Is social media fatigue setting in among British and American users?

Around a quarter of British and American users spend more than 11 hours a week on social media. We look into YouGov data to find if people are spending more time now on social media than a year ago.

Latest data from YouGov Profiles reveals that a significant share of users in Great Britain and the United States agree that they spend more time on social media now (37% in GB and 40% in US) as opposed to last year.

However, users who disagree with the statement outpace those who agree, suggesting that consumers may be heading towards post-pandemic social media fatigue. Nearly half of users in both markets are likely to spend the same or less time on social media now than last year (48% in GB and 47% in US).

Breaking down the data by age shows that younger users are most likely to have increased the time spent on social media. Over half of users aged 18-24 years old (53% in GB and 54% in US) say they’ve been spending more time on social media now than last year.

In the US, 25-34-year-olds are as likely to have increased the time spent on social media (52%), although Britons are more divided in their attitudes (44% agree and 42% disagree).

Data suggests it’s older users who are cutting back on their regular social media activity – or at least not increasing it. Consumers aged between 35 to 44 years old in both markets balance each other out, while older users tip the scale more towards disagreement.

Most consumers in both the markets tend to access or post on social media when they are at home – over two thirds of Britons (69%) and slightly more Americans (72%) do so.

When out of their homes, Britons are most likely to access or post on social media when at work/school (19%) and while commuting (15%). Americans are most likely to be found on social media when at work/school (16%) and in a waiting room (15%).

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Methodology: YouGov Profiles is based on continuously collected data and rolling surveys, rather than from a single limited questionnaire. Profiles data for US and Great Britain is nationally representative and weighted by age, gender, education, region, and race. Learn more about Profiles.