As of 2026, there are 5.66 billion social media user identities worldwide more than two-thirds of the global population. Seven platforms each claim over one billion monthly active users.
The average person uses 6.75 different platforms per month and spends over 18 hours on social media every week.
How Many People Use Social Media Worldwide?
The scale of social media use today is hard to fully absorb. According to analysis by Kepios, there were 5.66 billion social media user identities globally at the start of October 2026.
That figure represents roughly 68% of the total world population and 93.8% of all internet users.
What's worth noting here and often glossed over is that these figures count "user identities," not necessarily unique individuals.
Duplicate accounts, business profiles, and bot accounts mean the real number of distinct human users is likely somewhat lower. Still, the scale is genuinely significant.
Growth hasn't slowed either. Around 259 million new user identities were added in the year leading up to October 2026, which works out to an annual growth rate of approximately 4.87% or about 7.8 new users every second.
GWI data adds another layer: 96.9% of internet users aged 16 and above across 54 major economies already use at least one social network or messaging platform each month.
The average person actively uses or visits 6.75 different platforms per month which is more than most people would guess.
As documented by Our World in Data, the speed of social media's global diffusion over the past two decades has been striking by any historical measure.
Which Social Media Platforms Have the Most Users?
This is where things get a little complicated. The answer genuinely depends on how you measure it.
Platforms With 1 Billion or More Monthly Active Users
Based on the most recent figures published by platforms themselves a mix of monthly active user counts and advertising reach data seven platforms currently sit above the one billion mark.
Data from Statista tracking global social network rankings by monthly active users shows Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram leading the field.
→ Table 2: Top Social Media Platforms by Monthly Active Users / Ad Reach ]
|
Platform |
Monthly Active Users / Ad Reach |
|
|
3.07 billion MAU |
|
|
3 billion MAU |
|
|
3 billion MAU |
|
YouTube |
2.58 billion (ad reach) |
|
TikTok |
1.99 billion (ad reach) |
|
WeChat (inc. Weixin) |
1.41 billion MAU |
|
Telegram |
1 billion MAU |
|
Snapchat |
932 million MAU |
|
|
578 million MAU |
|
X (formerly Twitter) |
557 million (ad reach) |
Sources: Platform self-reported figures; Kepios analysis of advertising tools, 2025. Note: figures marked "ad reach" reflect advertising audience estimates, not confirmed MAUs.
A total of 16 platforms now report at least 500 million active users. That's a notable shift from just a few years ago when that list was considerably shorter.
How Platform Rankings Differ by Measurement Method
Here's something that trips people up regularly. The "most used" platform changes depending on what data you look at.
When GWI asked adult internet users which platforms they used in the past month (self-reported survey data), Facebook ranked first with 56.9% of respondents saying they used it. YouTube came second at 55.4%, and Instagram third at 55.1%.
Switch to app-tracking data from Similarweb which logs which apps people actually open on their phones and YouTube takes the top spot, with WhatsApp and Instagram following in second and third.
Look at advertising reach figures published by the platforms themselves, and YouTube again leads, with a reported reach of 2.58 billion monthly users.
So Facebook leads in surveys. YouTube leads in app behavior and ad reach. Neither answer is wrong they're just measuring different things. This is worth keeping in mind whenever you see a headline declaring one platform the definitive "biggest."
How Social Media Platform User Numbers Have Grown
The overall user base has expanded meaningfully over the past four years, but growth hasn't been uniform across platforms.
TikTok's rise has been the most discussed. Among U.S. adults alone, usage climbed from 21% in 2021 to 37% in 2025 according to Pew Research Center survey data. Instagram, WhatsApp, and Reddit also gained ground over the same period.
Facebook and YouTube, meanwhile, have remained dominant but relatively flat in terms of the share of Americans reporting use. Their audiences are large and stable rather than rapidly expanding.
Which Social Media Platforms Do People Prefer?
High user numbers don't always mean high preference. Interestingly, the platforms people use most aren't always the ones they say they like best.
GWI data shows that younger users particularly in Western markets tend to name Instagram as their favourite platform, while older age groups lean toward Facebook and WhatsApp.
TikTok scores high on engagement time but doesn't consistently top preference rankings across all age groups.
These preferences also shift noticeably by country. What's true in the U.S. or UK may look quite different in Southeast Asia or Latin America, where WhatsApp and local platforms carry significantly more cultural weight.
How Much Time Do People Spend on Social Media?
Quite a lot, as it turns out. GWI data indicates the typical social media user spends an average of 18 hours and 36 minutes per week across social platforms which works out to roughly 2 hours and 24 minutes per day.
Put another way, on the assumption that most adults sleep 7–8 hours a night, the average internet user is spending more than one full waking day per week on social media. That's not a small thing.
TikTok stands out at the platform level. Android users globally spend an average of 31 hours and 32 minutes on TikTok per month more time than most people spend on any other single app.
In practice, digital marketers and content teams consistently find that TikTok drives higher per-session engagement than most comparable platforms, which partly explains why time-on-platform figures for TikTok tend to outpace its raw user numbers.
Added together, the world collectively spends around 15 billion hours per day consuming content on social platforms.
→ Table 4: Average Time Spent on Social Media
|
Metric |
Figure |
|
Weekly average per user (global) |
18 hrs 36 mins |
|
Daily average per user (global) |
~2 hrs 24 mins |
|
TikTok — monthly avg. (Android users) |
31 hrs 32 mins |
|
Collective hours spent globally per day |
15 billion hrs |
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Social Media Use in the United States
Global figures tell one story. U.S.-specific data tells a somewhat different one and the two are worth keeping separate.
Most Used Platforms Among U.S. Adults
According to a Pew Research Center survey of 5,022 U.S. adults conducted between February and June 2026, YouTube and Facebook remain the two most widely used platforms in the country.
→ Table 5: Social Media Platform Use Among U.S. Adults
|
Platform |
% of U.S. Adults Who Use It |
|
YouTube |
84% |
|
|
71% |
|
|
50% |
|
TikTok |
37% |
|
|
32% |
|
|
26% |
|
Snapchat |
Less than 26% |
|
X (Twitter) |
Less than 26% |
Instagram is the only other platform used by at least half of American adults. Everything below it TikTok, WhatsApp, Reddit has a meaningful user base but doesn't come close to Facebook or YouTube's reach.
How Often Do Americans Use Social Media Daily?
Usage frequency matters as much as overall reach. About half of U.S. adults visit Facebook and YouTube at least once a day. For Facebook, 37% say they visit several times daily. For YouTube, 33% say the same.
TikTok's daily use rate is lower than its overall user count might suggest around 24% of U.S. adults use it daily. X sits considerably lower, with only about 10% reporting daily use.
Age shapes this significantly. Roughly half of 18- to 29-year-olds say they go on TikTok at least once a day. Among adults 65 and older, that figure drops to around 5%.
For Facebook, the pattern reverses somewhat the 30-to-49 and 50-to-64 age groups are actually the most likely to visit daily, at 58% and 54% respectively.
Social Media Use Among U.S. Teens
Among U.S. teenagers, YouTube is the most widely used platform mirroring the pattern seen among adults. Separate Pew Research Center data on teens also shows strong use of Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat among younger age groups.
The overall picture for teens tracks closely with the under-30 adult data, with short-video and image-first platforms dominating time and attention.
Who Uses Social Media? A Demographic Breakdown
The aggregate numbers only go so far. Where social media use gets genuinely interesting is in the demographic differences and they're sharper than most people expect.
Social Media Use by Age Group
The age divide across platforms is one of the most consistent findings in U.S. social media research.
→ Table 6: Platform Use by Age Group (U.S. Adults, 2025)
|
Platform |
Ages 18–29 |
Ages 30–49 |
Ages 50–64 |
Ages 65+ |
|
|
80% |
~57% |
~35% |
19% |
|
TikTok (daily use) |
~50% |
Lower |
Lower |
~5% |
|
|
Majority |
80% |
Majority |
Majority |
|
YouTube |
Highest |
High |
High |
Majority |
YouTube and Facebook are the only two platforms where a majority of every age group reports use. Every other platform shows a pronounced drop-off as age increases particularly Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and Reddit.
Social Media Use by Gender
Women are more likely to use Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. More than half of women (55%) report using Instagram, compared to under half of men (44%). Men, on the other hand, are more likely to report using X and Reddit.
Social Media Use by Education Level
Higher levels of formal education correlate with greater use of Reddit, WhatsApp, and Instagram.
About four in ten U.S. adults with at least a college degree say they use Reddit, compared to 28% of those with some college education and 15% of those with a high school diploma or less. TikTok shows the opposite pattern it's used more by those without a college degree.
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Social Media Use by Race and Ethnicity
White adults are less likely than Black, Hispanic, and in some cases Asian adults to use platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp.
For instance, 45% of White adults report using Instagram, compared to 62% of Hispanic adults, 58% of Asian adults, and 54% of Black adults.
What Do People Actually Do on Social Media?
Not all platforms are used the same way and that's easy to miss when you're only looking at user counts.
Why People Use Social Media
GWI research shows that people's reasons for using social media vary considerably by platform and age group.
Messaging friends and family is a primary motivation on Facebook. TikTok users are primarily there for funny and entertaining content passive consumption rather than conversation.
Instagram and Snapchat users are notably more interested in publishing and sharing their own content.
Pinterest users show a strong lean toward brand discovery and product research. Reddit and LinkedIn skew toward information-seeking and professional or topic-specific discussion.
What's often overlooked is how age reshapes these motivations. Younger users tend to use social media for entertainment and self-expression.
Older users are more likely to be there for keeping in touch with people they already know.
Activities by Platform
At first glance, it might seem like social platforms are interchangeable. In practice, they serve quite different purposes for users.
- Facebook — messaging-first; keeping up with family and acquaintances
- TikTok — entertainment consumption; short-video browsing
- Instagram and Snapchat — content creation, stories, self-expression
- Reddit — community discussion, niche interest forums, anonymous Q&A
- LinkedIn — professional networking, industry news
- Pinterest — product discovery, planning, visual research
This behavioral difference matters more than platform size for anyone thinking about where a message is most likely to reach the right audience in the right mindset.
A Note on How Social Media Statistics Are Measured
The numbers in this article come from several different sources, and they don't always agree with each other. That's not an error it reflects genuinely different methodologies.
Self-reported survey data (like Pew and GWI surveys) asks people what platforms they use. People sometimes over-report use of platforms they feel they "should" use or under-report platforms they feel less comfortable admitting to.
App-tracking data (like Similarweb) logs which apps people actually open on their devices generally more behavioral and less subject to social desirability bias, but limited to the users who have opted into tracking.
Advertising reach figures are published by platforms themselves and reflect the audience that can theoretically be reached through ads not necessarily the full active user base.
Additionally, "user identities" — the unit used by Kepios for global totals — are not the same as unique human users. Duplicate accounts and business profiles inflate this figure to an unknown degree.
One more thing worth flagging: Pew Research Center changed its survey methodology in 2023, shifting from phone-based to web and mail responses.
This affects direct year-over-year comparisons with pre-2023 Pew data, which is why the Center treats such comparisons with appropriate caution.
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Conclusion
Social media now reaches more than two-thirds of the world's population. Seven platforms claim over a billion monthly active users.
Usage patterns vary sharply by age, gender, education, and country and what people do on each platform differs just as much as who uses it.
Frequently Asked Questions About Social Media Statistics
How many people use social media in 2025?
There are approximately 5.66 billion social media user identities worldwide as of October 2025, according to Kepios analysis. This represents around 68% of the global population and 93.8% of all internet users.
Which social media platform has the most users?
It depends on the measure. Facebook leads in self-reported surveys. YouTube leads in app-tracking data and advertising reach. Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram each report around 3 billion monthly active users.
How much time does the average person spend on social media per day?
GWI data puts the global daily average at approximately 2 hours and 24 minutes. Weekly, that's around 18 hours and 36 minutes more than one full waking day per week.
What is the most used social media platform in the United States?
YouTube is used by 84% of U.S. adults, making it the most widely used platform. Facebook follows at 71%. Instagram is the only other platform used by at least half of American adults, at 50%.
Which platform do teenagers use the most?
Among U.S. teens, YouTube is the most widely used platform consistent with adult usage patterns. Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat also rank highly among younger age groups.
