Whether you're a seasoned social media marketer, a newcomer, or a company owner trying to harness social media, it's important to understand the most popular platforms. This can help you expand your brand's reach, connect with the correct audience, and optimize your social media marketing plan.
Of course, it's not just about the overall number of users on the many social networking programs available. It is also important to consider if the social networking site is a good match for both your company and yourself. Does it suit your brand's image? Is your target audience on that social media platform? How many social media channels can you maintain simultaneously?

The top 23 social media apps and platforms for 2024

This list is sorted by the most recent statistics on monthly active users (MAUs)*. While it is good to know how many users each site has, this does not always imply that the one with the largest user base is the best for your business. If your target audience is not engaged on the platform, it is not worth the time and effort required to maintain it.

To maximize your business's return on investment (ROI), begin your social media marketing plan by identifying where your potential consumers are active.

1. Facebook — 3.05 billion MAUs

According to Statista, Facebook has over 3 billion monthly users, making it the biggest social networking platform. Approximately 37% of the global population uses Facebook. Facebook Messenger, a direct messaging spin-off app, has 931 million monthly active users.

With over 200 million companies (mainly small) using Facebook tools and over seven million advertising actively promoting their enterprises, it's a secure pick for establishing a social media presence.

Facebook supports a wide range of material forms, including text, photographs, videos, and stories, making it simple to start posting. Facebook's algorithm emphasizes material that encourages meaningful connections, particularly among family and friends.

Learn how to establish discussions on Facebook in our guide to promoting your company and monitoring outcomes.

2. WhatsApp — 2.78 billion MAUs

WhatsApp is a messaging app used by people in over 180 countries, boasting an estimated 2.78 active users, according to Statista.

Initially, people originally used WhatsApp to send text messages to their family and friends, but the launch of WhatsApp Business in 2018 has seen the messaging platform become a popular choice for brands. WhatsApp Business reported having over 200 million monthly active users in June 2023.

WhatsApp’s business platform allows businesses to provide customer support and share updates with customers about their purchases. For small businesses, there’s the WhatsApp Business app, while enterprise businesses can use the WhatsApp Business API.

As the most widely used messaging platform, WhatsApp can be a great customer service channel for your business. Check out these WhatsApp Business user success stories.

3. YouTube — 2.49 billion MAUs

YouTube is a video-sharing website where users view billions of hours of content everyday.In addition to being the second biggest social media app, YouTube is often referred to as the second largest search engine behind its parent company, Google.

If you use video to promote your company, YouTube is a must-have marketing tool. Here's how to set up a YouTube channel for your business.

To boost your video's visibility, learn about YouTube SEO and consider advertising to reach more viewers.

4. Instagram — 2.04 billion MAUs

Instagram is a visual social networking tool that allows you to showcase goods or services via photographs or videos. The software allows you to share a variety of material, including images, videos, stories, reels, and live videos.

Create an Instagram business profile for your brand to get detailed metrics and schedule posts with third-party solutions. This platform is ideal for gathering user-generated material from your audience, since they often share and tag businesses.

Learn how to utilize Instagram effectively with our comprehensive guide to marketing.

5. WeChat — 1.32 billion MAUs

WeChat was released in 2011 by Tencent, one of China’s biggest tech companies. With over 1.32 billion monthly users, 80 percent of China's total population is active on the app.

Like WhatsApp and Messenger, WeChat was originally a messaging app, but it’s evolved into an all-in-one platform. Besides messaging and calling, users can shop online, pay bills, buy groceries, transfer money, make reservations, book taxis, and more.

WeChat is the most popular social media app in China and other parts of Asia. So if you want to boost your brand in China (where popular social networks like Facebook and X are banned), WeChat is a good alternative. You can run ads on the official WeChat account or on WeChat Moments. There are also many WeChat-based influencers who can help your brand reach millions of Chinese consumers.

6. TikTok — 1.22 billion MAUs

TikTok (also known as Douyin in China) is a short-form video-sharing app. Despite its 2017 introduction, it is one of the world's fastest-growing applications and just surpassed Google as the most viewed website.

TikTok enables users to create and share films ranging from 15 seconds to 10 minutes in length, and the app includes a large library of sound effects, music excerpts, and filters to improve and make the videos more attractive.

Videos include a wide range of topics, including lip-syncing, dancing, challenges, DIY skills, and make-up instructions. Approximately 47.4 percent of TikTok users in the United States are between the ages of 10 and 29. So, if your target market is young, TikTok is an excellent social media tool for your company to use.

We have introduced TikTok scheduling to our publishing platform! You can plan and schedule TikTok postings in advance to help your company develop and get fans!

7. Telegram — 800 million MAUs

Telegram is a free messaging app that works across multiple devices with no limits on media sizes.

Telegram's distinctive feature is its end-to-end encryption for all activities, including chats, groups, and media shared between participants. Its focus on security has drawn more customers over the years, especially when WhatsApp announced changes to its privacy policy that would allow it to share information with parent company Meta.

There are several ways brands can make use of Telegram, besides providing one-on-one customer support. For exmple, brands can create chatbots for the Telegram platform or make use of Telegram's channel feature to broadcast messages to up to 200,000 people.

8. Snapchat — 750 million MAUs

Snapchat is a social media platform that allows friends to exchange photographs and short videos called snaps. The vertical video format gained popularity and spread to other visual social media platforms, like Instagram and TikTok.

However, the introduction of Instagram Stories seems to have slowed Snapchat's development and advertisers' enthusiasm in utilizing Snapchat for their businesses in general.

However, 69% of US youths use Snapchat. So, if your target demographic is mostly adolescents, you should consider utilizing the app. For those new to Snapchat, we recommend reading our beginner's guide. If you're not sure whether to use Snapchat or Instagram, check out our brand-specific comparison.