Social media sites have been around for a while now, and it’s become so normal we don’t even think twice about how much it’s part of everything. From looking up lifestyle hacks to trending news, a huge chunk of world’s population now relies on these platforms for information, entertainment, networking, and more.
And if you want to be exact: 63.9% of the global population is now on various social media platforms (with US being the home to third-largest social media audience, after China and India). This makes it crucial for you to have an active social presence to market your brand to the right set of consumers.
But before crafting an impactful social media strategy, you need to figure out which platforms will best suit your requirements. To make this decision a bit simpler for you, here’s a list of 10 top social media platforms and sites.
| Social Media Platform | MAUs (Monthly Active Users) |
| 3.065 billion | |
| 2 billion | |
| Snapchat | 850 million |
| TikTok | 1.04 billion |
| YouTube | 2.7 billion |
| 1.15 billion | |
| 1.21 billion | |
| 368 million | |
| Telegram | 950 million |
| Threads | 320 million |
Facebook is right now the biggest social media platform with over 3.065 billion monthly active users. As part of Meta, the platform lets you share posts, connect with friends, join groups, and even run ads. In a nutshell, you can say that Facebook is a space where people engage through photos, videos, and conversations.
As of now, Facebook gets around 13.11 billion website visits and is the 3rd most visited website globally. Moreover, above 200 million small businesses worldwide are using Facebook to reach out to their customers. As such, to succeed on the platform, you need a good understanding of the Facebook algorithm, compelling content, and most of all — consistency.
Never advertised on Facebook before? Check our How to Advertise on Facebook guide to get started!
If you’re searching for top social media websites that shape trends and significantly contribute to the creator economy, Instagram will undoubtedly top the list. That’s probably why its user base is about to touch the 2.5 billion mark by the end of 2025.
With Stories, Reels, and posts, Instagram is a great platform for creators, businesses, and anyone who loves visuals. It’s also a big space for online shopping and brand promotions.
Remember, one sure-shot way to get noticed on the platform is to integrate the latest IG trends in your day-to-day content.
Snapchat is a messaging app where photos and videos disappear after being seen. It’s popular for quick chats, fun filters, and Stories. Many young people use it to stay connected with friends in a casual way. Brands also use Snapchat to share behind-the-scenes content and promotions.
Snapchat was one of the first top 10 social media platforms responsible for making vertical format short videos popular. This application has made its way to 850 million monthly active users by offering them a chance to maintain a daily streak by sending snaps (a 10-second video).
While Snapchat might not be the priority for many advertisers, it is still a great way for companies to reach youngsters and find collaboration partners.
TikTok is a video-sharing app where people create and watch short, fun videos. From dance trends to life hacks, it’s packed with creative content. The app’s smart feed shows videos based on what you like, making it easy to go viral and reach a huge audience.
Instagram has several new features, but the decision to launch reels was solely to keep you off TikTok. That’s how huge the platform has grown — with over 1.04 billion active monthly users. (PS: that’s despite it being banned in India)
To advertise on TikTok, you get a chance to run different types of ads: in-feed, video, spark, TikTok image, playable, shopping, carousel, and pangle. To summarize, marketing on TikTok is much like that of other top social media sites. The only difference is that you need to shift your focus toward short-form videos.
YouTube is the biggest video-sharing platform where people watch and upload all kinds of videos—music, tutorials, vlogs, and more. It’s a go-to place for learning, entertainment, and even earning money. Creators and businesses use YouTube to reach a global audience and grow their brand.
YouTube serves the dual purpose of a social media platform and a search engine. With over 2.70 billion monthly active users, it is often hailed as the ‘home of video marketing.’
Currently, YouTube has over 120 million channels and is heavily populated with influencers and advertisers. Therefore, it is important to focus on YouTube SEO and create content that is liked by the audience in your niche.
If you’re a brand that has multiple verticals, creating and managing multiple YouTube channels can really help segregate content and increase overall viewership. Moreover, the platform is now suited for both formats: long-form storytelling and short-form curiosity-building videos.
LinkedIn is the go-to platform for professionals. It helps people connect for jobs, share career updates, and learn from industry experts. Companies use it to hire employees and build their brand. Whether you’re looking for work or growing a business, LinkedIn is the place to be.
Needless to say, LinkedIn isn’t a mere job search engine. With over 1 billion users from 200 countries, it has now emerged as a leading professional networking hub and an advertising platform.
You can advertise on LinkedIn in multiple ways:
Reddit is a website full of communities where people discuss different topics. From news to hobbies, you can find a space for almost anything. Users share stories, ask questions, and upvote posts they like. It’s a great place to learn, debate, and connect with like-minded people.
Reddit — also better known as the ‘Front page of the Internet’ — is a diverse platform that attracts all kinds of audiences. From professional networking to sports discussions, you will find everything here.
Niche community forums (also known as subreddits) cover most topics one could think of. In a way, you can consider Reddit to be a seamless blend of community and content.
With over 2.3 billion monthly active users, Reddit is an ideal space for advertisers. Here, you can look for communities from your industry and target users accordingly.
Twitter (now called 𝕏) is a platform where people share short updates, opinions, and news in real time. It’s great for discussions, trends, and quick conversations.
Twitter was once just a microblogging site and recognised for its iconic blue bird logo. Well, those days are long gone! Since Elon Musk purchased the company, there have been several changes like — platform’s rebranding to 𝕏, removal of verified tick exclusively for celebrities, introduction of 𝕏 premium for everyone, and so on!
While these changes came as a shock, they helped scale the company to a 368 million monthly active user base.
𝕏’s homepage has a very active ‘What’s happening’ section that includes trending hashtags for different genres like: News, Sports, and Entertainment. Advertisers can run trend takeover campaigns to place their hashtags on that list.
Telegram is an instant messaging app that allows users to easily share large files and documents (up to 2 GB for each transfer!) with end-to-end encryption. In 2025, Telegram has over 950 million monthly active users.
Now, you might be wondering — how is Telegram like other top social media platforms when it is a messaging app? Sure, there’s a bit of difference as users can’t scroll a feed or make public posts. But it allows you to post stories and form community groups & broadcast channels for one-to-many or many-to-many communication.
Marketers can’t run ads on the platform but can utilize it to form customer groups to keep them updated about recent offers or product launches.
Threads is a text-based social media app from Instagram, made for quick updates and conversations. It’s similar to Twitter, where people share thoughts, join discussions, and stay updated on trends. Since it’s linked to Instagram, it’s easy for users to connect with their existing followers.
Instagram launched Threads as a direct rival of Twitter (𝕏) to give users a better way to share text content. The platform gained 2 million sign-ups in a matter of a couple of hours. Right now, Threads stands at 320 million monthly active users and is in the sights of marketers worldwide.
Recently, Meta has started testing ads on Threads for US and Japan-based brands as well. This means you will now be able to run ads on Threads from Meta Ads Manager directly. Read more here.
Wondering what’s the difference between Threads and Twitter? Head to our Threads Vs Twitter: A Comparison of Key Features and Functionality guide to know more!
That was all about top social media platforms ruling the world right now! But if you’re just starting out, focusing on everything at once can be quite overwhelming.
As such, it is crucial for you to know where your audience hangs out and how you can reach them efficiently.
Once you are consistently posting organic content and running ads, it is time to monitor the account’s performance. With Vaizle, you can get a one-click overview of the latest metrics and periodic data analysis to find when the audience is more actively engaging.
Vaizle now offers exclusive access to all paid features for $1 only. Sign up for the 7-day trial and explore our range of tools — including social media, ad, and competitive SM analysis. Also, try our newly launched Ads to Google Sheet connectors to make your marketing journey insightful. Cancel or change plans anytime.
Mamta is an SEO Analyst with 2 years of experience. Currently, she is spending her time on content roadmapping to drive organic growth and engagement for SaaS businesses. Mamta is also an avid cinephile who spends her spare time watching latest action and sci-fi flicks from around the world.
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