1. Instagram Is Celebrating Its 12th Birthday In 2022
Instagram is practically a teenager at this point, so if your marketing team is still considering the platform to be a flash in the pan, we’ve got news for you - Instagram isn’t going anywhere.
Of course, the platform has evolved considerably since it first launched back in October 2010 with a filtered pic of the founder’s dog, and will continue to do so. Make sure you’re up to date on the latest Instagram trends and features as it ventures deeper into its second decade of existence.
2. Instagram Is The 7th Most Visited Website In The World
According to Semrush, based on total website traffic, Instagram is one of the world’s top 10 most-visited websites globally, with 2.9 billion total visits per month. That’s a lot of eyeballs.
Importantly, while most users login through the mobile app, this stat is a good reminder that people may be viewing your posts on their desktops or laptops too, make sure those images are looking good at any scale.
3. Instagram Is The 9th Most-Googled Search Term
What’s easier than typing “instagram.com” into your browser? Letting Google take you there.
Facebook, YouTube and “Weather” all beat out Instagram, but considering that Instagram is primarily accessed through the app, this is an impressive showing and more proof that your audience might be viewing your content through a browser - whether a mobile one or via their computer.
(Weird fact: the number one Google search query is “google.” We don’t understand, either.)
4. Instagram Is The 4th Most-Used Social Platform
Only Facebook, YouTube and WhatsApp beat Instagram in terms of daily active global users, but Instagram clocks in an impressive 1.3 million.
That’s a lot of eyeballs. At this point, it’s beating out TikTok, Twitter, Pinterest and Snapchat, so if you’re looking for the most bang for your buck in terms of audience reach, Instagram may be a stronger option.
5. Just 0.1% Of Instagram Users Only Use Instagram
The likelihood that an Instagram user also has an account on another social platform is 99.99%. 83% of Instagram users for example also use Facebook, while 55% are also on Twitter.
What does this mean for marketers? You’re likely reaching the same people across different platforms, so try not to repeat yourself to make sure your content is unique and engaging, wherever your followers are encountering it.
6. Instagram Is The Second Most-Downloaded App In The World
Only TikTok beat Instagram in downloads in autumn 2021 - pretty impressive, given that the app has been around for 12 years. Stilllll got it.
You probably already assumed that most of your Instagram audience was experiencing your content through their phones, so please, kick back and enjoy this statistic that proves just that.
7. 1.22 Billion People Use Instagram Each Month
In case it’s not clear, Instagram is very very popular. That’s still only half as many people as Facebook and YouTube each have logging in each month however.
8. 18 To 34 Year Olds Make Up The Biggest Share Of Instagram’s Audience
This key demographic accounts for about 60% of Instagram’s audience.
9. Instagram Is Gen Z’s Favourite Social Platform
Global internet users aged 16 to 24 prefer Instagram to other social platforms - yep, even ranking it above TikTok. If that’s an age cohort you’re looking to reach, Insta is apparently the place to be.
10. Gen X Males Are The Fastest Growing Instagram Audience
Last year, the number of 55 to 64 year old males using Instagram grew by 63.6%. So yes, it’s a place where the kids are hanging out, but don’t discount the fact that you can find other generations represented here too.
11. Instagram’s Audience Is Split Pretty Evenly Between Males And Females
Unfortunately, we don’t have any stats at this point on users who fall outside of the gender binary, but according to what Facebook’s reporting tools can tell us, Instagram’s audience self-identifies as 50.8% female and 49.2% male.
12. India Has The Most Instagram Users In The World
This is a great reminder that Instagram offers access to a global audience, with 201 million users logging in from India (followed by the U.S. at 157 million). In the third place spot, you’ll find Brazilians, with 114 million users, followed by Indonesia and Russia.
This is important information when thinking about how to define your target audience on Instagram, and what kind of content to create.
13. India is Also Instagram’s Fastest-Growing Market
Increasing its audience by 16% quarter-over-quarter, India is the fastest growing region for Instagram currently. If this is a market your brand is looking to target, congrats! now you know just where to find em.
14. 5% of U.S Children Under 11 Use Instagram
That’s despite Instagram user guidelines that require users to be 13 years old before they can create an account. Among kids aged 9 to 11 - 11% use Instagram.
15. 14% Of U.S. Adults Have Never Heard Of Instagram
Keep in mind that while Instagram does have a huge reach in the U.S., it does not reach everyone. That’s why understanding your audience is so important.
16. Instagram Saw 17.0% User Growth In Western Europe In 2020
The region will end 2020 with 132.8 million users, eMarketer predicts. That’s an increase of 19.3 million users since 2018.
Before the pandemic, eMarketer had predicted only 5.2% growth for the region. They revised their estimate upwards twice this year.
17. The Country With The Highest Instagram Percentage Reach Is Brunei
Brunei might not have the most Instagram users, but it is the country where Instagram reaches the highest percentage of the population, 92% to be precise.
Rounding out the top five countries with the highest percentage reach are:-
If you’re marketing to people in these countries, Instagram could be an especially effective platform for both organic content and paid Instagram posts.
18. 59% Of U.S. Adults Use Instagram Daily
And 38% of those daily visitors are logging on multiple times per day.
Better give ‘em something to look at while they’re there: make sure you’ve got fresh content going up consistently.
19. Instagram Isn’t A Popular Source For Getting News
Only one-in-ten U.S. adults say they seek out news on Instagram - and 42% say they straight-up distrust it as an information source. So if you’re in the business of disseminating important information, Instagram may not be the best place to get your serious message across.
20. Adult Instagram Users Are On The App Nearly 30 Minutes Per Day
They’re exploring not just their newsfeed though they’re scrolling through Instagram Stories, checking out Livestreams and watching Reels. Wise brands will deliver something satisfying across all the different features so that followers are entertained, wherever they’re spending those 30 minutes.
21. 9 Out Of 10 Users Watch Instagram Videos Weekly
Go beyond static images to delight the cinephiles scrolling through your feed. Create Stories, Reels and Instagram Live videos for your audience.
22. 500 million Accounts Use Instagram Stories Daily
Instagram hasn’t shared updated stats since 2019 (a lifetime ago in social media years) but it’s likely only gotten higher. What started as a SnapChat-inspired foray into video has become a staple of the platform, and one that offers lots of opportunity for brands to get creative.
23. 58% Of Users Say They’re More Interested In A Brand After Seeing It In A Story
Stories have sticking power! And another 50% of Instagram users say they’ve gone ahead and actually visited a website to make a purchase of a product or service after seeing it in Stories.
24. Brand Stories Have An 86% Completion Rate
That’s just a small increase from 85% in 2019. Entertainment account Stories saw the largest increase in completion rate, from 81% to 88%. Sports account Stories have the highest completion rate, at 90%.
25. The Most Active Brands Post 17 Stories Per Month
Story frequency is generally up this year, so if you want to keep up with the top performers (and make sure your content isn’t lost in the ruckus), it’s wise to aim to post a Story approximately every other day.
26. Instagram Stories Generate A Quarter Of The Platform’s Ad Revenues
Despite the fact that they might not reach as far as posts, in 2022, Stories ads are predicted to bring in almost $16 billion in global net ad revenues.
27. #Love Is The Most Popular Hashtag
Maybe it’s a clue that people on Instagram want to keep things positive and light?
28. 90% Of Instagram Users Follow At Least One Business
Don’t feel shy about getting your brand involved in socials, everybody’s doing it! As Instagram itself puts it, it’s a place to “grow your community and deepen your connection with current and future customers.” Instagram regularly introduces new business tools - like shopping functionality and Instagram Live - to help support businesses too.
29. The Average Instagram Business Account Grows Its Followers By 1.69% Each Month
While every business account and brand is different, it’s helpful to know the general benchmark for growth, especially if that’s a cornerstone of your brand’s social media goals. Not hitting that number yourself? We’ve got a FANTASTIC range of Instagram Marketing Tools on our Instagram Marketing Tools Page - Click here to check them out.
30. Business Accounts Post An Average Of 1.6 Times A Day
To break that down even further - for the average Instagram Business account, 62.7% of all main feed posts are photos, while 16.3% are videos and 21% are photo carousels.
Again, every brand is different - but it’s helpful to see the competition is (on average!) mixing things up with the types of content it posts.
If you’ve stuck steadfastly to a photos-only game plan, maybe now’s the time to start diversifying.
31. 1 In 2 People Have Used Instagram To Discover New Brands
It’s an incredible discovery tool, 50% of people use it to discover new brands, products or services - and 2 in 3 people say the network helps foster meaningful interactions with brands.
Your newest customer could be lurking around the corner… and ready to fall in love with you!
32. 57% Of People Like Seeing Polls And Quizzes From Brands On Instagram
Compared to other platforms, audiences prefer seeing quizzes and polls from brands on Instagram (and they’re easy to implement using Stories!), so go ahead and speak up, ask your customers what they want!
It’ll make them feel seen, and helps you feel confident about your business decisions, it's a Win-win.
33. The Average Engagement On Instagram Business Account Posts Is 0.83%
That skews a little higher on carousel posts and a little lower on video, but if you’re beating that benchmark of 0.83% - pat yourself on the back.
Interestingly, as brands grow their followers, engagement rates typically dip. Our digital trends report revealed that business accounts with fewer than 10K followers enjoyed higher engagement than brands with 100K followers. In other words, sometimes less is more.
34. 44% Of People Use Instagram To Shop Weekly
Instagram only introduced its shopping feature a couple of years ago, but it’s already taken the e-commerce world by storm. According to an Instagram for Business survey, 44% of people use Instagram weekly to shop using features like shopping tags and the Shop tag.
35. Instagram’s Advertising Reach Has Outpaced Facebook This Past Year
If paid reach is part of your social media strategy, it’s worth noting that Instagram’s ad reach is skyrocketing past Facebook’s right now. Facebook’s global advertising reach only increased by 6.5% this year, while Instagram’s grew by 20.5%.
