and communities worldwide to share their voices.

In fact, as of October 2024, it’s estimated that there were over 5 billion social media users around the world. With accessible technology becoming more widespread, this number is only expected to rise.

Since the landscape of social media changes almost every year, it’s essential to know and understand where we stand with these platforms today. There’s a lot to explore; from the number of users to engagement rates to the amount of money spent on social media marketing.

So, in this post, I’ve compiled multiple interesting statistics to give you an overview of how social media works today. These statistics are categorized based on factors like users, post frequency, reach, and more.

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Social Media Users

Understanding social media user statistics is important because it helps businesses and marketers know where their audience is most active. By tracking the number of users on different platforms, you can make better decisions on where to focus your marketing efforts, create the right content, and reach the right people.

Let’s take a look at social media usage statistics.

  1. The total number of active social media users has increased by 5.2%, with an average of 8.1 new users joining every second.
  2. With 3.28 billion monthly active users, Facebook is still the most widely used social media platform.
  3. The second most used social media platform is YouTube, with 2.5 billion monthly active users.
  4. With 2 billion active users, Instagram is the 4th ranked most active social media platform, only slightly behind WhatsApp.
  5. Platforms like Twitter and Pinterest are far behind, with 556 and 445 million monthly active users respectively.

Social Media Usage

We’ve already seen the massive size of social media. Now let’s take a look at usage. With more engaging forms of content, media forms, and increasing frequency, we’re giving more and more of our time to these platforms.

Social media is seen as a replacement, not just for our social life, but also as our news sources, shopping portals, and more. Here are some statistics on social media usage that give you an accurate picture.

  1. Worldwide, people spend 38% of their total available time on social media
  2. A typical social media user spends almost 2.20 hours per day on different kinds of media platforms.
  3. According to GWI’s survey, women aged 16 to 24 are the heaviest social media users, averaging nearly 3 hours of daily usage.
  1. TikTok users spend an average of 34 hours per month, surpassing an hour daily on its Android app.
  2. YouTube ranks second, with users spending 28 hours and 5 minutes per month on its Android app.
  3. Facebook ranks third, with users spending an average of 19 hours and 47 minutes per month on its platform.
  4. LinkedIn is still struggling to find its place as a popular social media platform, with an average daily time spent of less than 1 minute.
  1. In 2024, 138.9 million Reels were played each minute on Facebook and Instagram.
  2. Facebook leads with 3 billion monthly active users, and the Meta ecosystem (Instagram, WhatsApp) stays strong. TikTok grew fast, with 186 million downloads in Q4 2024.
  3. Netflix remains popular, with 362,962 hours streamed every minute and over 300 million paid subscribers worldwide in Q4 2024.
  1. Close to 47% of social media users are on the platforms to keep in touch with friends and family, while 30-35% use them to tackle boredom, read the news, and look for content
  2. Almost 26% of users are online to browse for products to buy, which isn’t surprising because global sales through social media platforms were an estimated $992 billion.
  3. Social commerce sales are expected to reach an estimated $2.9 trillion by 2026.

Engagement Rates

How do you determine your success on social media? Through metrics, of course! Reach, impressions, and engagements are the bread and butter of any successful social media campaign.

Let’s take a look at which social media platforms are winning this particular battle!

  1. Instagram’s engagement rate decreased from 0.47% in 2022 to 0.43% in 2023, showing a slight decline in user interaction over the year.
  2. Facebook’s engagement rate remained steady at 0.06% in both 2022 and 2023, indicating little change in user engagement.
  1. X’s engagement rate dropped from 0.035% in 2022 to 0.029% in 2023, showing a gradual decline in user engagement on the platform.
  2. TikTok’s engagement rate significantly decreased from 5.690% in 2022 to 2.630% in 2023, reflecting a notable drop in engagement year-over-year.

Post Frequency

It’s a common understanding among social media users that you need to post a few times per week to get optimal reach and engagement. Here’s how people are using this knowledge on different social media platforms:

  1. Instagram showed a steady increase in posts per week, growing from 4.0 in 2020 to 4.7 in 2023.
  2. Facebook reached its peak posting frequency of 5.9 posts per week in 2021, but has declined to 4.7 posts by 2023.
  1. X experienced a steady decline in posting frequency, from 4.4 posts per week in 2020 to 3.3 posts in 2023.
  2. TikTok data, available from 2022-2023, showed a low posting frequency, increasing slightly from 1.8 posts per week in 2022 to 1.9 posts in 2023.

Social Media Reach

Reach is basically a measure of how well a particular platform is performing. The higher the reach, the more number of people that are visiting your site. If you’re curious about the reach of big platforms like Facebook and YouTube, we’ve got the stats right here:

  1. SimilarWeb has recorded YouTube as the social media platform with the highest number of visits at 30.3 billion in Dec 2024, followed (not so closely) by Facebook at 12.33 billion.
  2. Instagram saw 7.17 billion visits in Dec 2024, with X far behind at 4.57 billion.
  3. In 2024, YouTube and Facebook led the rankings for brand awareness in the United States, with 96% and 95% recognition. These platforms are widely used for video sharing and connecting with large audiences.
  1. Instagram and TikTok follow closely, with 93% and 92% brand awareness, known for their focus on creative visuals, short-form videos, and trending content.
  2. Snapchat and Pinterest round out the top tier, with 90% and 84% brand awareness, emphasizing quick sharing and visual discovery for inspiration.

User Demographics

Marketing teaches that all customers are not the same, which is why our marketing messages need to be targeted and customized to people of different ages, genders, nationalities, etc. It is important to know who is present on which platform and what would be the best choice for your business’s marketing efforts.

Here are some important social media demographics statistics that will help you make better decisions about social media marketing.

  1. YouTube and Facebook dominate as the most widely used social media platforms among U.S. adults, with Instagram also utilized by about half of the population.
  2. Younger adults (18-29) are heavy users of platforms like Instagram (76%), Snapchat (65%), and TikTok (59%), while older adults (65+) favor YouTube (65%) and Facebook (59%).
  3. Women are more likely than men to use platforms like Facebook (78% vs. 61%), Instagram (55% vs. 44%), and Pinterest (51% vs. 19%), while men are slightly more active on platforms like LinkedIn and Reddit.
  1. Asian and Hispanic adults show higher adoption rates for Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp compared to White adults. For example, 62% of Asian adults use Instagram, compared to 45% of White adults.
  2. College graduates show the highest LinkedIn usage (54%) compared to those with high school education or less (12%), reflecting LinkedIn’s professional appeal.
  3. Higher-income individuals ($100,000+) are more likely to use LinkedIn (53%) and WhatsApp (37%), while TikTok usage is more prevalent among those earning less than $70,000 annually.
  1. Urban users are more likely to adopt Instagram (51%) and WhatsApp (39%), while rural residents show higher adoption of platforms like Facebook (74%) and Pinterest (39%).
  2. As of January 2024, India boasted the world’s largest Instagram user base, with 362 million active users. Following India, the United States had 169 million users, while Brazil ranked third with 134 million users.
  3. Demographics are a necessary variable in understanding who is present and where. Internet users aged between 16 and 24 are more likely to use Instagram, with the popularity of TikTok increasing for this age segment.
  4. Users between the ages of 55-64, on the other hand, are most likely to spend their time on WhatsApp.

Social Media Advertising

Social media ads aren’t new. Any successful marketing strategy is incomplete without a good mix of social media platforms, and here are some interesting social media advertising statistics.

  1. Statistics show $226 billion spent on social media advertising annually, as of January 2023, with a 23.2% year-on-year increase.
  2. Global ad spending in the social media advertising market is expected to hit $276.7 billion in 2025. With an annual growth rate of 10.09% (2025-2029), it is projected to reach $406.5 billion by 2029.
  3. There are 4 billion advertisers using Facebook stories ads every month.
  4. The average monthly ad spend for social media advertising ranges from $850 to $2,000.
  5. Businesses typically pay ad management fees equal to 10% to 20% of their monthly ad spend.
  6. Around 11% to 25% of a company’s total advertising budget is allocated to social media ads.
  7. Approximately 74% of businesses believe social media advertising is effective.
  1. In the first half of 2024, Facebook accounted for 36% of US social media ad spending, down 2 percentage points from the second half of 2023. Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube gained market share during this period.
  2. About 70% of businesses use social media ads to boost brand awareness and drive sales.

Influencer Marketing

Businesses use influencer marketing because it helps them reach a larger, more engaged audience authentically. Influencers already have the trust of their followers, so when they promote a product or service, it feels more genuine.

It’s also a great way to build brand awareness, drive sales, and increase credibility, especially among specific target groups that might be hard to reach through traditional advertising.

Let’s take a look at some important social media statistics regarding influencer marketing.

  1. Global influencer advertising spending is expected to reach USD $39.33 billion by 2025. The market is predicted to grow at an annual rate of 9.37%, reaching US$56.28 billion by 2029.
  2. The average ad spend per internet user in this market is estimated at USD $6.51 in 2025. China is expected to lead in ad spending, with USD $21.55 billion in 2025.
  3. 63% plan to use AI in executing their influencer campaigns, and 55% of these brands will use AI for influencer identification.
  4. TikTok (used by 69% of brands using influencer marketing) is by far the most popular influencer marketing channel, now well ahead of Instagram (47%), YouTube (33%) and Facebook (28%)
  1. LGBTQ2+ creators earn the most at $317 per post, followed by Comedy & Entertainment at $305 (4% less), Vegan at $294 (7% less), and Family & Children at $275 (11% less).
  2. As of 2023, 87% of marketers and 90% of content creators planned to increase their presence on Instagram.
  3. In 2025, brands are expected to spend approximately $202 per influencer collaboration, a decrease from the previous year due to the growing number of new creators entering the market.
  4. Females continue to dominate influencer marketing, holding a 70% market share, highlighting their prominent role in the industry.
  5. Male creators earn, on average, $83 (40%) more than female creators.
  6. The popularity of video content is increasing by the year, which definitely explains YouTube’s average engagement rate of 50% against other video platforms.
  7. Fashion and beauty have seen the highest percentage (25%) of content across all platforms.

I’ve shared some key social media stats to help you understand the current trends. Since technology and user habits change quickly, these numbers can look very different next year.

What’s popular now might not be around in a few years. That’s why it’s important for marketers to stay updated on trends to make the most of social media for their campaigns.

Keep these stats in mind for your next marketing push!

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