UK: Facebook users 2018-2024
In November 2024, the United Kingdom had more than 55.9 million Facebook users. Four years before, in September 2020, the number of Facebook users in the UK stood at 45.85, showing a 21.9 percent growth in audience size in four years.
Facebook remains the leading social network
Despite a recent history of controversies and user privacy breaches - not least of which being the Cambridge Analytica scandal of 2018 - Facebook has managed to remain the top social network in the UK. As of July 2024, the platform had a 62.8 percent market share, almost six times over that of X, formerly known as Twitter. Besides being the most popular social network across all age groups, Facebook and its subsidiary WhatsApp report the highest use among those aged between 26 and 35 years old.
Role in political advertising
Facebook has also proved to be a lucrative advertising platform, having generated 22.7 percent of online ad revenue in the UK in 2018. This was forecast to increase to 28 percent in 2021, placing the social network second to Google within the online advertising sector. Unsurprisingly, political groups aiming to capitalize on this reach have taken to large-scale advertising on Facebook. In 2019, 3.31 million euros was spent on targeted political advertising in the UK alone, the second-highest reported figure in Europe.
