Snapchat by the Numbers: Stats, Demographics & Fun Facts

1. Snapchat user statistics 

There are 319 million Daily Active Snapchat users (Snapchat, 2021). This marks an increase of 54 million, or 20%, year-over-year. 

There has been an impressive gradual growth in the number of Snapchat users over the years, and the trend isn’t changing any time soon.  

The rise in usage is attributed to the record growth in the number of Snapchat users outside North America and Europe.  

In Q4 2020, the total number of DAU in the rest of the world shot up by a whopping 55% year-over-year to hit 99 million. In contrast, there were only 92 million DAUs in North America and 74 million in Europe. 

Q4 2021 experienced yet another growth – the revenue increased 42% compared to Q3 2021, while the full-year revenue increased 64% year-over-year.

2. Snapchat demographics: Age 

65% of U.S. 18-29-year-olds say they use Snapchat. (Pew Research Center, 2021). 

Moreover, the age gaps between American Snapchat users are particularly wide for those between 18-29 years of age using it and those that are over 65, which means that Snapchat is a social media platform with a predominantly younger audience.

In fact, this is the most popular social media network among teenagers, with Instagram and TikTok following closely.  

Millennials and Generation Z were the target demographics for Snapchat, as the creators understood what the younger generation wanted.  

The app’s popularity gradually decreases as you move higher in the age groups. Only a third of all users between 26 and 35 years use Snapchat and the number decreases further, as only 4% of U.S internet users aged 50 and above use the app.  

3. Snapchat Demographics: Gender 

54.4% of all Snapchat users are female and 44.6% are male (Statista, 2021). 

It is no brainer that females are naturally attracted to colour, visuals, connection, and creativity ‒ all of which Snapchat provides. This might be one of the reasons behind the high percentage of female users. 

Although 54.4% seems more compared to 44.6% taken up by the males, it is actually in decline. In 2020, about 57.4% of users were female.

4. Snapchat Demographics: Geography 

As of October 2021, India had the biggest Snapchat user base in the world, with an audience of 115.95 million users (Statista, 2021). 

The U.S. ranked in second place with a Snapchat audience base of 106.2 million users (Statista, 2021). France and the U.K. follow closely with little over 20 million Snapchat users each. 

Europe, Asia, and the rest of the world continue to account for an increased share and in the last year, India overtook first place from the U.S. The region has come to gradually occupy a much smaller percentage of the total number of Snapchat users.

North American Snapchat users accounted for 57% of the total user base in Q1 2014. Europe accounted for 30% while the rest of the world took up 13% of the total usage numbers.  

However, by Q2 2020, the North American user base decreased to only 38% while the European market accounted for 30% while the rest of the world took up the remaining 32%. 

Now we see the trends shifted towards India as the country with the largest Snapchat audience size.

An African country with the highest number of Snapchat users is in 2021 is Nigeria with 8.6 million users. 

5. Snapchat app download statistics 

With 281 million total downloads in 2020, Snapchat is on the top 10 list of the most popular apps worldwide.  

In 2021 in the U.S., Snapchat was downloaded 56 million times. This makes it the third most downloaded social networking app in the U.S.

It’s worthy to mention that before the gender-swap and baby lenses were released on May 8, 2019, the average downloads per day were 600,000. The numbers doubled up soon after the filters were released making this one of the most downloaded apps and today we can see that it is one of the most popular social media platforms.

6. Snapchat usage statistics 

According to Snapchat, the average daily active user opens the app’s camera more than 30 times a day, spending at least 30 minutes on the app.  

This may not all be surprising as 95% of Snapchat users claim that the app makes them feel happier.  

Snapchat has an extremely strong power that entices its users to socialize on the app. This is why some of the top reasons people use Snapchat daily are to keep in touch with friends, share images, and play around with filters and lenses.  

In comparison, most people that use Twitter only do so to follow news and current events while YouTube is ideal for those that wish to learn more about a particular topic of interest.  

7. Snapchat and happiness 

This frequency isn’t surprising at all, considering that 95% of Snapchat users claim that using the app makes them happy. 

Given the visual nature of the app, its users are more reliant on their cameras, which without, we would have never gotten Snapchat, to begin with. This makes it much easier for people to log into their accounts, take pictures (or snaps) and share them with friends – as easy as that. 

8. Reasons for using Snapchat 

In the 2019 survey published by Snapchat based on the reports from the Murphy Research, it was revealed that Snapchat is the most popular app that’s used ‘on-the-go.’ This clearly shows that Snapchat is best for those quick snatches of time as compared to longer or more habitual travelling. 

The same research also indicated that Snapchat is the most used app when shopping and socializing with friends. 

As it is mostly used as a tool for passing time, people hardly use Snapchat as a source of news, as compared to most other social media platforms.  

Instead, more than 30 million Snapchatters play Games on the platform each month, on average. They also experiment with filters and lenses.

9. Snapchat brand discovery statistics 

4 in 10 Snapchat users claim to have discovered a brand thanks to an online post or endorsements by celebrities (Globalwebindex, 2018).  

There are plenty of Snapchat influencers out there, but when compared to many other social media platforms, this app is only a favourite for a select few. This is because there has been a great rift between the platform and content creators, as it doesn’t offer them a seamless method to promote their content or products through the app.  

Even though Snapchat has been giving influencers a cold shoulder, things seem to change with the recent introduction of verified influencers. This makes it easier for brands to use public figures to promote their products/ services.  

10. The purchasing power of Snapchat users 

Snapchat users are 60% more likely to make impulse purchases. 

Millennials and Gen Zs have a combined purchasing power of over $1 trillion. This shows how important Snapchat is when it comes to marketing and advertising products that target the younger generation.  

Besides, 35% of Snapchatters send snaps of products that they would like to purchase hence giving the brand more online visibility.  

Source: Snapchat for Business 

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