The global social media penetration rate in was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2028 by in total 11.6 (+18.19 percent). After the ninth consecutive increasing year, the penetration rate is estimated to reach 75.31 and therefore a new peak in 2028. Notably, the social media penetration rate of was continuously increasing over the past years.

How many people use social media?

              Social media usage is one of the most popular online activities. In 2024, over five billion people were using social media worldwide, a number projected to increase to over six billion in 2028.

              Who uses social media?
              Social networking is one of the most popular digital activities worldwide and it is no surprise that social networking penetration across all regions is constantly increasing. As of January 2023, the global social media usage rate stood at 59 percent. This figure is anticipated to grow as lesser developed digital markets catch up with other regions
              when it comes to infrastructure development and the availability of cheap mobile devices. In fact, most of social media’s global growth is driven by the increasing usage of mobile devices. Mobile-first market Eastern Asia topped the global ranking of mobile social networking penetration, followed by established digital powerhouses such as the Americas and Northern Europe.

              How much time do people spend on social media?
              Social media is an integral part of daily internet usage. On average, internet users spend 151 minutes per day on social media and messaging apps, an increase of 40 minutes since 2015. On average, internet users in Latin America had the highest average time spent per day on social media.

              What are the most popular social media platforms?
              Market leader Facebook was the first social network to surpass one billion registered accounts and currently boasts approximately 2.9 billion monthly active users, making it the most popular social network worldwide. In June 2023, the top social media apps in the Apple App Store included mobile messaging apps WhatsApp and Telegram Messenger, as well as the ever-popular app version of Facebook.

During a January 2024 global survey among marketers, nearly 60 percent reported plans to increase their organic use of YouTube for marketing purposes in the following 12 months. LinkedIn and Instagram followed, respectively mentioned by 57 and 56 percent of the respondents intending to use them more. According to the same survey, Facebook was the most important social media platform for marketers worldwide.

Introduction

Social Media User Statistics: As of January 2025, it is projected that approximately 5.24 billion individuals globally are engaged on social media platforms, which accounts for 63.9% of the total world population. This indicates an annual increase of 206 million users, connecting to a growth rate of 4.1%. On average, users engage with 6.8 different social platforms each month and spend roughly 2 hours and 21 minutes per day on these platforms.

Mobile devices account for 98% of the time allocated to social media, highlighting the dominance of mobile access. Facebook continues to lead with over 3 billion monthly active users, followed by YouTube with around 2.5 billion users. Instagram and WhatsApp each boast approximately 2 billion users, while TikTok has surpassed 1.5 billion users.

More than 100 social media channels and statistics for the National Archives and Records Administration.

Social media companies are starting to offer users the option to subscribe to their platforms in exchange for monthly fees. Until recently, social media has been predominantly free to use, with tech companies relying on advertising as their main revenue generator. However, advertising revenues have been dropping following the COVID-induced boom. As of July 2023, Meta Verified is the most costly of the subscription services, setting users back almost 15 U.S. dollars per month on iOS or Android. Twitter Blue costs between eight and 11 U.S. dollars per month and ensures users will receive the blue check mark, and have the ability to edit tweets and have NFT profile pictures. Snapchat+, drawing in four million users as of the second quarter of 2023, boasts a Story re-watch function, custom app icons, and a Snapchat+ badge.

Discover the latest social media statistics and trends for 2025 and how they impact businesses.

Picture a high school hallway during lunch break. Heads down, thumbs scrolling, earbuds in. This isn’t boredom, it’s engagement. For Generation Z, social media isn’t just a way to stay connected; it’s how they navigate identity, find entertainment, and even make purchasing decisions. Born between 1997 and 2012, Gen Z...

Market leader Facebook was the first social network to surpass one billion registered accounts and currently sits at more than three billion monthly active users. Meta Platforms owns four of the biggest social media platforms, all with more than one billion monthly active users each: Facebook (core platform), WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram. In the third quarter of 2023, Facebook reported around four billion monthly core Family product users. The United States and China account for the most high-profile social platforms Most top ranked social networks with more than 100 million users originated in the United States, but services like Chinese social networks WeChat, QQ or video sharing app Douyin have also garnered mainstream appeal in their respective regions due to local context and content. Douyin’s popularity has led to the platform releasing an international version of its network: a little app called TikTok. How many people use social media? The leading social networks are usually available in multiple languages and enable users to connect with friends or people across geographical, political, or economic borders. In 2025, social networking sites are estimated to reach 5.42 billion users and these figures are still expected to grow as mobile device usage and mobile social networks increasingly gain traction in previously underserved markets.

A concise dataset summarizing platform-level social media statistics and benchmarks across Facebook, Google properties, and Twitter (X).

YouTube gets an average of 14.3 billion total worldwide visits every month.

AI tools have become integral to how we create, consume, and shape social media content. Industries, from marketing agencies to newsrooms, now rely on AI for content recommendations, engagement analytics, and rapid generation of visuals. For example, over 80% of social media content recommendations are powered by AI, significantly boosting...

I really don’t want to spend time talking about how big social media has become. While some of us are still in denial, the impact of social media platforms is so profound. Thus, it’s not surprising when social media trends and statistics go in sync with societal changes. Understanding these...

Introduction

Millennials On Social Media Statistics: Since the lockdown, people who never existed on the internet have created accounts on social media. As stated in these Millennials On Social Media Statistics, more than 50% of millennial users went online. The use of social media is increasing daily. Social media is gaining popularity not only among millennials but also among other generations.

However, the use of these platforms is growing extensively among all generations. These statistics guide recent insights, including the preferences for product research on social media, back-to-school shopping, etc.Â

This dataset is structured as a graph, where nodes represent users and edges capture their interactions, including tweets, retweets, replies, and mentions. Each node provides detailed user attributes, such as unique ID, follower and following counts, and verification status, offering insights into each user's identity, role, and influence in the mental health discourse. The edges illustrate user interactions, highlighting engagement patterns and types of content that drive responses, such as tweet impressions. This interconnected structure enables sentiment analysis and public reaction studies, allowing researchers to explore engagement trends and identify the mental health topics that resonate most with users.

The dataset consists of three files: 1. Edges Data: Contains graph data essential for social network analysis, including fields for UserID (Source), UserID (Destination), Post/Tweet ID, and Date of Relationship. This file enables analysis of user connections without including tweet content, maintaining compliance with Twitter/X’s data-sharing policies. 2. Nodes Data: Offers user-specific details relevant to network analysis, including UserID, Account Creation Date, Follower and Following counts, Verified Status, and Date Joined Twitter. This file allows researchers to examine user behavior (e.g., identifying influential users or spam-like accounts) without direct reference to tweet content. 3. Twitter/X Content Data: This file contains only the raw tweet text as a single-column dataset, without associated user identifiers or metadata. By isolating the text, we ensure alignment with anonymization standards observed in similar published datasets, safeguarding user privacy in compliance with Twitter/X's data guidelines. This content is crucial for addressing the research focus on mental health discourse in social media. (References to prior Data in Brief publications involving Twitter/X data informed the dataset's structure.)

Introduction

Social Media Marketing Statistics: Social media marketing has become a vital tool for businesses seeking to connect with their audience and accelerate brand growth. With platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn taking the lead, companies are harnessing the potential of social media to build meaningful relationships with their customers.

By using a mix of organic content and paid advertising, brands can effectively target specific audiences, strengthen connections, and boost brand awareness. Beyond just promoting messages, social media marketing also enables businesses to track campaign performance and make real-time adjustments.

As digital advertising continues to evolve, understanding key trends and statistics is crucial for businesses looking to stay ahead of the competition. This introduction delves into the influence of social media marketing, focusing on the strategies that drive success in today’s digital landscape.

Social media algorithms now shape the information we see. In 2025, over 5.4 billion people will engage with personalized feeds daily, each tailored by complex models that sort, amplify, or bury content based on real-time behavior. These algorithms affect everything from advertising campaigns to political messaging, and even how quickly...

YouTube boasts an average of 23.7 hours per month spent by users.

As of April 2024, around 16.5 percent of global active Instagram users were men between the ages of 18 and 24 years. More than half of the global Instagram population worldwide was aged 34 years or younger.

              Teens and social media

              As one of the biggest social networks worldwide, Instagram is especially popular with teenagers. As of fall 2020, the photo-sharing app ranked third in terms of preferred social network among teenagers in the United States, second to Snapchat and TikTok. Instagram was one of the most influential advertising channels among female Gen Z users when making purchasing decisions. Teens report feeling more confident, popular, and better about themselves when using social media, and less lonely, depressed and anxious.
              Social media can have negative effects on teens, which is also much more pronounced on those with low emotional well-being. It was found that 35 percent of teenagers with low social-emotional well-being reported to have experienced cyber bullying when using social media, while in comparison only five percent of teenagers with high social-emotional well-being stated the same. As such, social media can have a big impact on already fragile states of mind.

The average Twitter user spends 5.1 hours per month on the platform.