Should you be using Instagram to grow and connect with your audience and customers? Considering the platform’s popularity and reach, the answer is almost certainly yes.
Here’s a collection of Instagram stats that show how powerful a platform it is for brands and businesses. Use these figures to inform your own Instagram marketing strategy.
Bonus: Download a free checklist that reveals the exact steps an adventure photographer used to grow from 0 to 110,000 followers on Instagram with no budget and no expensive gear.
Instagram user statistics
1. Instagram has over 800 million monthly active users
With 800 million monthly active users, Instagrammers regularly show their love for the platform. Among the major social networks, only Facebook and YouTube have more people logging in each month.
And the number of daily Instagram users jumped to 500 million (second only to Facebook) from 200 million in just a few months.
2. 80% of Instagram users come from outside of the U.S.
Eighty percent of all Instagram users come from countries outside of the United States, according to Instagram’s own data. This means big global ad revenue.
eMarketer estimates that Instagram will bring in $6.84 billion in global mobile ad revenue in 2018–a rapidly increasing chunk of parent company Facebook’s global ad revenues.
After the U.S. with over 88 million monthly active users, a Statista DMO survey found that Russia, Brazil, Turkey, the U.K., Poland, Canada, France, and Japan all have more than 10 million active users.
3. Instagram is used by 38% of women in the U.S. and 26% of men
A 2016 Pew Research study of U.S. residents found that of the 32 percent of online adults who use Instagram, women are in the majority. (Pew did not track those who identify as gender non-conforming.) The study shows that 38 percent of women and 26 percent of men regularly use Instagram to like, share, and post.
4. 59% of Instagrammers in the U.S. are under 30
The numbers are heavily skewed to younger folk. 18- to 29-year-olds comprise 59 percent of users in the U.S., followed by the 30 to 49-year-olds accounting for 33 percent.
Meanwhile, 70 percent of American Instagram users have a post secondary education.
5. Teenagers love Instagram
As for American teenagers, in the Piper Jaffray semi-annual Taking Stock With Teens survey, Instagram came second only to Snapchat as their most important social network. However, according to eMarketer, 63 percent of 13 to 17-year-olds use Instagram daily, compared to 54 percent for Snapchat.
6. Facebook and Pinterest are Instagrammers’ other favourite networks
According to the 2016 Pew survey, 95 percent of all Instagram users in the U.S. also use Facebook, followed by Pinterest (54 percent), and Twitter (49 percent).
7. A lot of Instagram users have pretty deep pockets
Among the adults, the Pew survey also did a breakdown of income:
- 38 percent of adult Internet users who make less than $30,000 per year use Instagram, along with…
- 32 percent of those who bring in $30,000 to $49,999.
- 32 percent of those who earn between $50,000 and $74,999.
- 31 percent of those who make over $75,000 per year.
You can compare the 2016 Pew findings to their previous year’s survey by reading our post on the Top Instagram Demographics that Matter Most to Social Media Marketers.
Instagram usage statistics
When it comes to Instagram’s active monthly users, how active is active? And what exactly do they do when they’re there?
In general, people use Instagram as a way to follow their passions. It’s similar to Pinterest in that regard. This People Insights post and podcasts by Facebook IQ looks at what this means for auto, beauty, travel, and sports brands in particular.
Here’s a rundown of some more specific Instagram usage statistics.
8. People are spending more time on Instagram
Instagram Stories has helped to increase the amount of time people spend on the network, according to Instagram. Users under 25 years old spend more than 32 minutes a day on the platform, while those over 25 spend more than 24 minutes a day.
9. Instagram users “like” over 4.2 billion posts per day
Some people say Instagram is the happiest place on the internet. And that’s reflected in the number of likes. According to a 2016 Instagram announcement, users like 4.2 billion posts daily—and that was when their user base was “only” 500 million.
10. Instagrammers share 95 million posts per day
According to Instagram, users share an average of 95 million photos and videos per day. With the steady increase in users that number is sure to grow in coming years.
11. Instagram users like telling stories
It’s fair to say Instagram Stories has been wildly successful since its launch in 2016. In less than a year, Instagram reported that the disappearing content feature had 250 million daily users. According to Instagram, over 300 million people now use it daily.
12. Brands like stories, too
Brands have also been making good use of stories. Instagram reported that in one month over 50 percent of businesses on Instagram published an Instagram Story. And a third of the most viewed stories are created by businesses.
Bonus: Download a free checklist that reveals the exact steps an adventure photographer used to grow from 0 to 110,000 followers on Instagram with no budget and no expensive gear.
Get the free checklist right now!AdWeek reported “brands are uploading to Instagram Stories more than twice as often as they are on Snapchat.”
13. Instagram video is on the rise
Video posts on Instagram have been a huge hit with users since the feature launched in 2013 (five million videos were uploaded in the first 24 hours). Its popularity has only increased since.
And the amount of time users spend watching video has increased by more than 80 percent year-over-year, says Instagram, and the number of videos produced every day has quadrupled.
14. Instagram users like Cristiano Ronaldo more than Beyonce, but not as much as Selena Gomez
Now we’re getting to the really important Instagram statistics: Which celebrity has the most Instagram followers? Selena Gomez had established a good lead by Fall 2017. Beyonce, however, can claim the most popular Instagram post ever: 11.2 million likes at the last count.
When it comes to the most popular brands, it’s no surprise to see one renowned for its spectacular photography in top spot: National Geographic has over 83 million followers. Shoes, soccer, space, and underwear all also feature high up the list of leading brands on Instagram.
How can your brand make a splash on Instagram?
Instagram statistics for business
In general, people use Instagram as a way to follow their passions. It’s similar to Pinterest in that regard. This, of course, leads to opportunities for everyone from global brands to local mom and pop enterprises to reach and engage with their customers while they’re diving deeper into their passions. This People Insights post and podcasts by Facebook IQ looks at what the “power of passions” means for auto, beauty, travel, and sports brands in particular.
Here are some Instagram statistics that reveal important stories for marketers looking to get the most out of Instagram for business.
15. There are 25 million business profiles on Instagram
Marketers are rapidly increasing their adoption of Instagram to promote everything from clothing to concerts. Instagram’s latest internal figures show 25 million businesses have a business profile on the network, and over 200 million users visit at least one business profile every day.
Unsurprisingly, eMarketer found that 96 percent of fashion brands use Instagram.
16. 80% of users follow a business on Instagram
Instagram users are not shy about following brands they like. Eighty percent of Instagrammers follow at least one business.
17. Top brands post 4.9 times per week on Instagram
A 2016 Forrester study reviewed how the top 50 global brands market on social networks. They found that the average number of Instagram followers for a top brand was over one million—almost five times higher than in 2015.
Top brands now post 4.9 times per week on Instagram—making them twice as active as in 2015. To become a top brand on Instagram, posting high-quality content five times a week is a good start.
18. 60% of the top brands on Instagram use the same filter
Giving your brand it’s own look and feel on Instagram can pay dividends. A WebDam report found that 60 percent of the top brands on Instagram use the same filter for every post.
Whether it’s Earlybird, Sierra, or Ludwig, pick your favorite filter and stick with it. For example, check out Field House Brewing Co.’s Instagram feed. Their consistent filter helps reinforce the brand’s identity on Instagram, Facebook and anywhere else they post their images.
19. 60% of users find new products on Instagram
Instagram found that 60 percent of people said they discover new products through the network, which further illustrates why it is increasingly popular with B2C companies that use Instagram to showing off their wares in creative ways.
20. 75% of Instagram users take action after visiting a post
Talking about “turning passions into purchases” (as Instagram position it), 75 percent of Instagram users take action, such as visiting a website, after looking at a brand’s post.
If you have good-looking products, Instagram is a no brainer.
21. Instagram users are 70% more likely to make mobile purchases
A globalwebindex survey found that over a third of Instagrammers have bought something using their mobile device. Good news if you want to use Instagram to generate more sales.
22. Posts with at least one hashtag average 12.6% more engagement
Hashtags help Instagram users discover content and accounts to follow. The right hashtag, or combination of hashtags, will expose your brand to large and targeted audiences. By making yourself more discoverable on Instagram, you have a better chance of attracting new followers, getting more likes, and increasing engagement.
In fact, posts with at least one hashtag average 12.6 percent more engagement than those without, according to a study by Simply Measured. That explains why seven out of 10 hashtags are branded. To learn more about how to make hashtags work for your Instagram account, check out our complete Instagram hashtag guide for business.
23. Instagram has the highest interaction rate
According to a 2016 Forrester report, Instagram has a 2.2 percent per-follower interaction rate. That dwarfs the other networks, including Facebook with its 0.22 percent rate.
With these stats in mind, especially that stellar engagement rate, it’s time to put a successful Instagram strategy into action. Use Hootsuite to schedule and publish Instagram posts, engage with your community, and track the success of your efforts. Try it free today.
