This is an interesting shift.
Last week, in addition to reporting its Q3 performance update, Meta also shared its latest EU user numbers for Facebook and Instagram as part of its Digital Services Act (DSA) obligations.
And the numbers show that Instagram has now surpassed Facebook’s active user count in the region.
As you can see in this graph, Instagram now has 269.1 million monthly active users in EU, versus 260.6 million for Facebook. In Meta’s first EU user report, covering the period between April to September 2023, both platforms had the same user count, at 259 million MAU.
But now, IG has superseded the company’s flagship app, with Facebook seeing much slower growth, and even slightly declining in usage over the most recent measurement period (April to September this year).
Could that be a more common trend around the world, with Facebook potentially losing audience, as Instagram continues to add more users?
Well, we don’t know for sure, as Meta stopped reporting Facebook’s monthly active user counts this year, in favor a combined audience measurement for its entire “Family of Apps” (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads).
But based on the last time that it reported Facebook’s monthly actives (Q4 2023), it does seem that this is more likely confined to EU, and potentially U.S. audiences.
As you can see in this chart, Facebook’s EU user count was in decline throughout 2023, and really, had been on a downward trend since 2022. Its U.S. user count had also been fairly stagnant, but Facebook usage was still growing in other markets.
As such, it seems like this shift would be more confined to EU, and not reflective of broader trends. But even so, it is interesting to see IG potentially taking the mantle from Facebook as Meta’s main app, even if only in selected markets.
The other question then is: “Why is Facebook losing traction with European audiences?”
Well, some of that can be attributed to the implementation of improved data privacy regulations in Europe, which have revealed more about the data that Facebook takes in, and can use in its various applications. That, some suggest, has seen more users turn away from the app, while other reports indicate that more EU users now find Facebook to be outdated versus other apps.
Whatever the reason, it is also important to note that Facebook remains hugely popular in the region, with 260 million active users. TikTok has 150 million EU monthly actives, while X has 66 million, so on balance, even with a slight decline, Facebook is still a key interactive platform for European users.
It’s just not as popular as IG now is, which likely suggests that Facebook isn’t catching on with younger audiences as well as it used to.
Thanks again to Xavier Degraux for the heads up on the latest EU reports.
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