Social Media Usage & Growth Statistics

Since its inception in 1996, social media has managed to infiltrate more than half of the 8.06 billion people in the world.

Social network platforms almost tripled their total user base in the last decade, from 970 million in 2010 to the number passing 5.17 billion users in July 2024.

The spectacular year-on-year adoption of new users on the platforms is, however, slowing down. It now relies on the continuous growth in the number of people with internet access and smartphones, particularly in developing regions.

So, how big is social media and how has it evolved today?

In this awesome statistical roundup, you’ll discover the latest social network data by the numbers and key demographics, here’s a summary of what you’ll learn below:

• Social Media Usage Statistics (Top Picks)
• How Many People Use Social Media?
• Global Social Media Growth Rates
• Social Media Penetration by Country
• Social Media in the US by the Numbers
• Most Popular Social Media Platforms
• Average Time Spent on Social Media

So without further ado, let’s dive into the top 7 statistics you cannot miss surrounding one of the fastest adopted technologies in the last century.

Let’s dive right in:

Social Media Usage Statistics (Top Picks)

• 5.17 billion people currently use social media worldwide, up more than double from 2.07 billion in 2015
• The average social media user engages with an average of 6.7 various social media platforms
• 63.7% of the global population in the world uses social media, among audiences aged 18+ that’s as high as 86.1%
• Globally, the average time a person spends on social media a day is 2 hours 20 minutes
• Facebook is the leading social network with 3.07 billion monthly active users, followed by YouTube (2.5 billion), WhatsApp (2 billion), Instagram (2 billion), and TikTok (1.58 billion)
• 70.1% of the total US population actively uses social media, totaling a number of 239 million people
• In the US, 51.2% of social media users are female, while the remaining 48.8% are male, compared with a global average of 46.6% for female, and 53.4% for male.

How Many People Use Social Media?

As of July 2024, the number of people using social media is over 5.17 billion worldwide, with the average user accessing 6.7 social media platforms on a monthly basis.

All social networks report growth data on the number of monthly active users or MAU’s rather than the number of accounts, as this data is more accurate for measuring actual use and territory penetration.

What Percentage of People Use Social Media?

The current percentage of people using social media is 63.7% of the world’s total population. However, when we look into platform penetration rates from people in eligible audiences, 94.9% of 5.45 billion global internet users and 91% of 5.68 billion mobile phone users are on social media.

Key Statistics:

• 5.17 billion people use social media worldwide, according to platform reports on the current number of active users
• 86.1% of the world’s population is active on social media when looking at eligible audiences aged 18+ years
• Out of 8.12 billion people in the world, 63.7% of the population use social networks, regardless of age or internet access
• Out of 5.45 billion internet users, 94.9% are active users
• Out of 5.68 billion unique mobile phone users, 91% are active users

How Many Social Platforms Does the Average Person Use?

According to the Global Web Index, the average number of social media platforms users aged 16+ access regularly on a monthly basis is 6.7 worldwide. That rises up to 7.4 platforms among audiences aged 16-24 years old. The study of 53 countries with internet users aged 16+ shows Japan had the lowest average number of social platforms used at 3.5, comparably Brazil had the highest with 8.0 per internet user.

5 Highlights for Backlinko’s audience:

• Brazil: Averages 8.0 platforms per internet user
• India: Averages 7.7 platforms per internet user
• USA: Averages 6.3 platforms per internet user
• UK: Averages 5.8 platforms per internet user
• Japan: Averages 3.5 platforms per internet user

How Many People Use Social Networks for Business?

37.8% of all internet users worldwide use social media for work purposes.

In the U.S., only 25.4% of people actively use social media in their jobs, compared with the highest by country in South Africa at 52.7%, or the lowest at 8.9% in Japan.

5 Highlights for Backlinko’s audience:

• Brazil: 49.5% of people use it for work
• India: 42.6% of people use it for work
• USA: 25.4% of people use it for work
• UK: 24.3% of people use it for work
• Japan: 8.9% of people use it for work

Social Media Usage by Gender

The current global average gender split of social media users is 53.4% men versus 46.6% women.

Which gender uses social media more by region?

• North America: 51% female vs. 49% male users
• South America: 52% female vs. 48% male users
• Western Europe: 50% female vs. 50% male users
• Southern Africa: 50% female vs. 50% male users
• Southern Asia: 34% female vs. 66% male users
• Oceania: 50% female vs. 50% male users

Which gender uses social media more by platform?

As you can see from the data above, social network usage is different for men and women globally when examining location. Perhaps the most notable gap in gender differences is where we look at the use by platform.

When looking at the top 8 social platforms, LinkedIn, X (Twitter) index higher in male users in the US. Sites like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat are more female-orientated, especially Pinterest, which dominates with female audiences in the US.

Sources: DataReportal 1, DataReportal 2

Global Social Media Growth Rates

How Much Does Social Networking Grow Year on Year?

In 2024, there are 5.17 billion people actively using social media in the world, and this is an increase of 4.44% year-on-year from 4.95 billion in 2023.

Back in 2015, there were only 2.08 billion users – that’s a 2.49x increase in users in just nine years.

9 Year Social Media Growth Statistics:

• 2024: 5.170 billion active users (+4.44%)
• 2023: 4.950 billion active users (+7.07%)
• 2022: 4.623 billion active users (+3.19%)
• 2021: 4.480 billion active users (+13.13%)
• 2020: 3.960 billion active users (+13.7%)
• 2019: 3.484 billion active users (+9.2%)
• 2018: 3.196 billion active users (+9.0%)
• 2017: 2.796 billion active users (+21%)
• 2016: 2.307 billion active users (+11%)
• 2015: 2.078 billion active users

Day One: When Did Social Media Start?

The rise of social media began back in 1996 with the release of the networking site Bolt (now closed). Shortly after, in 1997, Six Degrees was released where users could add friends and make profiles. Following that, services like AOL Instant Messenger, Live Journal, and Friendster launched all paving the way for the leader, Facebook, in 2004.

Timeline: Early days of social media

• 1996: The first social networking and video website is Bolt, which was active from 1996-2007
• 1997: A site called Six Degrees was created where users could upload profile information and connect with users by making ‘friends’
• 1997: AOL launched its Instant Messenger service, who acquired it from an Israeli based company, it was originally called ICQ and launched in 1996
• 1999: This was the launch of LiveJournal, the first popular blogging platform
• 2000: Habbo, a game based networking site, was released
• 2002: Friendster launched, where users made profiles, connected, and share content
• 2003: LinkedIn launched the first business-orientated social networking site
• 2004: Facebook, the most popular platform of all time launches

Sources: DataReportal, Wikipedia

Social Media Penetration by Country

Which Country Has the Most Active Social Media Users in the World?

105.6% of its population using social media (due to duplicates and “fake users”, in some countries share may exceed 100% as counted social media entities may not represent unique individuals). The average penetration rate globally is 63.7%.

Key Statistics by the total population

• On average, 63.7% of the world are active social media users, regardless of age
• On average, 86.1% of the world’s population aged 18+ are active on social media
• USA has 72.5% regardless of age, 77.4% for only those aged 18+ years
• UK has 82.0% regardless of age, 90.4% for only those aged 18+ years
• Canada has 77.2% regardless of age, 87.5% for only those aged 18+ years
• Australia has 77.2% regardless of age, 86.0% for only those aged 18+ years
• India has 33.0% regardless of age, 40.6% for only those aged 18+ years

Social Media in the US by the Numbers

What Percentage of Americans Are on Social Media?

According to recent estimates, the number of active social media users in the US is 239 million in 2024, meaning 70.1% of Americans are on social media.

Number of Americans on Social Media:

The US social media penetration is calculated by the total number of active social network users versus the total population.

• 70.1% of the total US population have social network accounts, regardless of age, totaling a number of 239 million people

US Social Media Use by Gender:

In America, social media is more prevalent among women, in particular, Snapchat and Pinterest, whereas men are using sites like YouTube and X (Twitter) more.

• 78% of females
• 66% of males

US Social Media Use by Ethnicity:

The percentage of social media use versus the total population by race for the entire US population is:

• 80% Hispanic
• 77% Black
• 69% White

US Social Media Use by Age:

Unsurprisingly, the percentage of Americans using social media by age is primarily Gen Z and Millennials.

• 84% of those aged 18-29
• 81% of those aged 30-49
• 73% of those aged 50-64
• 45% of those aged 65+

Sources: Pew Research, DataReportal

Most Popular Social Media Platforms

What Are the Most Used Social Media Sites Worldwide?

In 2024, Facebook is the leading social network with 3,065 billion active social media users worldwide.

YouTube, WhatsApp, and Instagram follow this with over 2 billion, then, WeChat, TikTok, and Facebook Messenger all having 1 billion or more users.

What Are the Most Used Social Media Sites in the US?

Similar to the global ranking, Meta-owned social networks – Facebook and Instagram lead the ranking with the highest number of monthly active users in the US, at 177.5 and 138.5 million, respectively.

Sources: DataReportal, eMarketer

Average Time Spent on Social Media

How Much Time Do People Spend on Social Media Each Day?

In Q1 2024, the average time spent on social media per day is 2 hours 20 minutes globally for users aged 16+ on any device.

In comparison, the time spent on networks by the average person in the US is 2 hours and 3 minutes, 17 minutes less than the global average.

Key Statistics:

• Globally, the average time a person spends on social media a day is 2 hours 20 minutes / 140 minutes.
• Out of the 53 countries surveyed, people in Kenya spend the most daily time networking at 4h 7m.
• People in Japan spend the least daily time on networking at 47 minutes.

Time Spent on Social Media by Country

Below, we have the average daily time spent on social media in hours and minutes in select 10 countries; the data source is the Global Web Index 2024 report.

5 Highlights for Backlinko’s audience:

• Brazil: 3 hours 33 minutes
• U.S.A.: 2 hours 3 minutes
• Australia: 1 hour 49 minutes
• U.K.: 1 hour 32 minutes
• South Korea: 1 hour 13 minutes

Daily Time on Social Media Growth Statistics

Below, we have the growth in time spent on social media in minutes; the data source is from all internet users from 53 countries, aged 16 and over, and on any device.

Source: DataReportal

Conclusion

There you have it for my rise of social media statistics roundup.

In terms of technology adoption, it’s mind-blowing to see how quickly a social network can explode. For example, TikTok was on one in five devices connected to the internet in 24 months.