In 30 seconds:
- TikTok has beaten out the competition when it comes to rapid growth, topping the charts at Apple’s App store and Google play store.
- It’s the domain of the youngest internet users — but not exclusively. TikTok usage is growing across the board.
- Users love the social media app for how it makes them laugh, teaches them new things, and informs them of products and services they’re interested in.
The latest TikTok marketing statistics reveal something brands cannot ignore — the platform is no longer the exclusive domain of Gen Z users.
If you were born after 1996, you’re part of the generation that makes up 40% of TikTok users. But if you weren’t, you’re by no means left out of this game. For a platform that may have once had a reputation for having an upper age limit, TikTok is gaining huge ground with older generations. In fact, about 32% of its global user base are Millennials.
Hailing from China-based parent company ByteDance, the video-sharing app is the international version of the Chinese platform Douyin. What started as an avenue to share one’s lip-syncing and dancing prowess is fast becoming the new centre of gravity of the internet — where trends start, behaviours change, and brands can access consumers in completely new and creative ways.
It’s now Number One on the charts for most downloaded apps, meaning it’s no longer a question of whether your brand should be on TikTok. It’s a question of how to make it work best for you.
With in-app shopping capabilities, advertising functions, and its growing use as a global search engine for younger internet users, including this social network in your marketing strategy has become non-negotiable.
From the mounting scope of the platform to the makeup of its daily active users — to what any of this might mean for your advertising budget — here are the key TikTok stats marketers need to know.
TikTok user statistics
How big is the platform?
The short answer? Big and getting bigger:
- In September 2021, TikTok thanked its global community for getting it over the one billion user mark.
- The number of TikTok downloads is set to increase to 1.8 billion global TikTok users by the end of 2022.
- In 2021, the TikTok app was downloaded 656 million times.
- That makes it the world’s most downloaded app, with 3.5 million total downloads (and counting).
- It was also the most downloaded app in the United States in 2021.
- TikTok’s net worth is valued at $50 billion.
- The platform generated $4.6 billion in 2021.
- A 142% increase from the previous year.
- It’s predicted to approach 1 billion users by 2025.
- The number of users is set to hit 16.8 million in the UK by 2024.
How much time are users spending on TikTok?
More and more. Here’s what we know:
- The average time spent on TikTok is approximately 95 minutes a day — the most of any of the social media platforms.
Source: SensorTower
For more in-depth info on TikTok’s user base and how you can use social media marketing to reach more groups, check out our article on TikTok demographics.
What are the demographics of TikTok users?
We already know that the graph of the platform’s users skews towards the younger demographic. So what else do the TikTok statistics say about who is on the platform?
14. When it comes to a global audience, about 24% are women between the ages of 18 and 24, and men of the same age are about 18% of the total number of people..
15. 17% of TikTok’s users are women aged between 25 and 34, and 14% of them are men of the same age demographic. (So it’s not just for kids!)
16. In the UK in 2021, approximately 30% of TikTok audiences were women between 18 and 24, with women between 13 and 17 in second place. Men made up 33.5% of the user base.
Source: Statista
12. The number of minutes per U.S. visitor per month went from 444.9 minutes per month in October 2019 to 858 in March 2022.
13. As for year-on-year growth of monthly time spent on TikTok, Singapore came out on top in 2021 with a rate of 74%.
For a deep dive into the demographics on TikTok – and how you can reach all kinds of different target audiences on the platform, read our article, TikTok Demographics: Who’s Using TikTok Now?
Is TikTok the “New Google”?
According to Gen Z users, this is a distinct possibility. Relevant results, ease of use, and the platform’s visual focus and entertaining short-form videos mean that TikTok is fast taking over as the search engine of choice for younger searchers. In fact:
- 40% of Gen Z users prefer to use Instagram and TikTok to Google as their search engine of choice.
Of course, for your marketing strategy, that means taking steps to boost your brand’s presence on the platform. We’ve taken the guesswork out of the process by offering a how-to guide to getting your brand discovered via TikTok SEO.
And here’s our guide to figuring out the TikTok algorithm.
How do users feel about the platform?
To answer that, we’re going right to the horse’s mouth.
In the Autumn of 2022, we set out to better understand the relationship between social media and 16-24 year olds — from their perspective.
Our research looked at, amongst other things, what platforms they’re on, what content they want from them, how they buy from them, and how they feel after using them.
It’s no surprise that TikTok came out shining here with:
- 34% of respondents say it’s the platform they use the most.
- The most common emotion Gen Zers said they felt after spending time watching TikTok videos was ‘happy’ (48%).
- 76% of Gen Z respondents said the purpose of TikTok is for ‘comedy and humour’.
- When asked what they like most about the brands they follow on TikTok, 34% of Gen Zers said ‘they have funny content’, 31% said ‘they entertain me’, and 11% said ‘they teach me new things.’
TikTok advertising statistics
By now, it’s clear — if you want to capture the attention of younger demographics, TikTok should be part of your advertising strategy. (Hey, if little brands like Burger King are doing it, you should too!)
To better understand the nuances of TikTok’s advertising and marketing potential, part of our research into the 16-24 demographic was to analyse brand perception and engagement on the platform.
When asked:
- What brands get wrong on TikTok, 39% of Gen Zers said ‘ads are false or inauthentic’, and 20% said ‘ads are too perfect and edited’.
- About the best ways for brands to engage with them on TikTok, 28% of Gen Zers said ‘make me laugh’, 25% said ‘give me details about their products and services’, 17% said ‘create a challenge or trend that I want to take part in’.
- What would make them want to buy something after seeing it on TikTok, 32% of Gen Zers said ‘if I see an ad that resonates with me.’ 28% said ‘if I see it’s trending in lots of people’s videos’ and 22% said ‘if an influencer or creator I respect recommends it’.
Source: Fanbytes by Brainlabs
Evidently, entertainment is in – as is native, low-fi style content that truly resonates with users. Brands should be thinking about how they can tell their story in engaging ways, using influencers and TikTok’s well-known collaborative tools like duets and hashtag challenges, as well as breaking new ground to excite their audiences.
Want to learn more about what Gen Z really think of TikTok – and the brands on there? Check out our full research report. Alternatively, if you want to improve your TikTok ads, check out our article on how to design TikTok ads.
Here’s another great statistic:
- Post Engagement Rates from brands on TikTok far outperform those on other platforms. In 2021, the average brand post engagement rate on TikTok was 5.6% – which is over 6 times higher than Instagram (0.83%).
- That engagement rate increases dramatically with TikTok influencers, who have an average engagement rate of between 12.43% and 13.7% – making them a great route for brands marketing on the platform (more on this later).
One of the major bonuses of TikTok advertising is the platform’s sophisticated analytics tools. Beyond tracking likes and follows, they give you insight into things like the growth of your account and who is watching your videos and for how long. Of course, this is all key data for business owners to them right to their target audience.
(If you’re looking to deepen this insight, our in-house data insights tool Bytesights allows us to align you with the ideal influencer for your campaign. Consider it our magician’s secret — and it’s been proven to pull off some remarkable tricks when it comes to ROI. As a taster, we used it to drive $1 million in earned media value for this skin brand.)
In-app shopping
With the rollout of TikTok Shop, users don’t have to leave the app to make a purchase. (It’s working so well that it’s even got the attention of major publishers like HarperCollins.)
Users are spending chart-busting amounts of money on TikTok:
- In-app spend for Q1 of 2022 came in at $840, which tops every app and game to date.
- 16% of Gen Zers say they most commonly buy from TikTok directly.
- TikTok Live was the preferred live shopping platform for nearly 30% of adults in the United Kingdom, making it the preferred platform to shop via livestream in the UK.
Want to get started on TikTok shop? We’ll take you through how to use TikTok for social commerce.
TikTok influencer statistics
Finally, what would TikTok be without the influencers that fuel its creative engine?
- Almost 50% of the creators on the platform are young adults between 18 and 25.
And these are the TikTok stars who are coming in with the most followers:
- Khabane Lame (@khaby.lame): 152.8M followers
- Charli D’Amelio (@charlidamelio): 149.2M followers
- Bella Poarch (@bellapoarch): 92.5M followers
- Addison Rae (@addisonre): 88.8M followers
- Zach King (@zachking): 71.6M followers
Of course, this is a snapshot in time. The top positions constantly change, but these numbers give you a sense of the size of the audience that can be tapped into via the top TikTok creators.
What about those influencer engagement rates? As mentioned above, Statista found that these averages varied between micro-influencers, mid- and macro-influencers in 2021, ranging from 12.43% to 13.7%. Naturally, this is an average statistic. By partnering with an influencer marketing agency armed with data insights (like us!), you could be looking at achieving a far higher engagement rate on your TikTok campaign, as we’re able to easily spot influencers whose engagement is growing, and identify TikTok influencers who are well aligned with your target demographic.
- Between January and July 2022, influencer video content constituted 91% of video views on social media giant TikTok.
TikTok marketing statistics: Key takeaways
It’s safe to say that in the last few years, TikTok has experienced massive growth. The key demographic is definitely young, but Gen-Z is not the only age group enjoying the platform — and, as the key TikTok statistics reveal, it’s certainly not only about dance videos anymore.
With powerful analytics tools, increased user engagement, and its potential to become one of the top search engines, it’s no wonder it’s garnered the attention of major brands from a range of industries.
If you see the potential but are not sure where to start, we can help. Get in touch. We know the world of influencer marketing can be daunting. We also know how to combine it with great data to boost the brands we work with.
If you’re new to TikTok marketing or are looking to expand your knowledge, we have a host of information to help, from brushing up on hashtags, to full-funnel TikTok marketing strategies. Here’s where to start:
