Social media kept growing while attention costs climbed fast, with global users averaging 2 hours 27 minutes per day in the latest estimate for 2024, and Facebook ads in the U.S. averaging $1.72 in 2024. At the same time, misinformation is changing behavior, and 46% of U.S. users say they adjust what they do online after seeing it. Let’s stitch these signals together across platforms and advertisers, from TikTok’s time per user to the shifting ad budgets behind the feed.
Key Takeaways
- Global social media users’ average time spent was 2 hours 24 minutes per day in 2023 (daily time spent)
- Global social media users’ average time spent was 2 hours 27 minutes per day in 2024 (daily time spent estimate)
- Average CPC for Facebook ads in the U.S. was $1.72 in 2024
- 4.8 billion people used social media in 2022 (global social media users), up from 4.2 billion in 2021
- 3.98 billion people used social media in 2023, representing about 50% of the world’s population
- 27% of U.S. adults say they use social media “nearly constantly” (frequency measure)
- 46% of social media users in the U.S. report that they’ve changed what they do online after seeing misinformation (behavioral impact statistic)
- 38% of marketers say paid social is a core channel for their strategy (share citing paid social as core)
- $8.2 billion U.S. social network advertising revenue in 2023 (U.S. spend by advertisers categorized as social networks)
- $45.7 billion revenue from advertising for TikTok in 2023 (company advertising revenue figure)
- $11.1 billion in social media advertising spend in the United Kingdom in 2023 (UK social ad spend estimate)
- Meta reported 99.5 million ad impressions delivered in Q4 2023 (impressions metric disclosed in earnings materials)
- TikTok averaged 19.6 hours per user per month in 2023 (time spent per user)
- Instagram average time spent per user per month was 12.7 hours in 2023 (time spent per user)
With 4.8 billion users worldwide and rising ad spend, social media remains a daily time sink and major marketing channel.
Related reading
01 · Category
Cost Analysis3 stats
01
Global social media users’ average time spent was 2 hours 24 minutes per day in 2023 (daily time spent)
02
Global social media users’ average time spent was 2 hours 27 minutes per day in 2024 (daily time spent estimate)
03
Average CPC for Facebook ads in the U.S. was $1.72in 2024
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
From a cost perspective, social media engagement is edging up from 2 hours 24 minutes per day in 2023 to 2 hours 27 minutes per day in 2024 while Facebook’s average U.S. CPC remains high at $1.72 in 2024, suggesting advertisers may be paying for slightly more time spent alongside persistently elevated targeting costs.
02 · Category
User Adoption2 stats
01
4.8 billion people used social media in 2022 (global social media users), up from 4.2 billion in 2021
02
3.98 billion people used social media in 2023, representing about 50% of the world’s population
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
Under the user adoption category, social media continued to spread rapidly with global usage rising from 4.2 billion in 2021 to 4.8 billion in 2022, and reaching 3.98 billion users in 2023, around 50% of the world’s population.
03 · Category
Industry Trends6 stats
01
27% of U.S. adults say they use social media “nearly constantly” (frequency measure)
02
46% of social media users in the U.S. report that they’ve changed what they do online after seeing misinformation (behavioral impact statistic)
03
38% of marketers say paid social is a core channel for their strategy (share citing paid social as core)
04
41% of TikTok users say they use TikTok to discover brands (brand discovery usage)
05
In 2024, 73% of marketers reported using social media advertising
06
In 2023, 67% of internet users reported encountering misinformation online at least weekly
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Industry Trends show that social media is now both a primary marketing engine and a major trust challenge, with 73% of marketers using social media advertising in 2024 alongside 67% of internet users encountering misinformation online at least weekly.
More related reading
04 · Category
Market Size6 stats
01
$8.2 billion U.S. social network advertising revenue in 2023 (U.S. spend by advertisers categorized as social networks)
02
$45.7 billion revenue from advertising for TikTok in 2023 (company advertising revenue figure)
03
$11.1 billion in social media advertising spend in the United Kingdom in 2023 (UK social ad spend estimate)
04
$17.6 billion social media advertising spend in Germany in 2023 (Germany social ad spend estimate)
05
$6.6 billion social media advertising spend in Australia in 2023 (Australia social ad spend estimate)
06
Worldwide digital video ad spending reached $64.2 billion in 2024
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
In the Market Size category, social media advertising is clearly scaling across geographies, with 2023 spend reaching $11.1 billion in the UK, $17.6 billion in Germany, and $6.6 billion in Australia while the wider digital video ad market hit $64.2 billion in 2024.
05 · Category
Performance Metrics5 stats
01
Meta reported 99.5 million ad impressions delivered in Q4 2023 (impressions metric disclosed in earnings materials)
02
TikTok averaged 19.6 hours per user per month in 2023 (time spent per user)
03
Instagram average time spent per user per month was 12.7 hours in 2023 (time spent per user)
04
Facebook average time spent per user per month was 8.5 hours in 2023 (time spent per user)
05
X average time spent per user per month was 2.5 hours in 2023 (time spent per user)
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
In performance terms, Meta led with 99.5 million ad impressions in Q4 2023 while the wider engagement picture shows TikTok users spending 19.6 hours per month in 2023 far outpacing Instagram at 12.7, Facebook at 8.5, and X at 2.5.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Catherine Wu. (2026, February 13). Social Media Platform Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/social-media-platform-statistics
MLA
Catherine Wu. "Social Media Platform Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/social-media-platform-statistics.
Chicago
Catherine Wu. 2026. "Social Media Platform Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/social-media-platform-statistics.
Sources & references
22 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+12 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)