Facebook is winning the old, Instagram is winning the young, study finds

(Image credit: CC by: Justin See)

published 12 January 2015

Facebook is the undisputed king of social networks, counting 71 percent of U.S. internet users 18 and older as members, according to a new study of America's social media habits by Pew Research. Engagement is also rising, with 70 percent of Facebook users checking the site daily. But Facebook isn't really growing, Pew found, except in one area: The senior citizen set. For the first time, more than half (56 percent) of online Americans 65 and older use Facebook accounts.

Facebook's social media competitors don't have nearly that level of ubiquity, but all the big ones are growing at a steady pace, as this chart from Pew demonstrates:

If Facebook is conquering the older demographic, Instagram is growing fastest among the younger groups, with 53 percent of online adults 18 to 29 using the photo-sharing network and half of those checking their feeds daily. (Since Facebook owns Instagram, it wins here, too.) Pinterest's growth is mostly among females: It is used now by 42 percent of woman and 13 percent of men online. According to Pew, 81 percent of all U.S. adults are internet users. You can read the report here.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.