{"id":23564,"date":"2025-05-05T11:32:40","date_gmt":"2025-05-05T11:32:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/?p=23564"},"modified":"2026-03-13T20:10:03","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T20:10:03","slug":"the-state-of-social-media-in-canada-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/2025\/05\/05\/the-state-of-social-media-in-canada-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"[New Report] The State of Social Media in Canada\u202f2025."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Social media use among Canadians has largely rebounded. X (formerly Twitter) stands out as the lone decliner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>TORONTO\u202f\u2014\u202fMay\u202f2025<\/strong> \u2014 After a post\u2011pandemic dip in 2022, social media account ownership and usage among Canadians have largely rebounded, according to The State of Social Media in Canada 2025, a report released today by the Social Media Lab at the Ted Rogers School of Management, Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU). X (formerly Twitter) stands out as the lone decliner, with account ownership sliding from 42% in 2020 to 40% in 2022, and finally to 37% in 2025, marking its first sustained retreat among major platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\"><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.6084\/m9.figshare.28830188\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\" noreferrer noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"765\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/TheStateOfSocialMediaInCanada2025-765x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-23566\" srcset=\"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/TheStateOfSocialMediaInCanada2025-765x1024.jpg 765w, https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/TheStateOfSocialMediaInCanada2025-224x300.jpg 224w, https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/TheStateOfSocialMediaInCanada2025-768x1028.jpg 768w, https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/TheStateOfSocialMediaInCanada2025-696x932.jpg 696w, https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/TheStateOfSocialMediaInCanada2025-314x420.jpg 314w, https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/TheStateOfSocialMediaInCanada2025.jpg 986w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 765px) 100vw, 765px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons alignwide is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-fe48e5de wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-vivid-red-background-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/figshare.com\/ndownloader\/files\/54180017\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Download Report<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.6084\/m9.figshare.28830188\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The State of Social Media in Canada\u202f2025<\/a><\/strong>, authored by Dr. <a href=\"https:\/\/anatoliygruzd.com\/\">Anatoliy Gruzd<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/philipmai.com\/\">Philip Mai<\/a>, draws from a census-balanced online survey of 1,500 Canadians conducted from February 19 to March 1, 2025. The survey tracks ongoing trends in social media adoption, highlighting shifts in platform popularity, user demographics, and engagement frequency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>\u201cSocial media usage has rebounded notably since the COVID-19 era, driven largely by increased adoption of video-oriented platforms like YouTube and Instagram, while interest in X has steadily declined, especially among women,\u201d <\/em>said <strong>Dr. Anatoliy\u202fGruzd<\/strong>, Canada Research Chair and Co\u2011Director of the Social Media Lab.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Key Findings<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Instagram\u2019s rapid growth<\/strong> &#8211; Adoption jumped 12 points to 63%, and monthly engagement rose 15 points to 60% since 2022, one of the biggest surges of any major platform, likely fueled by uncertainty around TikTok\u2019s future.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>YouTube closing in on Facebook<\/strong> &#8211; YouTube\u2019s reach climbed 11 points to 73%, making it almost neck\u2011and\u2011neck with Facebook for Canadian adults. (This figure doesn\u2019t even include viewers who watch YouTube videos without having an account on the platform.)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>TikTok\u2019s growth is cooling<\/strong> &#8211; While its user base grew to 35% (+9\u202fpts), daily use retreated 5 points to 60%, suggesting TikTok is shifting from runaway expansion to market consolidation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>X (Twitter) is the lone declined<\/strong> &#8211; After peaking at 42% in 2020, account ownership has slipped to 37%, down from 40% in 2022, marking the only sustained retreat among the big platforms.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Age remains one of the adoption predictors<\/strong> &#8211; Canadians aged 18\u201324 lead usage on five of the nine major platforms (e.g., 94% on YouTube, 91% on Instagram, 65% on TikTok), underscoring strong generational divides in social\u2011media habits.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Political leanings across social media platforms reveal subtle skews &#8211; <\/strong>Self-reported political leaning reveals that right\/right-leaning individuals are more prevalent on Platform X (46% vs. 34% left\/left-leaning) and TikTok (39% vs. 33%), whereas Pinterest shows a slight leftward tilt (40% vs. 35%). Other major platforms demonstrate near parity (within \u00b13%), suggesting broad bipartisan appeal.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>\u201cLooking ahead, as TikTok continues to expand\u2014now reaching 35% of Canadian adults\u2014under mounting regulatory scrutiny and geopolitical tension, the key question is whether it can sustain its growth, and whether X can finally stabilize its 37% user base or will continue to shed users,\u201d <\/em>added <strong>Philip\u202fMai<\/strong>, Senior Researcher and Co\u2011Director of the Lab.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For more highlights and details, the full report is available <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.6084\/m9.figshare.28830188\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-background wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"background-color:#fff2cc\"><strong>Suggested Citation:<\/strong>&nbsp; Gruzd, A. &amp; Mai, P. (2025). The State of Social Media in Canada 2025<em>. Social Media Lab, Toronto Metropolitan University.<\/em> DOI: <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.6084\/m9.figshare.28830188\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">10.6084\/m9.figshare.28830188<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Media Contact<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Philip Mai &lt;info@socialmedialab.ca&gt;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Social Media Lab, Toronto Metropolitan University<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About the Social Media Lab<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Social Media Lab is an interdisciplinary research center at the Ted Rogers School of Management at Toronto Metropolitan University. It studies how social media and other digital technologies are transforming how people and organizations communicate, share information, conduct business, and form communities, as well as the impact these changes have on society. The Lab\u2019s overarching goal is to deepen public understanding of both the benefits and potential drawbacks of technology adoption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Social media use among Canadians has largely rebounded. X (formerly Twitter) stands out as the lone decliner. TORONTO\u202f\u2014\u202fMay\u202f2025 \u2014 After a post\u2011pandemic dip in 2022, social media account ownership and usage among Canadians have largely rebounded, according to The State of Social Media in Canada 2025, a report released today by the Social Media Lab [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":24644,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[665,587,265],"tags":[674],"class_list":["post-23564","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-generative-ai","category-public-reports","category-research","tag-the-state-of-social-media-in-canada-2025"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23564"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23564\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23587,"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23564\/revisions\/23587"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24644"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/socialmedialab.ca\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}