Social Media Landscape: YouTube and Facebook Remain Dominant in U.S., Pew Research Finds
Washington D.C. – YouTube and Facebook continue to lead social media usage in the United States, according to a new survey released today by the Pew Research Center. The study, based on interviews with over 5,000 adults conducted between February and June 2025, reveals a shifting but stable hierarchy among platforms, with Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp following as key players.
the survey indicates that 50% of U.S.adults use Instagram, 37% use TikTok, and 32% use WhatsApp. However, frequency of use differentiates the platforms: half of respondents report daily visits to either YouTube or Facebook, with 37% accessing Facebook multiple times per day and 33% using YouTube daily. TikTok sees daily use by 24% of those surveyed, a figure that jumps to 50% among adults under 30.
While newer platforms like Threads, Bluesky, and Truth Social remain niche, with usage below 10%, Reddit and WhatsApp have demonstrated consistent growth since 2021.
Notable demographic divides exist in platform preference. Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat are particularly popular with 18- to 29-year-olds, with 80% of this age group using Instagram. Facebook’s user base skews older, with higher adoption rates among those aged 30-49. Gender, ethnicity, education level, and political affiliation also play a role, with women favoring Instagram and tiktok, men dominating Reddit and X (formerly Twitter), and Democrats showing greater interest in emerging platforms like Bluesky and Threads. Users with higher education levels are more active on Reddit and WhatsApp.
