What are Social Media Platforms?
Social media is an internet technology that facilitates the sharing of ideas, thoughts, and information through the building of virtual networks and communities. In short social media platforms are for interactions among people in which they create, share, and exchange information and ideas.
Here is the top social media sites list in the world in 2023. We have created this list on the basis of user bases, engagement time, and revenue by social media platforms.
- What are Social Media Platforms?
- 1. Facebook- World’s Biggest and Most Popular Social Media Platform
- 2. YouTube- 2nd Biggest Social Media Platform
- 3. Instagram- Another Popular Social Media Giant
- 4. Snapchat Social Media Channel
- 5. Pinterest Social Media Platform
- 6. Reddit- An Highly Effective Social Media Platform
- 7. TikTok- Short Videos Sharing Platform
- 8. Twitter- Very Popular Microblogging Site
- 9. LinkedIn- World’s Most Professional Social Media Platform
- 10. Quora- Highly Popular Q/A Social Media Platform
- 11. Medium- Online Publishing Platform
- 12. Clubhouse- Highly Emerging and New Social Audio App
- 13. WhatsApp- Instant Messaging Giant
- 14. Telegram- Highly Emerging Instant Messaging Software
- Closing Keynote on Social Media Platforms:
- FAQs About Social Media Platforms:
1. Facebook- World’s Biggest and Most Popular Social Media Platform
About Facebook:
Facebook is an American MNC and tech giant which was founded by Mark Zuckerberg, Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz, and Chris Hughes, roommates and students at Harvard College. Now, Facebook is the world’s most popular social media platform with billions of user bases across the globe.
Facebook Launch Date and Place: Facebook was founded in February 2004 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States.
CEO: Mark Zuckerberg is the CEO of Facebook from 4 Feb 2004 to the present.
Headquarters: Facebook’s headquarter is in Menlo Park, California, United States.
The 10 Biggest Disclosed Facebook Acquisitions:
Here are some of the top Facebook subsidiaries;
- WhatsApp ($19 billion)
- Oculus VR ($2 billion)
- Instagram ($1 billion)
- CRTL-labs (between $500 million and $1 billion)
- LiveRail ($500 million)
- Onavo (between $100 million and $200 million)
- tbh (less than $100 million)
- Redkix (less than $100 million)
- Parse ($85 million)
- Atlas Solutions (between $50 million and $100 million), and more.
Number of Active Users on Facebook:
- Facebook is the largest social media platform globally at 2.89 billion monthly active users worldwide, followed by YouTube (2 billion), and WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, WeChat, and Instagram, all bringing in over a billion users.
- According to eMarketer, the average time spent on Facebook per day is 37 minutes.
Facebook Mobile Users:
As of July 2021, more than 80% of Facebook users are on Mobile phones.
Countrywise Traffic on Facebook Social Media Platform:
- India has the most Facebook users with over 260 million, followed by the US (180 million), Indonesia (130 million), Brazil (120 million), and Mexico (84 million).
Facebook Users Diversity by Gender and Age:
With the great gender diversity, Facebook has 56.40% of users male and 43.60% of users female.
Facebook Users Age Group:
- 51% of people aged 13-17
- 76% of people aged 18-24
- 84% of people aged 25-30
- 79% of people aged 31-49
- 68% of people aged 50-64
- 46% of people aged 65+
Facebook Annual Revenue:
In 2020, Facebook’s total revenue was US$85.97 billion whereas operating income was US$32.67 billion and net income was US$29.15 billion.
In simple words, Facebook is the biggest social media giant in the world.
2. YouTube– 2nd Biggest Social Media Platform
About YouTube Social Media Channel:
YouTube is an American social media platform owned by Google. It was launched in February 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. YouTube is the most popular type of social media platform.
Founded: YouTube was launched on 14 February 2005, in San Mateo, California, United States.
CEO: Susan Wojcicki is the CEO of YouTube from 5 Feb 2014 to the present.
Headquarters: San Bruno, California, United States is the headquarters of YouTube.
Number of Active Users:
YouTube has more than 2.1 billion active YouTube users worldwide. Facebook is the only social media channel that is ahead of YouTube with an active user base of 2.89 billion.
YouTube Device Distribution:
YouTube Traffic by Country:
India has the most YouTube users with over 225 million followed by the USA (197 million), Brazil (83 Million), Japan (60 Million), and Russia (58 Million).
YouTube Diversity:
Annual Revenue:
In 2020, YouTube generated US$19.8 billion from global advertising revenues that accounted for approximately 10.9 percent of Google’s total annual revenue.
3. Instagram– Another Popular Social Media Giant
About Instagram:
Instagram is an American photo and video sharing social networking service created by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger. In April 2012, Facebook acquired the service for approximately US$1 billion in cash and stock.
Launched: Instagram launched on 6 October 2010 that is available in 32 languages.
Owner: Global social media giant Facebook owns Instagram.
Developer: Instagram was developed by Facebook, Mike Krieger, and Kevin Systrom.
Instagram Number of Active Users:
Instagram has roughly one billion monthly active users and 500+ million daily active users globally. Instagram ranks second behind Facebook for the social network with the highest daily logins.
Instagram Traffic by Country:
India has the most Instagram users with over 180 million, followed by the USA (170 million) and Brazil (110 million).
Instagram Diversity:
Globally, Instagram has 50.9% female and 49.1% male users.
- 75% of people are from 18–24 years of age.
- 57% of people belong to the 25–30 years of age category.
- 47% of people aged 30–49 years. have active Instagram accounts
- 23% of people are 50–64 years of age and 8% aged 65+ who have active Instagram accounts.
Instagram Annual Revenue:
In 2019, Instagram generated US$ 9.45 billion in ad revenues in the United States. Instagram is projected to make US$ 18.16 billion in annual ad sales in 2021.
4. Snapchat Social Media Channel
About Snapchat:
Snapchat is an American multimedia instant messaging app and service developed by Snap Inc., originally Snapchat Inc. One of the principal features of Snapchat is that pictures and messages are usually only available for a short time before they become inaccessible to their recipients.
Launched: Snapchat was launched on 8 July 2011 and is currently available in 37 languages.
Snapchat is a popular messaging app that lets users exchange pictures and videos (called snaps) that are meant to disappear after they’re viewed.
Number of Active Users on Snapchat:
One of the very popular social media platforms, Snapchat has more than 293 million daily active users worldwide.
Snapchat Traffic by Country:
The USA has the most Snapchat users with over 105.25 million, followed by India (99.80 million) and France (23.4 million).
Snapchat Diversity:
The Snapchat audience predominantly consists of female users with 57.4% and 42.6% male users.
48% of US internet users aged 15 to 25 use Snapchat. 30% users aged 26-35 years, 18% aged 36-45, 11% aged 46-55 years while 5% aged 56+ years.
Snapchat Annual Revenue:
The market capitalization of Snapchat is $98.82 billion that generates $2.5 billion in annual revenue in 2020.
5. Pinterest Social Media Platform
About Pinterest:
Pinterest is an American image sharing and social media service created by Ben Silbermann. Pinterest ranks as the 14th largest social media platform globally in terms of active users that is below social networks like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, but ahead of Twitter. Pinterest is also one of the most popular social media platforms.
Founded: Snapchat was created in December 2009 by Ben Silbermann, Paul Sciarra, Evan Sharp and launched in January 2010.
Number of Active Users on Pinterest:
In 2021, Pinterest had 454 million monthly active users worldwide.
Pinterest Mobile Users:
82% of people use Pinterest on mobile
Pinterest Traffic by Country:
42.81% of whole Pinterest traffic comes from the USA followed by Brazil (8.35%), and India (3.82%).
Pinterest Diversity:
As of January 2022, Pinterest has a 77.1% female audience and a 14.5% male audience. Most importantly, 40.8% of Pinterest users worldwide are between 25 and 34 years old.
Pinterest Annual Revenue:
Pinterest generates $1.69 billion in annual revenue.
6. Reddit- An Highly Effective Social Media Platform
About Reddit:
Reddit is an American social platform that aggregates news, web content rating, and discussion. Registered members can submit content such as links, text posts, images, and videos, which are then voted up or down by other members of Reddit.
Founded: Reddit was founded on 23 June 2005, in Medford, Massachusetts, United States.
CEO: Steve Huffman is the CEO of Reddit from 10 July 2015 to the present.
Headquarters: Reddit is headquartered in San Francisco, California, United States.
Founders: Reddit was founded by Steve Huffman, Aaron Swartz, and Alexis Ohanian.
Number of Active Users on Reddit:
Reddit has over 430 million monthly active users out of which 52 million daily active users access Reddit.
Reddit Traffic by Country:
48.91% of whole Reddit traffic comes from the USA followed by the UK (7.73%), Canada (7.52%), and Australia (3.85%).
Reddit Diversity:
59.7% of Reddit users are male, while the remaining 40.3% are female.
Reddit Annual Revenue:
In 2022, Reddit is forecasted to bring in $289.9 million in advertising revenue in the US. The company, which was founded in 2005, has said it expects to hit $1 billion in ad revenue by 2023.
7. TikTok- Short Videos Sharing Platform
About TikTok:
TikTok is a video-sharing-focused social networking channel owned by Chinese company ByteDance. TikTok is very popular amongst youth who are below 30. It is used to make a variety of short-form videos that have a duration from fifteen seconds to three minutes. TikTok is one of the famous social media platforms among teenagers and youths.
Launched: TikTok was launched in September 2016 which is now available in 40 languages in more than 150 countries. India currently banned TikTok in 2020 for national security reasons. TikTok had over 200 million users in India when it was banned.
Number of Active Users on TikTok:
TikTok has about 1 billion monthly active users that makes it the world’s 7th most used social network.
TikTok Diversity:
As per the Pew Research Center, it was found that 48% of U.S. adults between 18-29-years-old use TikTok. 20% in the 30-49-year-old age group, 14% among 50-64-year-olds, and 4% for those 65 and up use TikTok.
TikTok Annual Revenue:
TikTok generates more than US$34.3 billion.
8. Twitter– Very Popular Microblogging Site
About Twitter:
Twitter is an American microblogging social media platform system that allows you to send and receive short messages called tweets. Tweets can be up to 140 characters long and can include links to relevant websites and resources. It is one of the professional social media platforms that are more popular amongst politicians, celebrities, and brands.
Founded: Twitter was founded in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams.
Headquarters: Twitter is headquartered in San Francisco, California, United States.
Number of Active Users on Twitter:
Twitter currently has 353 million monthly active users. Twitter is most popular among users aged 25-34.
Twitter Traffic by Country:
The USA has the most Snapchat users with over 73 million, followed by Japan (53.55 million) and India (22.1 million).
Twitter Diversity:
On Twitter, 68.1% are male, and 31.9% are female.
Twitter Annual Revenue:
In 2020, Twitter’s annual revenue was US$3.72 billion (2020) and the operating income is US$27 million.
9. LinkedIn- World’s Most Professional Social Media Platform
About LinkedIn:
LinkedIn is an American social media service company specially created for professionals. It is also considered the most authentic networking and employment-oriented online service platform. LinkedIn operates via websites and mobile applications.
Founded: LinkedIn was founded in 2002, in Mountain View, California, United States. The founding members of LinkedIn are Reid Hoffman, Konstantin Guericke, Jean-Luc Vaillant, Allen Blue, and Eric Ly.
CEO: Ryan Roslansky is the CEO of LinkedIn from 1 Jun 2020 to the present.
Headquarters: LinkedIn is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, United States.
Number of Active Users on LinkedIn:
LinkedIn has almost 740 million members with over 55 million registered companies. Almost 6 in 10 organizations use LinkedIn.
LinkedIn Traffic by Country:
The USA has the most LinkedIn users with over 180 million, followed by India (78 million), China (50 million), and Brazil (49 million).
LinkedIn Diversity:
Taking account of all LinkedIn users worldwide, 57% of users are male and 43% of users are female.
Apart from it, on LinkedIn, 30% of the population is urban, 27% population is suburban and 13% population is rural.
LinkedIn US users breakdown by age:
- 16%: 15-25 years old
- 27%: 26-35 years old
- 34%: 36-45 years old
- 37%: 46-55 years old
- 29%: 56+ years old
Annual Revenue:
The annual revenue of LinkedIn is US$ 8.05 billion and it keeps increasing year by year.
10. Quora- Highly Popular Q/A Social Media Platform
About Quora:
Quora is a social question-and-answer (Q/A) social media platform. Users can collaborate by editing questions and commenting on answers that have been submitted by other users. Quora is a sophisticated platform to gain and share knowledge. On Quora,you can ask questions and connect with people who contribute unique insights and quality answers.
Founded: Quora was founded in June 2009 by Adam D’Angelo and Charlie Cheever. It is based out of Mountain View, California, United States.
CEO: Adam D’Angelo is the CEO of Quora since Jun 2009 to present.
Headquarters: Quora is headquartered in Mountain View, California, United States.
Number of Active Users on Quora:
Currently, Quora has more than 300 million monthly unique visitors and more than 190 million monthly active users. There are more than 400,000 subjects discussed on Quora.
Quora Traffic by Country:
The USA has the most Quora users with the highest traffic of 27.80% followed by India (18.61%), and the UK (3.46%).
Quora Diversity:
Taking account of all Quora users worldwide, 57% of users are male and 43% of users are female.
Quora Annual Revenue:
The annual revenue of Quora is more than US$ 8 million.
11. Medium- Online Publishing Platform
About Medium:
Medium is an American online publishing platform where more than 175,000 verified writers post their content. developed by Evan Williams and launched in August 2012.
Created by: Medium was created by Evan Williams on 15 August 2012.
Medium Users:
Medium publishing platform has about 154 million monthly active visitors.
Medium Traffic by Country:
Traffic to Medium by country
- 27.98 From the USA
- 8.07% from India
- 4.01% from the United Kingdom
- 3.44% from Canada, and
- 2.82% from Brazil
Medium Annual Revenue:
In a rough estimation, Medium generates monthly revenue of around $1,750,000.
12. Clubhouse- Highly Emerging and New Social Audio App
About Clubhouse:
The clubhouse was launched in April 2020. The clubhouse has over 10 million users, most of which were added between January and February 2021. More than 20 million people have downloaded the app so far. Moreover, Clubhouse has been valued at $4 billion in a Series C round.
Celebrities such as Elon Musk, Oprah Winfrey, Drake, Kevin Hart, and Chris Rock have all hosted conversations on the Clubhouse social audio app.
Headquarters: Clubhouse social audio app is headquartered in San Francisco, California.
Founder: Paul Davison and Rohan Seth are the founder members of Clubhouse’s social media app.
13. WhatsApp- Instant Messaging Giant
About WhatsApp:
WhatsApp is an American centralized instant messaging and voice-over-IP service platform owned by Facebook, Inc. It allows users to send text and voice messages, makes voice and video calls, and share images, documents, user locations, and other useful content.
Launched: Whatsapp was launched in February 2009.
Founder: WhatsApp was founded by Brian Acton and Jan Koum. On February 19, 2014, Facebook, Inc. announced it was acquiring WhatsApp for US$19 billion, its largest acquisition to date.
WhatsApp Number of Active Users:
With more than 2 billion monthly active users, WhatsApp is the most popular global mobile messenger app worldwide outranking Facebook Messenger at 1.3 billion and WeChat at 1.2 billion users. Following Facebook and YouTube, WhatsApp is the third most popular social network worldwide.
WhatsApp Traffic by Country:
India has the highest number of users with 390.1 million, followed by Brazil (108.4 million) and the USA (75.1%).
WhatsApp Diversity:
Based on GlobalWebIndex data, the WhatsApp worldwide user base consists of 54.5% are male users and 45.5% female.
WhatsApp Annual Revenue:
In 2020, the annual revenue of WhatsApp is US$ 5.5 billion.
14. Telegram- Highly Emerging Instant Messaging Software
About Telegram:
Telegram is a free and open-source, cross-platform, cloud-based instant messaging (IM) software. This service also provides end-to-end encrypted video calling, VoIP, file sharing, and several other features. It was launched for iOS on 14 August 2013 and Android in October 2013.
Telegram Number of Active Users:
With an increase of 150% since 2018, Telegram has 550 million monthly active users with 55.2 million daily active users. In January 2021, Telegram was the most downloaded app across iOS and Android. The average Telegram user spends 2.9 hours on the app each month.
Telegram Gender Diversity:
Telegram’s user base consists of 58.6% male users and 41.4% female users.
Annual Revenue:
Telegram Messenger’s estimated annual revenue is currently $33.5M per year.
Closing Keynote on Social Media Platforms:
Now, I have provided you with the most relevant data on the best social media platforms where you can create and execute the most effective social media strategy to build your brand.
Now, it’s time for you to tell me in the comment section which social media sites are perfect for your business? Also, start experimenting with other effective social media channels to reach a greater audience.
FAQs About Social Media Platforms:
What are the best social media platforms for business?
Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, WeChat, Reddit, Pinterest, Quora, Linked In, and Twitter are the best social media sites for your business.
What was the first social media platform?
Six Degrees was the first social media site made by Andrew Weinreich in 1997. Six Degrees was very popular until 2003.
What are the top 10 social media platforms/sites by their user base?
Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, WeChat, TikTok, QQ, Douyin, and Telegram are the world’s top social media platforms in 2023 on the basis of the user base.
Which social Social media platforms are best for marketing?
Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Linked In, Snapchat, Pinterest, Twitter, WhatsApp, and Telegram are the best social media platforms for your brand marketing.
How many social media platforms or sites are there?
There are more than 100 social media sites across the globe out of which Facebook remains the world’s most widely used social media platform followed by Youtube.
What are the other social media sites other than Facebook?
Other than Facebook, there are more than 100 popular social media sites. In all those, YouTube is the closest competitor of Facebook.
Are there any social media sites for professionals?
Linked In is the world’s most professional social media platform. Apart from it, YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook are also famous as a hub of reputed personalities and professionals.
What is the most widely used social media site?
With more than 2.89 billion monthly active users, Facebook is the most popular social media platform in the world followed by YouTube and WhatsApp.
What are the benefits of social media for your business?
With the help of social media, you can develop your company’s brand or personal brand. Effective use of social media platforms can attract huge customers, generate leads and sales by creating brand awareness. You can also be a social media influencer and earn millions of dollars per year. Social media sites provide you the platform to share your ideas, thoughts and connect with the global audience. Brands also use social media to conduct market research and reduce marketing costs. Apart from it, businesses increase their revenue by building customer networks and advertising.
