Getty/Jaap Arriens
- For social media, members of Gen Z gravitate toward Instagram, Snapchat, and Youtube, according to a survey by Business Insider.
- The rise of personal devices, specifically the iPhone, has allowed these platforms to flourish among teens.
- It’s also enabled a culture of multitasking.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
It’s no surprise that Gen Z likes to use social media.
They are the first truly digital generation that grew up with social media, technology, and iPhones. Where are they actually spending most of their time? Asking this tribe of 13- to 21-year-olds directly elicits three answers that rise way above all the rest: Instagram, Snapchat, and Youtube.
In a Business Insider survey, Gen Z reported using those three platforms the most, with Facebook coming in a distant fourth. These were the only platforms where more than 25% of the survey population said they use it every day.
We surveyed 1,884 people in the US between the ages of 13 and 21. The national poll was conducted January 11-14 with SurveyMonkey Audience partner Cint on behalf of Business Insider.
The high percentage of usage of these platforms can be directly traced to the iPhone, and high ownership of them.
For teens, iPhones rule the roost. About 83% of teens surveyed by Piper Jaffray in its most recent Taking Stock of Teens survey said they owned an iPhone. These teens came of age just as the iPhone effectively became a requirement instead of a luxury. The median age of Gen Z is 17, meaning they were 10 when the iPhone was just starting to become adopted by the masses.
Some experts blame the rise of smartphones for fueling a culture of multitasking.
"The ability to participate in most of these activities, with an additional device beyond your TV or your PC, has had a huge impact on multitasking, and therefore consumption of more media or content," Olson said.
O’Hanlon agrees: "The sole reason people multitask is the accessibility of the iPhone."
Here’s exactly how pervasive usage of these three big platforms are.
Snapchat — 51.31%
Snap Inc.
Snapchat is still very popular among the youngest generation, with 51.29% of respondents in Business Insider’s survey saying they use it every day.
Youtube — 62.48%
AP Photo/Lee Jin-man
YouTube also has a firm grip on Gen Z, with 62.48% of our survey respondents telling us they check it every single day.
Instagram — 64.59%
happydancing/Shutterstock
Instagram still has a stranglehold on America’s teens. No other social media platform comes close in our survey, with 64.59% of Gen Z saying they check the app daily.
See Also:
- Gen Zers say they feel pressured to establish their ‘brand’ by the time they leave their teens
- Gen Z is likely photographed more often than anyone else — and it’s fueling big changes in how they shop
- Teens love shopping on Amazon, even when they’re not buying anything
SEE ALSO: America’s phone-obsessed teens are always multitasking, and it’s starting to cost them
Source: Business Insider – dgreen@businessinsider.com (Dennis Green)