Global Social Media Landscape in 2025
The digital world continues to expand at a remarkable pace, with social media platforms becoming an integral part of daily life for billions of people worldwide. According to an October 2025 report by DataReportal, the global social media landscape has witnessed the addition of 259 million new user identities since the previous year. This growth reflects the deepening integration of digital technologies into our everyday routines.
As of October 2025, approximately 5.66 billion people, representing 68.7 per cent of the global population, are active on various social media platforms. This massive user base underscores the role of these platforms as a key pillar of the modern information society, connecting people across continents and cultures.
The Top 10 Social Media Giants
Leading the pack is Facebook, which maintains its position as the world's most popular social media platform. As of early 2025, Facebook boasts an impressive over 3.07 billion monthly active users. This remarkable figure highlights the platform's enduring appeal and widespread adoption.
Meta Platforms, headquartered in California, demonstrates its dominance in the social media sphere by owning four of the largest platforms, each with more than 1 billion monthly active users. Following Facebook core platform, Instagram and WhatsApp each command approximately 3 billion users, securing the second and third positions respectively. Messenger also features prominently in the top ten, holding the eighth position with 942 million monthly active users.
Rising Stars and Regional Powerhouses
While US-based social networks dominate the top ranks, Chinese platforms have established significant global footprints. WeChat and Douyin, both originating from China, have amassed large active user bases, showcasing the global reach of Chinese tech innovation.
Notably, TikTok, which originated in China and is owned by parent company ByteDance, ranks fifth globally with 1.9 billion users. The platform's success as a video-sharing phenomenon prompted ByteDance to release an international version of its popular Chinese app Douyin, which we now know as TikTok.
One of the standout stories of 2025 is the surge in popularity of Reddit. The platform has witnessed significant growth in its monthly active users, earning it a spot among the top 10 most popular social media platforms this year. This achievement marks an important milestone for the community-driven platform.
The continuous evolution of the social media landscape, with new platforms emerging and established ones adapting, ensures that billions of users worldwide remain connected, informed, and entertained through these digital ecosystems.
