There is expected to be nearly 3 billion of us using social media in one form or another by the end of the decade. Whether you’re a Facebook traditionalist, a recent convert to Snapchat or prefer to advertise your services on LinkedIn, there’s no doubt these platforms provide a brilliant way for businesses to engage with customers and create brand awareness.

Here’s our overview of the Social Media User Stats in the UK 2017

Facebook UK Users

Facebook continues to be the social media of choice for UK users. Over 89% of Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn users also have a Facebook account, while only 29% of users who have a Facebook account are also on Twitter. There are estimated to be around 33 million users of Facebook in the UK alone.

The demographic spread hasn’t changed much over the years:

• The split between male and female users remains roughly around 50-50 in the UK, though it’s higher for women than men globally.
• The biggest demographic is the 25-34 age group that accounts for 26% of users.
• Facebook users will visit their timeline daily – 76% of us with accounts do this according to the research.
• Since Facebook Live came online, video viewing on the site has been boosted by 700%.
• Users watch live transmissions three times longer than traditional uploaded video.
• The most popular subjects discussed on Facebook are family and friend issues as well as outdoors and food.

Twitter UK Users

Twitter is the most popular social media messaging platform in the UK behind Facebook, YouTube and Instagram with 20 million users (328 million worldwide). Compared to other platforms, Twitter is less forthcoming with its own statistics on user demographics.

• The biggest block of users (64%) are between the ages of 18 and 29.
• 62% of users have a household income of more than £48,000 per year.
• A small number of users (1%) account for about 20% of the posts on Twitter.
• 80% of users access the platform via their mobile.
• Nearly three-quarters of users have a positive opinion of a brand when it replies personally to their query on Twitter.
• 60% of users, however, expect a brand to respond quickly (normally within an hour).
• Tweets that include images get 18% more click-throughs and are retweeted 150% more.

YouTube UK Users

YouTube is the most popular video-sharing site and boasts over a billion and a half users worldwide. It is more popular with men (62%) than women (38%).

• Most YouTube videos were watched by the 25 to 44 age group (49%).
• Music is by far the most searched category on YouTube (789 million worldwide).
• Half of online marketers now see video as an advertising tool with the best ROI.
• Social video can deliver 1,200% more shares than images and text combined.
• Videos that are 2 minutes or less generally get the best engagement.

Pinterest UK Users

Pinterest has around 150 million users worldwide but there are no figures for the UK – research suggests that 5% of the online population has an account on the platform. The user demographics have gotten a lot younger in recent years with over half now between the ages of 18 and 29.

• Pinterest is less social than other platforms and is more about creating a personal space.
• 64% of users are under the age of 30 and 60% are women (though the number of men using the platform is rising).
• Over two thirds join the site to express their creativity.
• 50% of online shoppers use or visit Pinterest for ideas and 30% of users buy online after searching the platform.
• Only 10,000 businesses worldwide use Pinterest Buying Pins to sell products.
• Promoted pins are 7x more effective in encouraging spend than traditional marketing.

Instagram UK Users

There are about 14-20 million active users compared to 800 million worldwide. Because of a lack of a retweet style function that restricts sharing, Instagram often gets overlooked when it comes to marketing, particularly by smaller businesses. It’s also had significant competition from Snapchat in recent times.

• Nearly 90% of users are between the age of 18 and 49.
• Adding just one hashtag can improve engagement by 12.9%.
• Since videos were introduced, they have received twice as much engagement as photos.
• The best time to post to get the most engagement seems to be Wednesdays at 5pm.
• Half of users access their Instagram account every day.

Google+ UK Users

Despite many iterations over the last few years, Google+ still struggles in comparison to other social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook. They have 2.2 billion users worldwide but only 9% actively post content.

• In the UK, 70% of users are in the 18-34 age range.
• The demographic leans heavily towards men who account for 70% of users.
• 54% of users login to keep in touch with friends.
• 42% of users interact in some way with brand content.
• Time spent on Google+ is short – just 7 minutes per month. An average visit lasts 4 minutes.
• Content shared on Google+ will rank on the global search engine.

LinkedIn UK Users

LinkedIn remains the go to choice for professionals in all sectors and there are 20 million users registered in the UK alone. Most engagement is carried out by individuals who are job hunting or where B2B networking is important to the business. Only about 20% of users opt to pay for the premium account.

• If you have a headshot photo in your profile you are 21 times more likely to get a profile view.
• 56% of users are men, 44% women.
• The fastest growing demographics on the platform are students and university graduates.
• 60% of users access LinkedIn on their mobile via the app.
• The average time spent on the site per month is 17 minutes.
• Nearly 80% of marketing professionals see LinkedIn as a good source for generating B2B leads.

Snapchat UK Users

Snapchat continues to grow as a social media and photo/video sharing platform and boasts a fairly young user demographic (71% are under the age of 34 and 45% are between 18 and 24). Those users under the age of 25, will spend an average of 40 minutes every day on the platform, much more than closest competitor Instagram. Exact user numbers have so far not been released by the company.

• 70% of Snapchat users are women according to the platform’s CEO.
• 65% of users upload images, the most popular being the selfie.
• 25% of mobile phone owners are on Snapchat.
• Half of users take advantage of the Snapchat Stories product.
• 37% use the site for creativity, 27% for keeping in touch with friends and family, and 23% believe it’s easier than texting.

Resources:

Think Digital First, Statista, Social Media Today, Brand Watch, Wordstream, Social Draft, Buffer App, Social Media and Digital Marketing Blog, Snapchat Statistics, All Things Digital, Business of Apps