While Facebook is predicted to reach 169.5 million users in 2018, those newcomers aren’t likely to be under 25.
A new report by market research company eMarketer has suggested that the network will lose upwards of two million users under 25 this year; because as Facebook gains a reputation for being Baby Boomer’s social network of choice, it’s ‘cool factor’ amongst millennials and Gen-Z-ers has dropped.
eMarketer did note that Facebook is gaining users, but that can be accredited to the constant growth of older users joining the site. The report notes that for the first time since the site’s inception, less than half of US internet users ages 12 to 17 will use Facebook this year:
“In 2018, the number of U.S. Facebook users ages 11 and younger will decline by 9.3 per cent,” eMarketer wrote in a report covering the results. “Additionally, the number of users ages 12 to 17 and 18 to 24 will decrease by 5.6 per cent and 5.8 per cent, respectively. This is the first time eMarketer has predicted a decline in the number of U.S. Facebook users in those age groups.”
So where are these younger users going? eMarketer believes that Facebook’s runoff will all be heading to Snapchat.
While Snapchat’s growth has been slow, the instant photo messaging app is experiencing something of a comeback. The report predicts Snapchat’s growth in users under 25 will outperform Instagram this year, at 1.9 million users versus 1.6 million, and that it will continue to boast more users ages 12 to 24.
