The short answer
There are 5.81 billion social media user identities worldwide, equal to 69.9% of the world's population, according to DataReportal's Digital 2027 Global Overview (data as of October 2026). That is 151 million more than a year earlier. Meta alone reaches 3.64 billion people every day across its apps.
How to read these numbers
- User identities are accounts, not people. One person with two accounts counts twice, which is why some countries show more than 100%.
- Ad reach is not users. It is the audience a platform's ad tools say an advertiser can reach, and TikTok's counts adults 18 and over only.
- LinkedIn counts members, meaning registered accounts, not active users.
- Different sources count differently. ITU and DataReportal both estimate internet users, with different methods, so compare like with like.
Global social media statistics
| Statistic | Figure | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social media user identities | 5.81 billion | Oct 2026 | DataReportal Digital 2027 |
| As a share of world population | 69.9% | Oct 2026 | DataReportal Digital 2027 |
| Growth in a year | +151 million (+2.7%) | 12 months to Oct 2026 | DataReportal Digital 2027 |
| Internet users | 6.15 billion (73.9%) | Oct 2026 | DataReportal Digital 2027 |
| People using the internet (ITU estimate) | 6.3 billion (76%) | 2026 | ITU Facts and Figures 2026 |
| People still offline | 2 billion | 2026 | ITU Facts and Figures 2026 |
| Time on social media and online video, per user | 19 h 18 min a week | Latest GWI wave, Oct 2026 | GWI via DataReportal |
| Social platforms used each month, per user | 6.75 | Q2 2025 | GWI via DataReportal Digital 2026 |
Read November 7, 2026. DataReportal's Digital 2027 reports use data as of October 2026.
Users by platform
| Platform | Figure | What it measures | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meta (all apps) | 3.64 billion | Daily active people across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp | Sept 2026 | Meta Q3 2026 results |
| 3 billion | Monthly active users | Sept 2025 | Zuckerberg, via Reuters | |
| Snapchat | 977 million (495 million daily) | Monthly and daily active users | Q3 2026 | Snap Q3 2026 results |
| 661 million | Monthly active users, a record | Q3 2026 | Pinterest Q3 2026 results | |
| X and Grok | About 550 million | Monthly active users of X and Grok combined | Mar 2026 | SpaceX filing with the SEC |
| Threads | 500 million | Monthly active users | June 2026 | Meta Newsroom |
| 1.4 billion+ | Members (registered), 71 million companies | 2026 | LinkedIn Pressroom | |
| Bluesky | Over 43 million | Registered users | Mar 2026 | Bluesky blog |
| YouTube Shorts | Over 200 billion | Average daily views | Page read Nov 2026 | YouTube press page |
Read November 7, 2026. TikTok and YouTube publish no current global user count, and Meta stopped reporting Facebook-only users in 2024, so those are not listed. Figures quoted elsewhere for them are estimates.
How long people spend on each app
Average daily time per user in each app's Android app, measured by Similarweb and published by DataReportal for August 2026:
- TikTok: 1 hour 55 minutes a day
- Instagram: 1 hour 40 minutes a day
- YouTube: 1 hour 28 minutes a day
- Facebook: 59 minutes a day
Social media and buying decisions
- 41.8% of online adults use social media when they research a possible purchase, rising to 46.9% among 16 to 24 year olds (GWI, Q2 2026, via DataReportal).
- More than 30% of internet users aged 16 and over discover brands through social media ads (GWI, Q2 2025, via DataReportal).
- In the US, 84% of adults use YouTube, 70% Facebook and 51% Instagram (Pew Research Center, survey January to June 2026).
UAE social media statistics
From DataReportal Digital 2027: United Arab Emirates (published November 4, 2026, data as of October 2026).
| Statistic | Figure | Share of population |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 11.6 million | |
| Internet users | 11.5 million | 99.0% |
| Social media user identities | 13.7 million | 117% |
| Facebook ad reach | 10.2 million | 87.8% |
| YouTube ad reach | 9.91 million | 85.3% (+18.4% in a year) |
| Instagram ad reach | 8.90 million | 76.6% (+10.6% in a year) |
| TikTok ad reach (adults 18+) | 13.7 million | |
| LinkedIn members | 12.0 million | +20% in a year |
| Snapchat ad reach | 5.09 million | 43.7% |
| Pinterest ad reach | 3.08 million | 26.5% |
| X ad reach | 2.08 million | 17.9% |
| Internet users 16+ who used WhatsApp last month | 84.1% | GWI, Q2 2026 |
Identities can exceed 100% because people hold more than one account. The UAE also leads the world in fibre: 99.7% of households have fibre-optic access, according to the TDRA (August 2026).
Saudi Arabia and Egypt
| Statistic | Saudi Arabia | Egypt |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 35.3 million | 121 million |
| Internet users | 35.0 million (99.0%) | 99.0 million (82.2%) |
| Social media user identities | 44.8 million (127%) | 57.5 million (47.7%) |
| YouTube ad reach | 27.6 million (78.2%) | 53.1 million (44.1%) |
| Facebook ad reach | 17.6 million (49.8%) | 51.0 million (42.3%) |
| Instagram ad reach | 18.3 million (51.7%) | 22.0 million (18.3%) |
| Snapchat ad reach | 26.6 million (75.4%) | 22.0 million (18.3%) |
| X ad reach | 13.5 million (38.1%) | 4.23 million (3.5%) |
| LinkedIn members | 15.0 million | 20.0 million |
Sources: DataReportal Digital 2027 Saudi Arabia and DataReportal Digital 2027 Egypt, both published November 5, 2026. Snapchat reaches three in four people in Saudi Arabia, while X reaches fewer than one in twenty in Egypt.
What these numbers mean for small businesses
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- Be where your buyers are, by country. In the UAE, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram each reach three quarters or more of the population; in Saudi Arabia, Snapchat and YouTube lead; in Egypt, YouTube and Facebook.
- Video wins time. People spend nearly two hours a day in TikTok and Instagram each, more than in any other app on the list.
- Reply fast. With four in ten online adults researching purchases on social media, an unanswered comment or DM is a lost customer.
- Arabic matters in the Gulf. Only 0.6% of websites are in Arabic (W3Techs, November 2026), while English is 49.5%, so Arabic posts and replies stand out.