100+ Essential Social Media Statistics (2021 Update!)
It’s nearly impossible to overestimate the importance of social media statistics for your digital marketing in 2021.
Social media addiction is real and more and more business interactions and transactions are taking place on social networking sites.
You don’t want to be left behind or miss the extraordinary opportunities social media growth presents to expand your business and lure in customers.
Here are some crucial social media statistics to help you implement your social media marketing strategy.
How Many People Are Using Social Media?
Whether discussing social media usage in individual countries or worldwide, the numbers are staggering.
- 3.6 billion people use social media worldwide.
- That number is expected to balloon to 4.41 billion by 2025.
- 316 million new users have been added in just the last 12 months.
- There are 5.22 billion unique mobile users worldwide.
- 90% of people that are internet users use social media.
- Social media platforms added 15.5 new users every second (1.3 million per day) in 2020.
- Generationally, social media usage breaks down as follows:
- 90.4% of Millennials
- 77.5% of GenXers
- 48.2% of Boomers
8. While only 21% of children ages 8-11 use social media, the percentage increases dramatically to 71% of children ages 12-15.
What Social Networks Are the Most Popular?
9. Facebook still dominates as the most used social network and boasts over 2.7 billion monthly active users (MAUs).
10. YouTube (2.29 billion), WhatsApp (2 billion), and Facebook Messenger (1.3 billion) take second, third, and fourth place, respectively. (For more information about WhatsApp, take a look at how to create a WhatsApp business.)
11. Instagram — owned by Facebook — is in 5th place with 1.22 billion MAUs.
Social Media Usage Statistics
12. Two hours and 16 minutes is the average amount of time daily users worldwide spend on social media.
13. The average user has social media accounts on more than 9 social media platforms.
14. Social media usage in the US has increased from 5% in 2005 to 72% in 2019.
15. Proving it’s crucial to optimize your social media for mobile users, 91% of all active social media users access social media with a mobile device.
16. And 80% of the time spent on social media platforms is on mobile devices.
The Power of Social Media Marketing for Businesses
2020 changed the world of social media irrevocably. Being aware of those changes is the primary duty of any marketer in 2021. If you’re not part of the conversation, you’re choosing to ignore your customers.
17. The average clickthrough rate for social media ads was 1.3% as of Q2 2020.
18. 83% of marketers ranked social media marketing second only to search engine marketing.
19. Social marketers say they face three challenges: finding and reaching their target audience, measuring ROI, and supporting their overall business goals.
20. B2B content marketers report that they attribute several factors to their content marketing success, including the value the content provides (83%) and new content (60%).
21. B2B content marketers use social media publishing (81%) and analytics tools (88%).
Do Influencers Help Build Brand Trust?
Would you watch a movie recommended by your best friend? Most people would. And this is the role that social media influencers are playing in the lives of many consumers. Social media users say they’re more likely to make a purchase if they come with the recommendation of a social media influencer.
22. 49% of consumers buy things based on social media influencers.
23. Instagram is the most important social platform for influencer marketing, according to 90% of US marketers.
24. The ROI of influencer marketing is 11 times higher than other forms of digital marketing.
25. Influencer content generates engagement 8 times better than brand content on social media.
Social Media Advertising Statistics
26. Global spending on ads on social media is projected to reach over $110 billion by 2021’s end.
26. By 2023, the percentage of marketing budgets planning to advertise on social media is expected to double.
27. 40% of small businesses rely on social media advertising for revenue.
28. Facebook ads can be very lucrative. 26% of people who click an ad end up making a purchase.
29. Younger generations believe the most relevant ad channels are on social media (50% of Gen Z and 42% of millennials, respectively).
30. YouTube ads lasting 30 seconds have a higher view-through rate than 15-second videos.
31. The average CPM cost on social media was $4.33 in Q2 2020.
32. Also, in Q2 2020, the average CTR for social media ads was 1.3%.
Consumer Behavior Statistics
Social media has become the gateway to more significant interaction with a brand. When a consumer follows a brand on social media, it causes the following chain reaction:
33. In the last six months, social media usage by consumers has increased 50%.
34. 57% of consumers follow brands to learn about new products and services.
35. 91% of these consumers visit the website or app of the brand.
36. 89% of these consumers purchase one or more products from the brand.
38. 85% of these consumers recommend the brand to a friend or family member.
39. 49% of consumers unfollow a brand due to bad customer service.
40. Privacy concerns are the reason 39% of consumers unfollow a brand.
41. 29% of consumers stop following a brand because of negative press.
Social Media Video Statistics
As people are inundated with more and more content, their attention spans grow shorter and shorter. Pictures need to be flashy. Videos need to be catchy and concise. They need variety.
42. 58% of social media users visit a brand’s social media pages before checking out their website.
43. YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram are the top 3 platforms that drive purchases.
44. 90% of Twitter videos are viewed on a mobile device.
45. Live video is above and beyond the most popular post format on Facebook.
46. Carousel (a curated collection of videos and pictures) is the most popular format on Instagram.
47. Images are more popular than standard videos on both Facebook and Instagram.
What Are the Best Times to Post Based on Consumer Engagement?
You want to be able to address your customer’s needs at precisely the right time.
The best times to post are generally in the late morning and early afternoon on weekdays. You’re typically better off posting just once a day, but Twitter and LinkedIn are exceptions.
48. The best days to post for consumer goods are Wednesday and Friday.
49. The best time to post is on Wednesday at 1 p.m. and Friday at 11 a.m.
50. The worst day to post is Sunday.
51. The optimal day to post for consumer goods is Wednesday.
52. The optimal time to post is Wednesday at 3 p.m.
53. The worst day to post is Sunday.
54. For consumer goods, the best day to post is Sunday.
55. The best time to post is Sunday at 11 a.m.
56. The worst day to post is Monday.
57. The best days to post are Wednesday and Thursday.
58. The best times to post are Wednesday from 8-10 a.m. and noon, and Thursday at 9 a.m., 1-2 p.m., and Friday at 9 a.m.
59. The worst day to post is Sunday.
Facebook Statistics
Facebook is the oldest social media network, but it shows no signs of fading. It’s still the #1 social media platform. The majority of American adults have a Facebook account.
60. Facebook had over 2.7 billion MAUs as of Q3 2020.
61. 54% of Facebook users are female, while 46% are male.
62. 34 minutes is the average time Facebook users spend on the social media platform daily.
63. With Facebook’s 9 million active advertisers as of Q2 2020, ad revenue is where Facebook brings in the bucks.
64. Links are the most popular content type for brands at 44.2%.
65. Facebook’s median engagement rate per post for all industries is 0.09%. But these numbers can vary considerably.
66. The engagement rate per post for sports teams is 0.18%, while fashion only gets 0.03%.
67. 87% of US marketers used Facebook marketing in 2020, making Facebook the most popular social media platform for marketers.
Instagram Statistics
Instagram has been around since 2010, and its feature Instagram Stories came out in 2016 and has become an integral part of users’ lives. Instagram Stories provide a slice of life for a limited time of 24 hours.
But Instagram is also an increasingly important part of any social media marketing arsenal.
68. Instagram has 1.2 billion MAUs, 500 million of which use Instagram Stories.
69. Women 18-24 make up the largest demographic.
70. 90% of marketers say Instagram is the most important platform for influencer marketing.
71. The most effective content for marketing is posts (78%) and Instagram Stories (73%).
72. Down 23% from 1.60% in 2019, the current engagement rate per post is 1.22%.
73. Brand engagement is 10 times higher on Instagram than on Facebook.
74. In the US, 11% of social media users use Instagram for shopping.
75. 60% of Instagram users have an annual income above $100,000.
Twitter Statistics
Everyone’s got something to say. Just like Facebook, Twitter entered the world of “fact-checking” in 2020. Twitter is a social media network for venting opinions.
If it’s short and sweet, why not put it in a Tweet?
76. There were 187 million monetizable daily active users as of Q3 2020.
77. Twitter users are split 50-50 between males and females.
78. The largest age demographic (38%) are users between the ages of 18 and 29.
79. Tweets with images or videos are 394% more likely to be retweeted.
80. Per Tweet engagement rate is 0.045%
81. 80% of Twitter users access the platform via the mobile app.
82. 40% of Twitter users say an influencer’s tweet convinced them to make a purchase.
83. Twitter ad engagement is up 27% as of Q3 2020.
Pinterest Statistics
Pinterest utilizes “social bookmarking” to allow users to do projects more effectively. Pinterest sees itself as more of an aggregator of ideas than a social media network. Its active user base is seriously committed.
84. Pinterest boasts 442 million active Pinners as of Q3 2020.
85. 60% of Pinners are female, but male Pinners increase 50% per year.
86. Gen Z Pinners have increased 50% while Millennial Pinners grow 35% per year.
87. 98% of Pinterest users try new things they find on Pinterest.
88. 89% of Pinners look to Pinterest for buying inspiration.
LinkedIn Statistics
LinkedIn is the #1 social media site for professional social networking. While it is considered part of social media, a LinkedIn user is more focused on networking for business purposes.
89. Linkedin has more than 740 million members in more than 200 countries.
90. LinkedIn is used by 96% of B2B marketers for organic content and 83% for paid content.
91. Long-form posts (1900-2000 words) had the best performance in views and engagement.
92. Three people are hired every minute on LinkedIn.
93. 40 million people use it to search for jobs each week.
YouTube Statistics
YouTube had a great 2020. The video-sharing platform boomed during the pandemic, with people turning to YouTube in place of public events and activities.
YouTube can do wonders for your brand if you use these YouTube stats in your marketing campaigns.
94. Behind only Google (which owns YouTube), YouTube is the world’s second-largest search engine.
95. YouTube’s 2.2 billion MAUs watch over a billion hours of video daily.
96. YouTube users are more than 50% female.
97. YouTube’s largest age demographic (81%) is 15-25 year-olds.
98. YouTube is the place to find new brands and products according to 90% of its users.
99. Purchasing decisions are made by watching YouTube say 68% of YouTubers.
TikTok Statistics
100. TikTok is the 7th largest social network, currently outranking Snapchat, Pinterest, Reddit, and Twitter.
101. TikTok has over 689 million monthly active users.
102. 32.5% of TikTok users are Gen Z and late-born millennials between the ages of 10 and19 and 29.5% of users are between the ages of 20 and 29.
103. 37% of TikTok users in the US access TikTok at least once per month on their mobile devices.
104. TikTok users spend an average of 52 minutes on the app every day.
The Unstoppable Social Media Revolution of 2021
These social media stats clearly show that the trajectory of social media is moving skyward. Fast!
Even before 2020 transpired, people worldwide had become enamored with its ability to form connections and market products.
There are 3.6 billion users of social media worldwide. Social media usage will only increase as users search for deeper and stronger connections online.
Social media marketing is at the core of facilitating those connections — and sales.
Making sure you implement a social media marketing strategy can provide this for them.
