Pew Research: Facebook Is Still Tops Among U.S. Teens

Think the kids are no longer on Facebook? You should think again.

Facebook remains the top social media choice among U.S. teens, by a wide margin, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center.

The study found that 71% of Americans ages 13-17 use Facebook, defying conventional wisdom that the younger crowd isn’t using the social network. In fact, teens are using Facebook at the same percentage level as U.S. adults, according to another Pew Center study.

Where the kids differ is in their other social media choices. While adults look more to LinkedIn and Pinterest, teens prefer Instagram and Snapchat. Fifty-two percent of the nationally representative sample of 1,060 reported using Instagram and 41% Snapchat. Twitter (used by 33%), Google+ (33%), Vine (24%) and Tumblr (14%) were the only other social networks the survey specifically asked about.

Facebook is more popular with older teens. Fewer than half (44%) of 13 year olds reported using the network, compared to 77% of the 14-17 age group. Household income also plays a factor in Facebook use; 77% of teens from families earning less than $50,000 annually said they use Facebook, compared to 68% whose families earn more.

Instagram is especially popular with girls; 61% said they use the photo and video sharing site. Boys’ reported use is 44%, dragged down by the youngest part of the cohort, only 33% of 13 to 14 year old boys said they use Instagram.

It won’t be a surprise to any parent of teenagers, but the survey confirmed that teens are very active on the Internet, with 92% reporting going online daily, including 24% who said they are connected “almost constantly.” More than half (56%) go online several times a day, 12% report once-a-day use and only 6% of teens report weekly use of the Internet. Mobile phones are the driving force behind much of the activity. Of the 73% of teenagers with access to mobile phones, 94% go online at least once a day.

And once they are online, they are certainly social; with 89% reporting usage on one or more of the networks. Among the one in five who use only one, Facebook is the solo choice of 66%, 13% use Google+, 13% use Instagram and 3% use Snapchat. Another win for Facebook; the survey also found that 41% of teens said they use it most often, more than twice Instagram’s 20%.

You can read the full report, which includes demographic breakdown for each social network, on the Pew Center site.

Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily MarTech. Staff authors are listed here.

About The Author

Martin Beck

Martin Beck was Third Door Media's Social Media Reporter from March 2014 through December 2015.