Platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram remain extremely popular among teenagers. Around nine out of ten teenagers use YouTube, making it the most used platform among young people, according to a new American study.
According to the Pew Research Center’s “Teens, Social Media and Technology 2023” study of more than 1,400 Americans ages 13 to 17, teens maintain high usage of social media platforms, with some reporting being there “almost constantly”.
93% of teens surveyed cited YouTube as the platform they use the most, followed by TikTok for 63%, Snapchat for 60% and Instagram for 59%.
However, the frequency of use varies depending on the platform. For example, about 70% of teens visit YouTube daily, and 16% of them report being on the site almost constantly. TikTok follows with 58% daily users, with 17% using it almost constantly. Snapchat and Instagram also see daily usage of around 50% from teens, but Snapchat has slightly more “near constant” users than Instagram (14% vs. 8%). Facebook, meanwhile, is only used daily by 19% of adolescents.
“The proportion of adolescents using these platforms has remained relatively stable since spring 2022, the date of the last Pew Research Center survey on these topics. For example, the percentage of teenagers who use TikTok is statistically unchanged since last year“, the report emphasized.
Older teens (ages 15 to 17) are more likely to use Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Reddit than younger teens (ages 13 to 14). For example, 68% of teenagers in the 15-17 age group use Instagram, compared to only 45% of those aged 13-14.
TikTok, more popular among women?
The study highlights significant differences in social media use between boys and girls. Girls are more likely to use platforms like TikTok (22%) and Snapchat (17%) almost constantly compared to boys (12% on TikTok and Snapchat). These trends suggest that platforms like TikTok and Snapchat may offer experiences or content that resonate more with teenage girls.
However, there is little difference between boys and girls when it comes to almost constant use of YouTube, Instagram and Facebook. We notice a slight advance of boys (18%) over girls (15%) regarding the YouTube platform, and conversely a small predominance of women on Instagram, 10% compared to 7% among men, and on Facebook, 4 % versus 1%.
Overall, girls use Instagram more than boys, 66% versus 53%. They also more often prefer BeReal, TikTok, Snapchat and Facebook. On the other hand, teenage boys are more likely to use Discord (34% versus 22%) and Twitch (22% versus 11%). Additionally, a larger share of boys use Reddit and YouTube compared to girls.
Good in his body, good in his head!
About 1 in 3 Hispanic teens say they are on TikTok almost constantly
Adolescents’ responses also reveal interesting trends based on their ethnicity. Higher percentages of Black and Hispanic teens report being on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok “almost constantly” compared to white teens. In particular, TikTok use is significantly higher among Hispanic teens, with 32% reporting almost constant use, compared to 20% for black teens and 10% for whites. These differences may reflect variations in cultural preferences or communication patterns within these communities.
Among Black teens, 80% report using TikTok, compared to 70% of Hispanic teens and 57% of white teens. Twitter also has racial disparities, with more frequent use among black teens compared to their Hispanic and white counterparts.
When it comes to WhatsApp, the numbers show a strong preference among Hispanic teens, surpassing usage by black and white teens. On the other hand, BeReal stands out as being the preferred platform for white teenagers, compared to black or Hispanic teenagers.
*Pew Research Center conducted an online survey of 1,453 U.S. teens from September 26 to October 23, 2023, through Ipsos.
