Tiago Bianchi
Research expert covering internet & gaming in Latin America and Spain
Social media usage in the Caribbean - statistics & facts
With a great variety of cultural and political landscapes, the social contrasts of the Caribbean are also reflected online. Home to over 31.4 million internet users, only 22.7 million of those are active on social media. Internet access and social media platforms usage vary significantly across the Caribbean countries and territories. To fully understand how the internet and social media reach these islands, it is essential to explore how each nation's economic and political situation impacts online freedom and access.
Despite its prominence in the region, Facebook accounted for a rate of 36.3 percent of the country’s social media site visits in mid-2024. Still, Meta holds the top of “the rock” island (as kindly nicknamed by its citizens) alongside Instagram, which displayed a remarkable growth until 2022 despite representing only around 16.59 percent of the country’s total social media visit share.
On a more positive note, countries like the Bahamas and Barbados have some of the best access to social platforms in the whole of Latin America and the Caribbean, while territories like Aruba or the Cayman Islands present some of the highest internet penetration rates in the subregion.
This picture is as clear as the waters of Puerto Rico. The unincorporated territory of the United States features a diverse range of musical genres, including salsa and reggaeton, and is home to popular artists like Ozuna and Bad Bunny, both of whom have extremely popular YouTube channels. Not to forget, the self-proclaimed “island of enchantment” that presented the world with Despacito, Luis Fonsi’s and Daddy Yankee’s. The song is not only the second most viewed YouTube video of all time, the most-viewed YouTube music video by a Latin Artist of all time, and the first video in the history of YouTube to surpass six billion views.
The Caribbean market could seem like a complicated puzzle for social media companies due to its geographically sparse and politically distinct landscapes, along with divergent connectivity and socioeconomic factors. Although audiences are much smaller than those in other regions of Latin America, the region’s success on social media in the Caribbean ultimately proves the potential of local cultures to be a valuable resource for social platforms.
Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico: the Caribbean’s largest social media markets
Social media platforms find great opportunities in established markets like the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico. With over seven million social media users, the Dominican Republic alone represented 31.5 percent of all active social users in the region. Meta dominates the Caribbean social media market, with the company’s flagship platform Facebook playing a major role in the Dominican Republic and concentrating around 65 percent of its social audience in 2024.Despite its prominence in the region, Facebook accounted for a rate of 36.3 percent of the country’s social media site visits in mid-2024. Still, Meta holds the top of “the rock” island (as kindly nicknamed by its citizens) alongside Instagram, which displayed a remarkable growth until 2022 despite representing only around 16.59 percent of the country’s total social media visit share.
Matters of access and history
With a long history of foreign occupation, fully sovereign countries portray varying and specific levels of online inclusivity depending on their overall developments. Cuba and Haiti have much more stormy social media landscapes, despite ranking second and third in the number of internet users in the region. Cuba’s tight internet restrictions and tolerance of social media aligned with poor-quality internet connections. Haiti’s persisting social and economic turmoil and vulnerability to natural hazards are among the main factors that restrict the potential of these countries for social networks.On a more positive note, countries like the Bahamas and Barbados have some of the best access to social platforms in the whole of Latin America and the Caribbean, while territories like Aruba or the Cayman Islands present some of the highest internet penetration rates in the subregion.
Where music (and video) set the tone
Despite being relatively smaller in geographical and audience size, the Caribbean still proves its immense social popularity with unique and vibrant cultural diversity, especially when it comes to music. Aligned with the overall advance of TikTok in Latin America, the regional increase of mobile connectivity and global video consumption turn music into one of the region's biggest assets for social media.This picture is as clear as the waters of Puerto Rico. The unincorporated territory of the United States features a diverse range of musical genres, including salsa and reggaeton, and is home to popular artists like Ozuna and Bad Bunny, both of whom have extremely popular YouTube channels. Not to forget, the self-proclaimed “island of enchantment” that presented the world with Despacito, Luis Fonsi’s and Daddy Yankee’s. The song is not only the second most viewed YouTube video of all time, the most-viewed YouTube music video by a Latin Artist of all time, and the first video in the history of YouTube to surpass six billion views.
The Caribbean market could seem like a complicated puzzle for social media companies due to its geographically sparse and politically distinct landscapes, along with divergent connectivity and socioeconomic factors. Although audiences are much smaller than those in other regions of Latin America, the region’s success on social media in the Caribbean ultimately proves the potential of local cultures to be a valuable resource for social platforms.
