Social media platforms are one of the go-to platforms today.
More people spend time on their social media accounts to message their loved ones, check updates and news, and watch entertaining videos.
As of January 2023, about three in five people worldwide are social media users.
If you are a business owner or marketer, you need to consider some statistics and data about social media.
You need to learn the biggest social media platforms by users, the countries with the most social media users, and what people usually do on social media.
In this way, you can plan and strategize on meeting the right audience for your products.
Biggest Social Media Platforms by Users in 2023
With social media platforms becoming more popular over the years, it is not surprising that the user count is continuously growing.
As of January 2023, there are 4.76 billion social media platform users in the world, equivalent to 59.4% of the world’s population.
Meta owns four platforms among the list of the biggest social media platforms worldwide in 2023.
This includes Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger.
Facebook is the biggest and most popular social media platform in terms of the number of users.
It has more than 2.95 billion monthly active users.
YouTube comes next with 2.51 billion monthly active users, and Instagram and WhatsApp have 2 billion each.
Knowing which social media platform you need to focus on for your business or brand will help you reach more audiences and hit the right consumers.
Top 10 Social Media Platforms by Monthly Active Users
Here are the top 10 social media platforms by monthly active users as of January 2023, based on Statista:
- Facebook has 2.958 billion monthly active users
- YouTube has 2.514 billion monthly active users
- WhatsApp has 2.00 billion monthly active users
- Instagram has 2.00 billion monthly active users
- WeChat has 1.309 billion monthly active users
- TikTok has 1.051 billion monthly active users
- Facebook Messenger has 931 million monthly active users
- Douyin has 731 million monthly active users
- Telegram has 700 million monthly active users
- Snapchat has 635 million monthly active users
Social Media Platforms in the United States with the Most Users
Similar to the most-used social media platforms worldwide, Facebook is also the most used in the United States.
It recorded almost 222 million active users in the country in 2023, equating to 74.20%.
Below are the five social media platforms in the US with the most number of users:
- Facebook – is used by 221.71 million active users in the US, equal to 74.20% of internet users in the country.
- Instagram – is used by 180.77 million active users in the US, equal to 60.50% of internet users in the country.
- TikTok – is used by 140.44 million active users in the US, equal to 47.00% of internet users in the country.
- Twitter – is used by 126.39 million active users in the US, equal to 42.30% of internet users in the country.
- Pinterest – is used by 110.56 million active users in the US, equal to 37.00% of internet users in the country.
Number of Social Media Platform Users Worldwide
Social media platform users worldwide are growing steadily over the past years.
According to a recent report, 4.76 billion people are using social media platforms as of January 2023.
It is forecasted to reach 4.89 billion by the end of the year, up from 4.59 billion the previous year.
The following are the numbers of social media platform users worldwide from 2020 to 2027:
- There were 3.9 billion social media platform users worldwide in 2020
- There were 4.26 billion social media platform users worldwide in 2021
- There were 4.59 billion social media platform users worldwide in 2022
- There are an estimated 4.89 billion social media platform users worldwide by the end of 2023
- There are an estimated 5.17 billion social media platform users worldwide by the end of 2025
- There are an estimated 5.42 billion social media platform users worldwide by the end of 2025
- There are an estimated 5.64 billion social media platform users worldwide by the end of 2026
- There are an estimated 5.85 billion social media platform users worldwide by the end of 2027
Countries with the Most Social Media Platform Users
Statistics show that China recorded the most number of social media platform users globally, accounting for 1.02 billion users.
It is followed by India, with 755 million, and the United States, with 302 million.
While the United Arab Emirates holds the highest social media penetration rate, with 106.1%.
How Many Social Media Accounts per User?
On average, the number of social media accounts per user was 8.5 in 2018, up from 4.3 accounts five years ago.
India holds the highest average number of social media accounts per user, with 11.5 per user, while Japan holds the lowest, with 3.8 per user.
Here is a list of how many social media accounts per user in different countries:
- The average number of social media accounts per user in India was 11.4
- The average number of social media accounts per user in the US was 7.1
- The average number of social media accounts per user in the UK was 6.9
- The average number of social media accounts per user in Canada was 6.8
- The average number of social media accounts per user in Japan was 3.8
What Activities Do Users Do on Social Media Platforms?
Social media users are mostly using the platform to message their families and friends, share photos and videos, look for news and current events, research brands and products, and look for entertaining content.
Let’s take a look at the percentages of users “researching brands and products” on social media platforms based on the Data Reportal:
- 55.2% of users research brands and products on Facebook
- 60.9% of users research brands and products on Instagram
- 27.1% of users research brands and products on LinkedIn
- 38.1% of users research brands and products on Pinterest
- 30.6% of users research brands and products on Reddit
- 23.2% of users research brands and products on Snapchat
- 37.5% of users research brands and products on TikTok
- 37.9% of users research brands and products on Twitter
Targeting the Right Social Media Users
People use different platforms for their various needs.
When creating a marketing plan, you should consider which social media platform best suits your brand, who the users are, where most users stay, and what activities they mostly do.
In this way, you can connect with more potential consumers and increase brand awareness.
For example, if you want to sell to Facebook users, target the countries with the most number of Facebook users.
Focus first on India, the US, Indonesia, and Brazil since their combined Facebook audience size as of January 2023 is more than 718 million.
Aside from that, you also need to consider the age range of users.
Conclusion
You might have guessed the biggest social media platforms by users in 2023 since Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, WeChat, TikTok, and Messenger are among the most widely known and used platforms worldwide today.
The active users per platform and country can help you advertise your product effectively, attract more consumers, and encourage existing consumers to repurchase.
