Eighty-four percent of U.S. adults report using YouTube, according to Pew Research Center data collected from 5,022 adults between February 5 and June 18, 2025. Facebook ranks second at 71%, with Instagram the only other platform to clear the 50% threshold, reaching exactly half of all U.S. adults.
From there the numbers drop sharply. TikTok reaches 37% of adults, WhatsApp 32%, Reddit 26%, Snapchat 25%, and X, formerly Twitter, 21%.
YouTube’s Reach Spans Every Generation
YouTube’s age distribution sets it apart from every other platform in the survey.
Among adults ages 18 to 29, YouTube use stands at 95%. It remains high through the middle age groups: 91% for adults 30 to 49, and 85% for adults 50 to 64. Even among adults 65 and older, 65% report using the platform, a level of cross-generational reach that no other platform in the survey matches.
Facebook also reaches a majority of adults across age groups, but YouTube’s figures are higher in every cohort. The data establish broad adoption, though the survey does not explain why any platform achieves the reach it does.
Instagram and TikTok Skew Younger
Both platforms show substantially higher use among younger adults and much lower use among older ones.
Instagram reaches 79% of adults ages 18 to 29, compared with 21% of adults 65 and older. TikTok shows an even steeper decline: 65% among the younger adults, falling to 11% among the oldest. These platforms are not reaching the same audience as YouTube; their strength is concentration among younger users, not breadth across all age groups.
The Smaller Platforms Have Been Gaining Ground
Four platforms posted consistent growth between 2021 and 2025.
TikTok saw the largest relative increase, climbing from 21% to 37% since 2021, a gain of 16 percentage points. WhatsApp grew from 23% to 32% over the same period, while Reddit increased from 18% to 26%. Instagram rose from 40% in 2021 to its current 50%, though Pew notes its result is on par with the prior year, suggesting that its growth has slowed for now.
What “Ever Use” Actually Measures
Adoption figures tell you who has used a platform, not how much time they spend there.
Pew’s figures reflect the share of adults who say they ever use each platform. That is a different metric than daily active users, time spent per session, or engagement depth. Readers drawing conclusions about where Americans spend the bulk of their online time should treat these numbers as a measure of reach, not intensity.
