WhatsApp is the most popular social media in South Africa. As of the third quarter of 2023, some 94 percent of internet users in the country used the messaging app. Facebook and Tiktok followed, with a penetration rate of around 88 percent and 74 percent, respectively. The potential audience of Facebook that can be reached with advertisements amounted to 22.2 million. Internet and social media users keep increasing The number of internet users in South Africa has registered a growth since 2018. In 2022, some 48.4 million South Africans accessed the internet, compared to 36 million four years earlier. Consequently, active social media users also faced a boom in number. By January 2022, individuals actively using social media platforms increased to 28 million, nearly three times higher than in 2014. Mobile phones dominate internet access In 2022, 47.8 million South Africans used mobile devices to surf the internet. Mobile phones were the main devices used to access the internet in the country. As of the third quarter of 2021, 96 percent of the internet users used them to connect to the internet, while 86.2 percent used a laptop or desktop computer to be online. Furthermore, mobile phones generated close to 79 percent of the web traffic as of late 2022

The number of snapchat users in South Africa was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2028 by in total 5.7 million users (+63.33 percent). After the ninth consecutive increasing year, the snapchat user base is estimated to reach 14.69 million users and therefore a new peak in 2028. Notably, the number of snapchat users of was continuously increasing over the past years.The user numbers, depicted here regarding the platform Snapchat, have been estimated by taking into account company filings or press material, secondary research, app downloads and traffic data. They refer to the average monthly active users over the period and count multiple accounts by persons only once.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).

Facebook was the most used social media platform by South African companies in recent years. As of 2022, ** percent of the companies in South Africa actively used Facebook. This was a drop compared to 2021 when ** percent of the South African companies used the social media platform. Moreover, in 2022, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter followed, with shares of ** percent, ** percent, and ** percent, respectively. Over the observed period, the usage of the different social media platforms has seen different trends. For instance, the use of LinkedIn has been growing yearly, while South African companies' usage of Twitter has been decreasing.

As of *************, Facebook was the most popular social media platform in South Africa. Some ********** users had an account on the platform. This number stayed constant in 2024. Moreover, Messenger and LinkedIn followed with almost ************ and ************ users, respectively.

The number of LinkedIn users in South Africa was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2028 by in total 2.7 million users (+28.75 percent). After the eighth consecutive increasing year, the LinkedIn user base is estimated to reach 12.04 million users and therefore a new peak in 2028. User figures, shown here with regards to the platform LinkedIn, have been estimated by taking into account company filings or press material, secondary research, app downloads and traffic data. They refer to the average monthly active users over the period and count multiple accounts by persons only once.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of LinkedIn users in countries like Lesotho and Botswana.

The number of Instagram users in South Africa was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2028 by in total 2.5 million users (+44.64 percent). After the fifth consecutive increasing year, the Instagram user base is estimated to reach 8.12 million users and therefore a new peak in 2028. User figures, shown here with regards to the platform instagram, have been estimated by taking into account company filings or press material, secondary research, app downloads and traffic data. They refer to the average monthly active users over the period and count multiple accounts by persons only once.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of Instagram users in countries like Botswana and Lesotho.

The number of active social media users in South Africa reached ** million as of January 2024. Compared to eight years prior, this represented roughly a *** times increase from *** million users in 2014. Further, WhatsApp was the most popular social media platform in the country as of the third quarter of 2023.

The number of households with internet access in South Africa was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 3.5 million households (+27.76 percent). After the seventh consecutive increasing year, the number of households is estimated to reach 16.11 million households and therefore a new peak in 2029. Depicted is the number of housholds with internet access in the country or region at hand.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of households with internet access in countries like Botswana and Lesotho.

The population share with mobile internet access in South Africa was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 16.7 percentage points. After the fifteenth consecutive increasing year, the mobile internet penetration is estimated to reach 38.27 percent and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the population share with mobile internet access of was continuously increasing over the past years.The penetration rate refers to the share of the total population having access to the internet via a mobile broadband connection.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the population share with mobile internet access in countries like Lesotho and Botswana.

The number of WhatsApp users in South Africa was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 3.6 million users (+19.63 percent). After the ninth consecutive increasing year, the WhatsApp user base is estimated to reach 21.92 million users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of WhatsApp users of was continuously increasing over the past years.User figures, shown here regarding the platform whatsapp, have been estimated by taking into account company filings or press material, secondary research, app downloads and traffic data. They refer to the average monthly active users over the period.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).

Based on a survey, most South African companies reported being on social media as a core part of their marketing campaign. As of 2022, ** percent of the companies used social media for this reason. However, the share dropped compared to 2018, when ** percent of the company respondents reported the use of social networks as being essential in their marketing campaigns. Moreover, social media was seen as an effective PR channel by ** percent of the companies. On the other hand, ** percent of the surveyed population reported using it because other competitors were.

** percent of South African respondents answer our survey on "Most used social media platforms by type" with "Instant messengers (e.g., WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, WeChat)". The survey was conducted in 2023, among ****** consumers.Find this and more survey data on most used social media platforms by type in our Consumer Insights tool. Filter by countless demographics, drill down to your own, hand-tailored target audience, and compare results across countries worldwide.

Facebook was the most used social media platform by South African companies for advertising purposes in recent years. As of 2022, ** percent of the companies in South Africa spent most of their advertising budget on Facebook ads. This was a drop compared to 2021, when ** percent of South African companies used the social media platform for advertising purposes. Moreover, in 2022, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube followed, with shares of ** percent, ** percent, and * percent, respectively. Over the observed period, a higher share of companies directed their advertising budget to LinkedIn, which has doubled since 2019, while Facebook fluctuated inconsistently.

Based on an online survey, Nigerians spent the most time on social media on the African continent. As of the first quarter of 2023, they spent, on average, ***** hours and ** minutes on different social media platforms. South Africans and Kenyans followed, spending ***** hours and ** minutes and ***** hours and ** minutes on social media, respectively.

Between January 2021 and June 2022, banking industries in South Africa recorded a total number of followers across all social media channels of up to *** million, displaying a joint number of *** million interactions over around ****** posts.

As of 2022, ***** percent of companies in South Africa that deleted their social media brand accounts on any known platform did so on Twitter, which was the highest deletion rate that year. Compared to the previous year, the rates sank on all main platforms.

Between January 2021 and June 2022, telecommunication industries in South Africa recorded a total number of audience across all social media channels of up to **** million, displaying a joint number of **** million interactions over around ***** posts.

As of 2022, 88 percent of companies in South Africa reported not having deleted their social media brand accounts on any known platform. It was the lowest share of companies to confirm having maintained a constant brand account presence since 2019.

As of 2022, most South African companies reported that marketing was managing their social media platforms in recent years. Nevertheless, it registered a noticeable decrease after 2020. Some ** percent of account managers were Individuals in 2022, which was ** percent less than the previous year. Moreover, ** percent of the companies had agencies managing their social media accounts.

The number of internet users in South Africa was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 15.5 million users (+30.58 percent). After the fifteenth consecutive increasing year, the number of users is estimated to reach 66.16 million users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of internet users of was continuously increasing over the past years.Depicted is the estimated number of individuals in the country or region at hand, that use the internet. As the datasource clarifies, connection quality and usage frequency are distinct aspects, not taken into account here.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of internet users in countries like Lesotho and Botswana.