Stacy Jo Dixon
Research expert covering social media usage worldwide
Facebook in the United Kingdom (UK) - Statistics & Facts
Facebook is a social networking site owned by Meta Platforms Inc. The social media powerhouse, which was established in 2004 by its founder Mark Zuckerberg in a dorm at Harvard University, is one that many other platforms strive to overtake in terms of user base. As of 2022, the United Kingdom was one of the largest markets for Facebook in Europe and despite many controversies over the years, Facebook is still one of the biggest social media platforms in the country. In 2022, over 46 million people in the UK used Facebook, and that number is expected to grow to 50 million by the year 2027.
As of January 2023, users aged 25 to 34 years made up Facebook's largest UK audience. The social network was more popular with teens than other Meta products Facebook Messenger and Instagram, with around 1.7 million users aged between 13 and 17 years.
Engagement on Facebook varies greatly by type of post. Posts that contain links generated the highest amount of interactions on the platform, achieving an average engagement rate of 0.15 percent. In general, video posts were the least popular, achieving 0.08 percent engagement. Facebook Pages are a feature on Facebook where artists, public figures, businesses, brands, and organizations can connect with their fans, and almost 80 percent of posts on Facebook Pages were photo posts.
How popular is Facebook in the UK?
Most social media users in the UK are familiar with the Facebook brand. Overall, 95 percent of social media users in the UK knew of Facebook, and 69 percent said they were loyal to the platform. Facebook was the second most popular social media platform in the UK, coming close second to Meta’s mobile messenger WhatsApp. Additionally, social media users in the UK spent on average 14 hours and 42 minutes per month on the Facebook app.As of January 2023, users aged 25 to 34 years made up Facebook's largest UK audience. The social network was more popular with teens than other Meta products Facebook Messenger and Instagram, with around 1.7 million users aged between 13 and 17 years.
Facebook user activity in the UK
In 2022, the BBC was the most followed news organization on Facebook in the UK. Approximately 54 percent of Facebook users in the country were following the news outlet. Public figures and journalists were also popular choices with UK Facebook users. Although more than half of UK Facebook users were following the BBC, just one in five UK adults reported using the platform as a source of news.Engagement on Facebook varies greatly by type of post. Posts that contain links generated the highest amount of interactions on the platform, achieving an average engagement rate of 0.15 percent. In general, video posts were the least popular, achieving 0.08 percent engagement. Facebook Pages are a feature on Facebook where artists, public figures, businesses, brands, and organizations can connect with their fans, and almost 80 percent of posts on Facebook Pages were photo posts.
Social media advertising in the UK
The significance of social media as a marketing tool is crucial as consumers continue to spend more time online. In 2022, advertisers spent 12 billion U.S. dollars on social media ads in the UK, and by 2027, an estimated 17 billion U.S. dollars will be invested into social media advertising. A little over 20 percent of business-to-consumer marketers in the UK said that Facebook was the most important social media platform, coming second, only just, to Instagram. Charitable organizations spent the most on Meta advertising in the UK between November 2018 and April 2022, paying out almost 19.56 million British pounds.
