Social Media Users In The World — (2023 Demographics)

Social Media Users - DemandSage

Have you ever wondered how many social media users there are in the world? We are going to answer that in detail in this post. With 2.95 billion members, Facebook is the most popular social networking site in the world. Whatsapp and Youtube, two other social media networks, each has more than two billion members.

So to answer your question, There are around 8 billion people on the globe, and 4.9 billion of them are using social media as of 2023. This is an enormous number. These numbers also mean that over two-thirds of internet users and one in three people worldwide are on social media platforms.

With social media becoming more and more ever-present, it’s no surprise that social media users are growing steadily every year. In this blog, we’ll take a look at the social media user trends across the globe and explore what it means for businesses in 2023.

Social Media Users Statistics 2023: (Top 10 Picks)

Social Media Users Statistics
  1. There are 4.9 billion social media users in the world as of March 2023. It is forecasted that there will be 5.85 billion social media users worldwide by the year 2027.
  2. The global social network penetration rate is 59.4% as of January 2023.
  3. Facebook is the biggest social media platform in terms of user base. It has 2.958 billion users as of March 2023.
  4. On average, the typical social media user interacts with 6.6 social media platforms.
  5. Eastern Asia has the most social media users (26%) as of 2023.
  6. Social media is used by 85% of the world’s 5.27 billion mobile phone users.
  7. China, with 1,021.96 million users, is the country with the most social media users as of 2023. India ranks second with 755.47 million, and the United States makes it to the third spot with 302.25 million users.
  8. An average person uses social media for two hours and thirty-five minutes every day around the globe.
  9. Millennials and Gen Z are the most frequent users of social media platforms.
  10. The fastest-growing social network is TikTok, which has had a startling 105% user increase in the US during the last two years.

How Many Social Media Users Are There Globally in 2023?

Over 4.9 billion people are accessing social media worldwide as of 2023. An average social media user hops between 6 to 7 social media every month.

Let us see the number of social media users in the world over the years:

YearNumber of Social Media Users
20172.73 billion
20183.1 billion
20193.51  billion
20203.9  billion
20214.26 billion
20224.59 billion
20234.90 billion
2024*5.17 billion
2025*5.42 billion
2026*5.64 billion
2027*5.85 billion

Which is the Biggest Social Media Platform in 2023?

Facebook is the biggest social media platform in the world as of 2023, with 2.91 billion Monthly Active Users (MAUs).

Youtube (2.56 billion MAUs) and Whatsapp (2 billion MAUs) make up the top 3.

Most social networks provide growth data in terms of the number of monthly active users rather than registered profiles because this data is more reliable for evaluating real use and geographical penetration.

Here is a table showing the biggest social media platform in the world as of 2023 in terms of MAUs:

Social Media PlatformNumber of Users
Facebook2.95 billion
Youtube2.56 billion
Whatsapp2 billion
Instagram2.5 billion
WeChat1.26 billion
Tik Tok1.2 billion
Facebook Messenger988 million
Douyin600 million
QQ574 million
Sina Weibo573 million
Kuaishou573 million
Snapchat557 million
Telegram550 million
Pinterest444 million
Twitter436 million
Reddit430 million
Quora300 million

How Many Accounts Does An Average Social Media User Have in 2023?

As per Backlinko, the average number of social media accounts held by millennial or Gen Z users around the world is 8.5. According to research on 46 nations with internet users aged between 16 to 64, Japan had the lowest overall number of social media accounts at 3.8, while India had the highest at 11.5 per user.

Here is a list of countries with users having multiple social media accounts:

Country Average Social Media Accounts Per Person
India11.4
The United States7.1
The United Kingdom6.9
Canada6.8
Japan3.8

Which Country Has the Most Social Media Users in 2023?

China has the most social media users worldwide, with around 1021 million (1.02 billion) users as of 2023.

Statista predicts that the number of Chinese social media users will reach 1.21 billion in 2027.

India has the second biggest social media user base with 755.47 million users. The United States and Indonesia follow with 302.25 and 217.53 million users, respectively.

Here is a table showing the top 20 countries with the Most Number of Social Media Users as of 2023:

CountryUsers as of 2023Predicted number of users by 2027
China1,021.96 million1,212.38 million
India755.47 million1,177.5 million
USA302.25 million327.22 million
Indonesia217.53 million261.7 million
Brazil165.45 million188.35 million
Russia115.05 million126.37 million
Japan101.98 million113.03 million
Mexico98.21 million122.07 million
Philippines84.07 million92.68 million
Vietnam72.29 million81.63 million
Turkey67.11 million76.58 million
UK61.67 million65.23 million
Germany60.88 million73.15 million
Thailand56.27 million59.32 million
France48.71 million56.62 million
South Korea46.09 million47.61 million
Italy43.31 million46.89 million
Nigeria38.47 million91.55 million
Canada34.47 million38.93 million
Bangladesh24.49 million33.6 million

An interesting thing to note from the above table is that Nigeria will have a massive boost in the number of social media users by 2027.

World Regions with the most Social Media Users in 2023

As of 2023, Eastern Asia has 26% of the world’s social media users, putting it at the top spot. Central Africa has the least portion of social media users, with 0.46%.

Knowing the strength of a region’s userbase helps social media marketers formulate their policies. 

To make things easier, we have created a table with nineteen different world regions and their share of social media users as of 2023:

World RegionSocial Media Users
East Asia26%
South Asia18.44%
South-East Asia11.02%
North America9.47%
South America6.68%
Central & Western Europe5.7%
East Europe4%
South Europe3.99%
West Asia3.57%
North Africa3.36%
West Africa1.93%
East Africa1.44%
Southern Africa0.99%
North Europe0.64%
Australia and Oceania0.61%
Central America0.60%
Central Asia0.58%
Caribbean0.54%
Central Africa0.46%

Gender of Global Social Media Users

54% of men and 46% of women make up the global social media users as of 2023.

Social Media Users - Gender
  • 76% of all females and 72% of all males in the US have a social media account.
  • In the United Kingdom, 80% of all males and 84% of all females have a social media account.

If we consider world regions, we further get interesting figures.

Here is a table showing the gender of social media users around world regions:

World RegionShare of Male UsersShare of Female Users
North America46%54%
South America48%52%
West Europe50%50%
Southern Africa48%52%
South Asia73%27%
Oceania47%53%

Gender of Social Media Platform Users

Earlier, we discussed the gender of overall social media users; let’s now discuss the gender split of various social media platforms.

  • Females make up 53.8% of Snapchat’s user base.
  • Instagram has quite an even gender split, with 49.3% female and 50.7% male users.

Here is a table showing the gender split of top social media platforms:

PlatformMale UsersFemale Users
Facebook56.6%43.4%
Instagram50.7%49.3%
Snapchat45.4%53.8%
Twitter56.4%43.6%
Tik Tok43%57%
Youtube53.9%46.1%
LinkedIn57.2%42.8%

Sources: Statista, Demandsage, Growth Devil.

Social Media Penetration By Country in 2023

The global penetration rate of social media is 59.4%.

  • When it comes down to countries, UAE leads the way with a social media penetration rate of 106.1%.
  • Nigeria, whose social media users are projected to reach 91 million by 2027, has a very low penetration rate of 15.4%.
  • India, which has the second most social media users in the world, has a penetration rate of just 33.4%
  • The United States of America has a penetration rate of 80.9%.

Let us take a look at the social media penetration rate of countries as of 2023:

CountrySocial Media Penetration Rate
United Arab Emirates106.1%
Malaysia91.7%
South Korea91.2%
Sweden90.8%
Netherlands90.7%
Singapore89.5%
Taiwan89.4%
New Zealand89.2%
Hong Kong88.1%
Spain87.1%
Canada87.1%
Germany86.5%
Argentina86.3%
Switzerland86.2%
Denmark85.3%
United Kingdom84.3%
Portugal83.7%
Australia82.7%
Philippines82.4%
Saudi Arabia82.3%
Belgium81.7%
Austria81.4%
Colombia81.3%
Thailand81.2%
Japan81.1%
United States80.9%
Turkey80.8%
France80.3%
Brazil79.9%
Israel79.7%
Ireland79%
Mexico78.3%
Russia72.7%
China68%
India33.4%
  • If we talk about world regions, then Northern Europe takes the top spot with an 83.6% social media penetration rate.

Here is a table showing the Social Media penetration rate by world region as of January 2023:

World RegionSocial Media Penetration Rate
Northern Europe83.6%
Western Europe83.3%
Southern Europe76.7%
Northern America73.9%
Eastern Asia72%
Southern America71.3%
Eastern Europe70.5%
Central America67.5%
Southeastern Asia63.7%
Western Asia63.6%
Oceania62%
Caribbean50.6%
Northern Africa48.8%
Southern Africa41.3%
Southern Asia32.5%
Central Asia27.4%
Western Africa13.3%
Eastern Africa8.4%
Middle Africa7.4%
Global59.4%

Social Media Advertisement Statistics

  • In 2023, advertisement spending in the Social Media Advertising market is expected to reach $226.00 billion.
  • Advertisement expenditures are estimated to grow at an 11.24% annual rate (CAGR 2022-2027), resulting in a market volume of $384.90 billion by 2027.
  • In terms of worldwide advertisement spending, the United States will generate the most revenue ($80,670 million) in 2023.
  • It is estimated that mobile will produce $384.90 billion in total ad spending by 2027 In the Social Media Advertising market.
  • The number of users in the Social Media Advertising segment is estimated to reach 5,851.53 million by 2027.

USA-Specific Social Media Statistics

Most of the top social media platforms worldwide have headquarters in the US. Being a world leader and first-world country, knowing how things look like in the US social media scene is quite crucial, especially if you are someone who is targeting specifically the US audience.

The USA has 302.35 million social media users as of 2023. That means 90% of the total US population uses social media actively.

  • Facebook is the most popular social media platform in the US, with 74.2% of adults using it.

Here is a table showing the most popular social media platform in the USA:

PlatformShare of Adults using it
Facebook74.2%
Instagram60.7%
Tik Tok42.4%
Twitter41.8%
Pinterest39.0%
Snapchat38.7%
LinkedIn28.7%
Whatsapp28.6%
Reddit27.9%

Gender of Social Media Users in the USA

In America, women are more likely to use social media:

  • 76% Females.
  • 72% Males.

Race Of Social Media Users in the USA

Majority of Social Media users in the USA are Hispanic (80%).

  • 77% are Black
  • 69% are White

Age of Social Media Users in the USA

It comes without surprise that Gen Z and Millenials make up the majority of the US population using social media.

Here is a table showing the age distribution of Social Media users in the US:

Age GroupShare of Users
18-2984%
30-4981%
50-6473%
Over 6545%

Source: Statista, Pew Research, Backlinko.

Other Important Statistics Associated with US Social Media Users.

  • TikTok is the most downloaded social media app in the US.
  • 78% of social media users in the US Adults use Facebook regularly.
  • Facebook.com is the website with the highest share of visits in the US.
  • There are nearly 180 million Facebook users in the US.
  • 50.64% of US TikTok users access the platform daily.
  • Twitter has 86% brand awareness in the US, followed by Snapchat (84%), Pinterest (79%), and Reddit (68%).

Timeline of Social Media

This section lists some of the most significant “moments” in social media history. From the initial social networking site (developed in the 1990s) to the most current improvements to platforms with billions of users.

1997: ‘SixDegrees.com’ was the first ever social media site, launched in May 1997

1998: ‘Open Diary’ established the first social blogging network, pioneering the reader comment and friend-only content.

1999: YouthStream Media Networks pays $125 million for acquiring SixDegrees.com.

  • Yahoo! Messenger is Launched.
  • MSN Messenger is Launched.

2000:Habbo,’ a game-based social networking site, launches.

2001: ‘SixDegrees.com’ shuts down 🙁

  • Windows Messenger is now available and included with Windows XP.

2002: ‘Friendster,’ a social networking and game site, is launched.

2003:LinkedIn,’ a business-oriented social networking platform, is launched.

  • ‘MySpace’ is launched.
  • ‘Skype’ is launched.

2004: ‘Facebook,’ the world’s most popular social networking service today, is launched. It now has audio and video calling capabilities and a popular instant messaging service.

  • ‘Flickr’ is launched.
  • Google launches ‘Orkut’, a social networking website.
  • ‘News Corporation’ pays $580 million for ‘Myspace.’

2005: Qzone, a Chinese social networking site, goes live.

  • Reddit is launched, an American social news collection, web content rating, and discussion website.
  • Yahoo! acquires ‘Flickr.’

2006: ‘Twitter’ is Launched. It now has 436 million MAUs.

  • VK (VKontakte), a popular Russia-based social networking platform similar to Facebook, is launched. 
  • Facebook has launched its News Feed. The News feed is a continually refreshed summary of updates about one’s friends’ activities.

2007: ‘Tumblr’ is launched.

2009: ‘Sina Weibo,’ a Chinese microblogging network, goes live.

2010: ‘Pinterest’ makes its debut.

  • ‘Instagram’ is launched.
  • ‘Quora’ is launched.

2011: ‘Snapchat’ is launched.

  • Microsoft acquires Skype for $8.5 billion.
  • ‘Google+’ is launched.
  • Myspace is sold to Specific Media by News Corp. for $35 million
  • LinkedIn issues its IPO.
  • ‘Twitch’ is launched.

2012: ‘Facebook’ goes public.

  • ‘Snapchat is launched’
  • ‘Tinder’ is launched.
  • Facebook acquires Instagram for $1 billion.

2013: ‘Vine’ is launched and is quickly taken over by Twitter for $30 million.

  • Twitter files for its IPO.
  • ‘Google Hangout’ is launched.
  • Myspace relaunches with a redesigned website and a mobile app.

2014: ‘Musical.ly’ is launched.

  • Amazon acquires Twitch for $970 million.
  • Google shuts down Orkut.

2015: ‘Periscope,’ a live video sharing app, was launched and quickly acquired by Twitter.

  • ‘Discord’ is launched.

2016: Yahoo! stopped its services for mac, Windows, Solaris, and Linux users. Yahoo! the Messenger, will now only be supported on Android, iOS, and web clients.

  • Time Inc. buys Myspace and its parent company.

2017: ByteDance acquires Musical.ly for $1 billion.

  • Snapchat files for its IPO.
  • ‘TikTok’ is launched.

2018: ‘Yahoo! Messenger is shut down.

  • Musical.ly shuts down and migrates its users to TikTok.

2019: Google+ shuts down

2020: ‘Clubhouse’ is launched.

Related Read:

Conclusion: Social Media Users (2023)

This was my detailed take on social media statistics as of 2023.

The rise of social media is an astonishing example of how rapidly and dramatically behavioural patterns can change: something that is now part of the daily lives of more than 50% of the world’s population was inconceivable less than a generation ago.

If you have anything to add or want me to include, let me know in the comments below, and I will be happy to do it.

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