Facebook could lose younger teens for the first time ever
Bad news for Facebook: American teens aren't interested anymore.
A new report from eMarketer released Monday predicted Facebook usage by 12-to-17-year-olds will decline this year — the first time it’s estimated a drop in Facebook usage for any age group, ever.
The report also says audiences under 25 are using Facebook less. Meanwhile, they are flocking to Instagram and Snapchat more.
“Outside of the Facebook-cutters, teens and tweens remaining on Facebook seem to be less engaged – logging in less frequently and spending less time on the platform. At the same time, we now have Facebook-nevers, many children aging into the tween demographic that appear to be overlooking Facebook altogether, yet still engaging with Facebook-owned Instagram," eMarketer forecasting analyst Oscar Orozco said in a statement.
The enthusiasm for Instagram is at least somewhat good news for Facebook.
About 14.5 million users ages 12 to 17 will use Facebook this year, a 3.4 percent drop from last year, according to eMarketer.
But things are looking pretty good for Snapchat. Its parent company Snap Inc. has been scrutinized by analysts, investors, and advertisers for its slowing user growth. Snapchat's 173 million daily active users is much smaller than Facebook's 2 billion monthly active users and Instagram's 700 million.
However, eMarketer upped its predictions for Snapchat usage. The biggest growth is from users age 18 to 24, growing 19.2 percent in 2017.
For the first time, eMarketer also has forecasted Snapchat overtaking Facebook and Instagram for users age 12 to 17 and 18 to 24.
Though, it might not be sustainable. The chart above predicts that going into 2018, Instagram will be growing much faster than Snapchat.
Topics Facebook Instagram Snapchat Social Media
Kerry Flynn is a business reporter for Mashable covering the tech industry. She previously reported on social media companies, mobile apps and startups for International Business Times. She has also written for The Huffington Post, Forbes and Money magazine. Kerry studied environmental science and economics at Harvard College, where she led The Harvard Crimson's metro news and design teams and played mellophone in the Band. When not listening to startup pitches, she runs half-marathons, plays with puppies and pretends to like craft beer.
