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The biggest social networks
Social media is becoming a highly competitive sector. It seems that a new platform is taking the world by storm and bringing together millions of users every two days.
Long gone are the days of Myspace when everyone had one or even two accounts on social networking sites. Today, the average person has 8.4 accounts! But which platforms have the largest number of users? Who are the real headliners of social networks? That's what we're going to find out.
1. With 2.89 billion users, Facebook continues to outperform all of its competitors.
Despite the growing popularity of Snapchat, TikTok, and Twitter, Facebook remains The social media platform the most popular. It has more than 2.89 billion users, which places it well ahead of all its competitors.
Right after Facebook, we have YouTube with 2.3 billion users, WhatsApp with 2 billion, and Instagram with 1.3 billion. TikTok, with 732 million users, Snapchat, with 514 million, Reddit, with 430 million, and Twitter, with 397 million, are attracting attention but still lagging behind.
(Source: Statista.com)
2. 62% of the entire U.S. population aged 12 and older uses Facebook.
In line with the fact that it is the most popular platform, Facebook benefits from brand use by 62% of the entire US population aged 12 and older — a percentage that has remained largely stable over the past three years. This was followed by Instagram, with 43% brand use by those aged 12 and older, Pinterest, with 31% brand use, and Snapchat, with 28% brand use.
(Source: Edisonresearch.com)
3. In the third quarter of 2021, Facebook will reach 2.81 billion cumulative product users.
Facebook, Inc. or, more recently, Meta Platforms, Inc. owns several core products: Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. Cumulatively, these products have benefitted from 2.81 billion daily active users. This marks a significant increase compared to the same period in 2020, which saw 2.54 billion users, and in 2019, which saw 2.2 billion users.
The company said that its monthly active product users surpassed 3.58 billion in the third quarter of 2021.
(Source: Statista.com)
4. The engagement rate per post reached 0.09% on Facebook.
Median engagement rates per follower per post have remained largely unchanged since 2019 on Facebook. The cross-sector average is 0.09%, while the top-performing sectors include sports teams with engagement rates of 0.18%, influencers and higher education with 0.15% each, and hotels and resorts with 0.13%.
Quite surprisingly, engagement rates are 0.02% in the technology and software sector, 0.03% in the fashion sector, and 0.05% in the health and beauty sector.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
5. TikTok surpassed one billion monthly active users in the third quarter of 2021.
TikTok is one of the fastest-growing apps on the market, even after India and Pakistan banned it for “moral issues.” Launched in 2016 under the name Douyin in China, the international version known as TikTok hit the markets in 2017 and immediately began attracting attention.
In four years, the platform grew from 65 million to over 1 billion monthly active users. With 693 million downloads in 2019 and 850 million in 2020, it was among the top 10 most downloaded apps of the 2010s.
(Source: BusinessOfApps.com)
6. Twitter will have 340 million users by 2024.
Twitter has continued to grow over the past few years. When it went public in 2013, it had around 200 million fans worldwide, and currently it can boast over 320 million monthly active users. That number is expected to rise to over 340 million by 2024.
(Source: Statista.com)
7. WeChat reached one billion users in 2018 and reached over 1.25 billion people in 2021.
WeChat is among the world's leading social networks, ranking sixth in terms of active users. Launched in 2011 under the name Weixin, it rebranded to WeChat in 2012 and quickly began accumulating global audiences. The platform grew from 2.8 million users in 2011 to 1.25 billion in 2021.
WeChat has evolved from a simple communication service to a true social media platform offering a variety of features, including voice and text messaging, gaming, payments, and publishing Moments (photos, videos, and status updates).
(Source: Statista.com)
8. Cristiano Ronaldo has the most popular Instagram account with over 315 million followers.
Although Kylie Jenner, with her 249.65 million followers, is often considered to be the most popular Instagrammer, she's not even in the top 3. As of July 2021, the top Instagram accounts include Cristiano Ronaldo with 315.75 million followers, The Rock (aka Dwayne Johnson) with 254.76 million followers, and Ariana Grande with 252.84 million followers.
Of course, none surpasses Instagram's own account with 439 million followers.
(Source: Statista.com)
9. Barack Obama has the most popular Twitter account with over 129 million followers.
Despite all the celebrities and businesses that use Twitter on a daily basis, the former president of the United States has the most followers. Barack Obama has 129.78 million followers on the platform, closely followed by Justin Bieber, with 114.04 million followers.
Other renowned accounts include Katy Perry with 109.52 million followers, Rihanna with 102.22 million, Cristiano Ronaldo with 91.39 million, and Taylor Swift with 88.51 million.
(Source: Statista.com)
Social media market size
The social media market grew exponentially, even before the pandemic. However, since the beginning of 2020, the main platforms have experienced rapid growth. Users are more numerous across all age groups and adoption is higher in all countries. Social media sites are breaking profit records, and even spin-off industries like social media management and social media analytics are experiencing exciting business.
Let's dive deeper into the social media market and see how it fared in 2021.
10. 65% of the total world population is online.
More than 5.1 billion people use the internet, representing 65% of the total global population in 2021. Of these 4.66 billion, 4.32 billion are mobile internet users, while 4.2 billion are active users of social networks.
Internet penetration is the highest in Northern Europe, where it reaches 96%. However, most internet users are from Asia - 2.5 billion. The only exception is North Korea, which has virtually no internet penetration.
(Source: Internetworldstats.com)
11. China is expected to have more than 1.27 billion social media users by 2026.
In 2021, mainland China had the largest number of social media users, 999 million. This number is expected to reach 1.27 billion by the end of 2026. India is in second place, with 693 million social media users (1.11 billion expected in 2026), and the United States in third place, with 295 million (323.07 million in 2026).
Behind the United States, we have Indonesia, Brazil, and Russia, all of which have over 100 million users.
12. Global social media platforms will reach $939.67 billion by 2026.
In 2019, the global social media market was valued at $192 billion. Over the next five years, experts estimate that the market will continue to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 25.38%, reaching the value of $939.67 billion by the end of 2026.
(Source: ResearchAndMarkets.com)
13. The social media analytics market will reach $9.3 billion by 2026.
The growth of the social media industry is accompanied by the growth of all the sectors that accompany it. Social network analysis services are increasingly in demand. The entire sector is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 24% over the next five years, from a market value of $3.2 billion in 2021 to $9.3 billion in 2026.
Although the social media analytics market is growing rapidly in North America, the region that is expected to see the strongest growth is Asia-Pacific.
(Source: Marketsandmarkets.com)
14. The social media management market will grow at a CAGR of 23.6% by 2026.
With the number of social media users higher than ever and significant progress in social media analysis, the need for social media management is on the rise lately. One reason for this trend is the need to improve the customer experience and increase user engagement.
As a result, the social media market is expected to grow from $14.4 billion in 2021 to $41.6 billion in 2026, with a CAGR of 23.6% over this period.
(Source: Reportlinker.com)
15. The size of the social networking site market in the United States reaches 62.5 billion dollars.
Less than a decade ago, American social networks were valued at around 10 billion (measured by revenue). In 2021, this figure will reach an astonishing 62.5 billion dollars. The social networking sector has grown much faster than the overall US economy, presenting unique opportunities despite the challenges imposed by the pandemic.
(Source: Ibisworld.com)
16. The growth in the size of the social networking site market reached 17.2%.
With a growth rate of 17.2% in 2021, the social networking site market grew faster than the entire tech sector. Between 2016 and 2021, the social networking site market experienced a growth spurt of 23.9%, a trend that is expected to continue in the following years.
(Source: Ibisworld.com)
Social media demographics
Social media platforms are becoming more and more diverse. Even younger platforms like Snapchat and TikTok see an increase in the number of users across all age groups. From Zoomers to Millenials, Gen X and Boomers, social media platforms appeal to audiences across the globe.
Let's look at some interesting trends in social media use across generations, cultures, and genders.
17. Social media use among baby boomers increased by 54% in 2021.
Despite what the memes and the media may suggest about the irreconcilable differences between younger and older generations, they have one thing in common: that all consumers, across all age groups, have become more dependent on social media.
In the past year alone, the use of social networks by Generation Z, aka Zoomers (born between 1997 and 2012), increased by as much as 78%. Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) follow closely behind, with a 77% increase in the use of social networks.
What is surprising is that similar trends are also being observed among older generations. Social media use increased by 75% among Generation X (born between 1965 and 1980) and by 54% among baby boomers (born between 1955 and 1964).
18. Facebook is the most popular social media brand in the United States among people aged 35 and older.
facebook remains the most popular platform among Millennials, Gen Xers, and older Boomers. More than 60% of social media users in the 35-54 age group use Facebook most often. 10% prefer instagram, while 7% consider Pinterest like their platform of choice.
Among those aged 55 and over, 70% use Facebook, 6% WhatsApp, and 4% Twitter.
Younger generations are divided a bit more evenly between social media brands. 33% of people aged 12 to 34 use Instagram most often, 21% Facebook, 15% Snapchat, and 14% TikTok.
(Source: Edisonresearch.com)
19. The largest demographic group on Facebook is men between the ages of 25 and 34.
Across virtually every age category, men dominate Facebook. More than 18.8% of all Facebook users are men between the ages of 25 and 34, compared to only 12.5% of women in the same age group. The second most represented category is that of men aged 18 to 24, who represent 13.8% of all users. Women in the same age group represent only 9.4% of all Facebook users.
(Source: Statista.com)
20. 32.1% of all Instagram users are between the ages of 25 and 34.
It's no surprise that younger generations are dominating the Instagram world. Over 32.1% of all Instagrammers are between the ages of 25 and 34. Those between the ages of 18 and 24 represent 29.9%, while those between the ages of 35 and 44 represent 16.3% of all Instagram users. Users aged 65 and over represent only 2.3% of all Instagrammers.
In total, more than two-thirds of Instagrammers are under 34.
(Source: Statista.com)
21. Social media penetration in the United Arab Emirates reaches 99%.
As of January 2021, more than 99% of all Internet users in the United Arab Emirates are on social networks, which is a record for social media penetration. With a social media penetration of 89.3%, South Korea is in second place, while Taiwan comes in third, with 88.1%.
The United States isn't even in the top 30 countries with the highest social media penetration, outpaced by countries like Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, and Vietnam, to name a few. Of all Internet users in the United States, only 72.3% are active on social networks.
(Source: Statista.com)
22. 349 million Facebook users are from India.
Although Brazil, Indonesia, and the United States all have record numbers of Facebook users (127 million, 142 million, and 194 million respectively), India takes the top spot. More than 349 million Facebook users come from this country alone, making it the top country in terms of audience on Facebook.
Other countries that have not yet crossed the 100 million user mark (but are on the verge of doing so) include Mexico with 98 million Facebook users, the Philippines with 88 million, and Vietnam with 71 million.
(Source: Statista.com)
23. Over 77 million Twitter users come from the United States alone.
Although Twitter does not have as many users as Facebook, it is still one of the main social media platforms, especially in the United States, where it has 77.7 million users.
Japan follows closely on Twitter, with 58.2 million users, and India lags slightly behind with 24.4 million.
(Source: Statista.com)
24. 38.5% of all Twitter users are between the ages of 25 and 34.
Twitter and Instagram are both the most popular among people aged 25 to 34. More than a third of all Twitter users, or 38.5% to be exact, are in this age group. The second largest group is the 35-49 age group, representing 20.7% of all Twitter users, while those aged 18-24 and 50 and over share third place with 17.1% of global users each. The least represented age group on Twitter is teens, with only 6.6% of all users aged 13 to 17.
(Source: Statista.com)
25. Only 31.9% of Twitter users are women.
Like Facebook, Twitter is mostly dominated by male users, although the gender gap is much more apparent on the latter platform. As of January 2021, only 31.9% of all Twitter users were women, compared to 68.1% men.
(Source: Statista.com)
The increase in annual revenue from social media marketing
Since the most popular social media platforms are free for everyone, the biggest sites get most of their revenue from advertising. Social media marketing is a fast-growing sector that offers unique opportunities for anyone who is ready to seize them.
Social media advertising can increase the reach, engagement, and ultimately the return on investment of any business.
Take a look at the top social media marketing statistics to find out exactly why it's a booming trend.
26. Over 53% of consumers follow brands on social media to learn more about the brand's offering.
Consumers have a variety of reasons to like and follow a brand on social media. However, more than 53% of them do so to find out about new products and services offered by the brand. 52% use social networks to keep up to date with relevant company news, while 38% simply want to be entertained.
Other reasons to follow a brand on social media are reading brand experiences from others (35%) and simply being inspired (34%).
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
27. 91% of customers who follow a brand on social media visit the brand's website/application.
Most consumers who follow a brand on social media act in one way or another. More than 91% will visit the brand's site or app after following the brand on social media. 90% will make a purchase, and 86% will choose that brand over another competitor.
Additionally, 86% of them will visit the company's physical site, 85% will make repeat purchases, and 83% will recommend the brand to friends and family.
28. 46% of marketers strictly use social data as a marketing resource.
Consumer data obtained from social networks is a valuable resource with great potential. However, over 46% of marketers use them solely as a marketing resource. 47% use them for multi-team strategy development, while only 8% use them for enterprise-wide business intelligence.
(Source: Statista.com)
29. 93% of social media marketers use Facebook to promote their business.
While there are dozens of social media platforms that marketers could use to reach a larger audience, a vast majority of them, 93%, use Facebook. Another product from Facebook, Inc. (Meta Platforms, Inc.) follows closely — Instagram, used by 78% of marketers.
Other noteworthy platforms for social media marketers are LinkedIn, youtube and Twitter, but none are used as often.
(Source: Statista.com)
30. In 2020, Facebook's annual advertising revenue reached $82.1 billion.
Advertising revenue from facebook have continued to increase over the past decade. In its early days, Facebook only earned around $764 million in advertising revenue. In 2015, that figure grew to over $17 billion, reaching an astonishing $82.1 billion in 2020, an increase of 21% over the previous year.
31. Mobile social media advertising spending in the United States is expected to reach $71.4 billion by 2025.
As social platforms become more and more mobiles, the same goes for ads. American businesses are already investing heavily in social media advertising as a whole, but many are now only turning to mobile social media marketing.
In 2020, advertising spending on mobile social networks in the United States was valued at around $42.2 billion. By 2025, this figure is expected to reach a staggering $71.4 billion.
(Source: Statista.com)
32. Mark Zuckerberg's net worth is estimated at $119.4 billion.
The richest entrepreneurs in the field of social networks are getting richer, which is not surprising given the huge rise of social networks.
The co-founder of Facebook, Inc. (now Meta Platform, Inc.), Mark Zuckerberg, has an estimated net worth of $119.4 billion.
TikTok creator Zhang Yiming is the second richest social media entrepreneur, but he owns less than half of Zuckerberg's fortune, with a net worth of over $59.4 billion.
Pavel Durov, co-founder of Telegram and founder of the Russian social media platform VK, has a net worth of $17.2 billion, while Jack Dorsey, co-founder and CEO of Twitter, owns $9.7 billion.
33. The average cost per click (CPC) on Facebook is $1.04.
Facebook CPC can refer to all relevant clicks — clicks to react to a post, view an image, watch a video, and more. However, for advertisers, there's typically only one click and one CPC metric that matters—link clicks.
On Facebook, the average CPC for a link was $1.04 in October 2021. Higher CPC can easily be managed by better targeting audiences, improving ad relevance, and optimizing ad content for audiences based on their current stage in the sales funnel.
(Source: Revealbot.com)
34. The average cost per click (CPC) on Instagram is $1.56.
Although Facebook and Instagram are both owned by the same company, the average CPC on Instagram is slightly higher, standing at $1.56 in October 2021.
(Source: Revealbot.com)
35. The average click rate for ads on Facebook is 0.9%.
The cross-industry ad click rate on Facebook is 0.9%, which is significantly lower than the 2% click-through rate on AdWords.
Some sectors perform significantly better than others on Facebook, with the best CTR being legal advertising (1.61%), retail (1.59%), and apparel (1.24%).
The sectors with a lower CTR than the average on Facebook are employment and vocational training (0.47%), finance and insurance (0.56%), and customer services (0.62%).
(Source: Wordstream.com)
36. Facebook ad conversion rates are around 9.21%.
While CTRs on Facebook are slightly lower than expected, ad conversions (CVR) are exploding. The cross-sector average is 9.21%, but some sectors are doing much better than that.
The fitness sectors benefit from Facebook ad conversion rates of 14.29%, closely followed by education with a CVR of 13.58%. Even though the employment and training sector has the worst CTRs on Facebook, it is among the best performers in terms of CVR - 11.73%.
(Source: Wordstream.com)
37. Advertisers can expect an average cost per action (CPA) of $18.68 on Facebook.
Depending on the industry, CPA on Facebook can be a significant investment. The technology sector has the highest CPA, with an average CPA of $55.21. The home improvement, automotive, finance, and insurance sectors also have high CPAs: $44.66, $43.84, and $41.43, respectively.
The lowest cost per action is observed in the education ($7.85), clothing ($10.98) and health ($12.31) sectors.
(Source: Wordstream.com)
38. 41% of consumers find that the most engaging advertising content on social media is entertaining.
Creating engaging social media ads can be a challenge, but businesses only need to listen to their audience.
More than 41% of consumers consider that the most engaging type of social advertising is one that provides some entertainment. 37% will be interested in an ad if it offers a discount, and 33% if it is educational.
Other engagement factors include referring to customer interest (26%), telling a story (20%), and coming from a brand that is loved by friends and family (10%).
39. Video advertising spending in the United States was estimated at $34.3 billion in 2020.
With video becoming the most sought-after type of content, social media advertisers in the United States are starting to invest more in digital video ads on platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
Average digital ad spend across all industries in the United States was valued at $34.3 billion in 2020. This figure is expected to rise to $63.3 billion by 2025.
(Source: Statista.com)
40. Total digital ad spending in the United States will reach $56.68 billion by the end of 2021.
The United States is by far the country that spends the most on digital ads. By the end of 2021, total digital ad spending in the United States is expected to exceed $56.68 billion. China is following closely behind, with spending of $45.13 billion by the end of the year.
(Source: Statista.com)
41. Only 12% of customers leave reviews about the product/service on the company's site.
While it seems like the most convenient option, a business site is one of the least popular places to leave customer feedback, as only 12% of consumers use it. More frequently, consumers prefer to use social networks, as more than 31% of them leave comments on products and services on platforms like Facebook and Twitter.
18% of consumers will provide feedback by email, 16% through a review site, 11% through the customer service number, and 8% through brand surveys.
It's not surprising that leaving in-store reviews is the least popular method, with only 3% of customers using it.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
42. 47% of consumers believe that strong customer service makes a brand the best in its category on social media.
Over 48% of marketers think engaging their audience is what makes their brand the best performer on social media, but 48% of marketers seem to be wrong. Consumers are much more pragmatic, as 47% of them consider good customer service to be the market for a top-notch brand on social media.
Engaging the public (46%), providing transparency (44%), having a distinct personality (33%), telling a compelling story (28%), and creating trends (18%) are all second only to excellent customer service on social media.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
43. Social media has created more intense competition for 93% of marketers.
While social networks make it easy for brands to connect with their audience, they also create much stronger competition. Brands now have to face not only competitors in their immediate circle, but also all the global companies present in their niche. More than 93% of marketers say that social media has dramatically accelerated competition.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
44. 60% of consumers want brands to use Facebook more.
Although 83% of all brands have a presence on Facebook, over 60% of consumers want businesses to use this platform more. Other platforms that are highly sought after by consumers include Instagram (48% want businesses to use it more), YouTube (41%), Twitter (30%), and LinkedIn (17%).
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
45. The number 1 reason marketers use social data is to understand the loyalty of their competitors' customers.
Social data provides a wealth of valuable information, but marketers primarily use it to understand their competitors. They use social data to learn more about:
- The loyalty of the competitor's customers;
- Quality of the competitor's products and services;
- How they can distinguish themselves from their competitors;
- The competitor's customer service;
- The percentage of the competitor's media expenses;
- The competitor's strategy.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
46. Marketers use social data to learn how customers interact with products/services.
Social data offers unique customer insights that can be invaluable for any brand. Ranked in order of importance, here are the top reasons marketers use social data:
- Learn how customers interact with products/services;
- To measure customer dislikes of the brand;
- Evaluate what customers find attractive about the brand;
- Assess future customer expectations;
- To find out about customer trends;
- To find out more about their customers;
- Determine what type of content is best suited to customers.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
Social media content
The type of content that brands post on social media has a significant effect on consumers' perception of the brand. However, more than the type of content, it is its quality that matters.
Learn more about how social media content can shape consumer-brand interactions.
47. 54% of marketers consider video to be an effective tool for achieving social media goals.
Video is the most popular type of content for marketers. More than 54% of them recognize that it effectively helps them reach their social media goals. However, only 25% say that live video does the same.
Additionally, 53% use images to achieve their goals, 30% use text content, and 26% use stories.
48. 61% of all content that brands post on Facebook is based on images.
Brands largely prefer to use images on Facebook, with 61% of cross-industry content types based on images. Link posts represent 21% of all published content, videos 14%, and plain text only 4%.
On Instagram, brands rely mostly on single-image posts, which represent 75% of total content published. Image carousels are present in 12% of all content, unique video posts in 11%, and video carousels in only 1%.
Twitter is the most versatile, with 47% of single-image posts, 26% of link posts, 16% of simple text, 5% of videos, 3% of multi-images, 2% of locations, and 1% of animated GIFs.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
49. Only 14% of brand posts on Facebook are video based.
Despite the fact that 54% of marketers believe in the value of video messages in reaching their goals, video content only accounts for 14% of all brand messages on Facebook.
The numbers are even lower on Instagram and Twitter, with only 11% of all content posted on the former and 5% on the latter based on video.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
50. Facebook influencers enjoy an engagement rate of nearly 0.20% per post per follower.
While many marketers spend hours analyzing the best posting frequency on Facebook, data suggests that there is no universal rule about how often content is posted to increase engagement. Influencers on Facebook who post little new content largely benefit from the same engagement rates as sports teams with more than 15 weekly posts - between 0.15% and 0.20%.
In contrast, health and beauty brands that post as often as influencers only see an engagement rate of around 0.03% from followers.
(Source: Rivaliq.com)
51. Higher education sees engagement rates of over 3% per post per follower on Instagram.
Instagram has proven time and again that it is the best platform for increasing engagement rates with a low volume of posts.
Higher education is the best performer on Instagram, with engagement rates of over 3% /post per follower and around three posts per week. Sports teams come in second place, with an engagement rate of just under 2% for an average of ten publications per week.
(Source: Rivaliq.com)
52. On Twitter, the higher education engagement rate is 0.09% per message.
Although it posts more frequently on Twitter than on Instagram, higher education does not disappoint on Twitter either, with 0.09% engagement per post by the follower. The food and beverage sector is in second place, with publications a few times a week and over 0.07% engagement.
(Source: Rivaliq.com)
53. Apple's #ShotOniPhone campaign is the most successful campaign of 2021.
The year 2021 was marked by several excellent social media marketing campaigns, the best of which were #ShotOniPhone from Apple, launched in 2015, #LetsGrabABeer from Anheuser-Busch, Saweetie Meal from McDonald's, YouTube, and BTS: Permission to Dance, Dove's Self-Esteem Project, and American Eagle and Snapchat: Back-to-School.
(Source: Sproutsocial.com)
54. 49% of consumers don't follow a brand because of poor product quality or support.
Social media can be a gold mine for brands looking to connect with their audience. However, not all consumers remain loyal to a brand on social media. Over 49% of them will stop following a brand due to a low-quality product or poor customer support. 45% will stop following a brand due to irrelevant content or too many ads, 39% due to privacy concerns, and 29% due to negative press.
Conclusion
Social media has opened up a world of possibilities for brands, marketers, and consumers. The statistics mentioned in this article are just the tip of the iceberg and only provide a glimpse of the power of social networks. However, they are more than enough to point you in the right direction and help you reach your social media potential.
