Pew study: Nearly half of US teens say they’re online ‘almost always’

Teens’ use of social media — and its impact on their mental health — is often in the news, and a new Pew Research Center study says nearly half of American teens are “almost always” online.

In its Teens, Social Media, and Technology 2024 study, released Thursday, Pew said nearly half (46 percent) of today’s 13- to 17-year-olds say they are online almost always. Although this figure is consistent with the 2022 and 2023 surveys, this is a 24 percent increase compared to the previous decade.

Almost all (96 percent) of teenagers say they go online every day, which is how many (95 percent) have access to a smartphone.

The report is based on a self-administered web survey of 1,391 US teens and their parents, conducted between September and October of this year.

Pew also breaks down which platforms teenagers visit most often, and how many say they’re there almost always: 16 percent say they’re “almost always” on TikTok, while 15 percent say the same about YouTube, 13 percent about -Snapchat, 12 percent on Instagram, and 3 percent on Facebook.

Many young people say they go to these forums once or more every day. Overall, 73 percent said they are on YouTube, the most popular social media platform among teenagers, at least once a day. Fifty-seven percent say they log on to TikTok at least once a day, and nearly half log on to Instagram and/or Snapchat once a day. Facebook is the least visited, but rounds out the top five, with 20 percent of teenagers saying they go at least once a day.

How many young people frequent platforms like YouTube and TikTok.
Credit: Pew Research Center

Pew found that more teenage girls use Instagram and TikTok, while boys are more likely to use YouTube. Fewer teens use X (17 percent), Reddit (14 percent), and Weaves (6 percent).

This study comes amid scrutiny of social media and how it affects young people. In October, the CDC confirmed that there is a link between social media use and mental health problems in young people, and Australia recently banned social media for children under 16.