More than any other social app, teens report using Instagram. But the platform for entertainment remains TikTok, according to a new research from Piper Sandler tracking teen trends and just how they evolve over time.

The annual survey is based on responses from more than 13,000 U.S. teens, who reported that Netflix leads YouTube in daily video consumption. Still, TikTok was said to be the most popular social app, even surpassing Instagram.

Maybe most interestingly, despite its entertainment dominance, Instagram leads the way overall usage, having gained seven percentage points since the last survey. TikTok comes second, up five percentage points, with Snapchat continuing to fall back, having lost three percentage points.
No doubt due in part to the long-term affinity of younger audiences for these apps, this latest evidence of decline still marks the first indication of falling usage for Snapchat.

Other platforms are in flux, too. Pinterest has gotten more traction than ever before, up six percentage points; Facebook is up two percentage points; and the Twitter platform, rebranded X, lost two points among teens.

Popularity in Instagram should be sustained by users' social networks and a set of connections in the app. Mixed reviews on Meta's pivot toward AI-recommended content should keep usage increasing. In fact, Meta reported just last week that 40 million young adults in the US and Canada use Facebook every day-the highest level over three years.

Strategically speaking, these findings would not alter much in the targeting strategies among the youth, but they would, considering the main platforms' centrality. However, Pinterest is becoming a more attractive tool and Facebook's further improvements on AI-driven ads might open avenues in reaching the target young users.
Regardless of this, Instagram and TikTok, even Snapchat lead among teens.