Despite many of our favourite social media platforms turning 20 in the next year or so (let that sink in), they’re showing no signs of aging. In fact, almost the opposite is true. It’s 2025, and the use of social media in South Africa continues to grow and evolve.
But as new features take root – short form video, user-generated content, marketplace functionality – they shape the general expectations of what social media platforms can and should supply, and what consumers expect of brands. For this reason, brands need insights to stay updated and adaptable with their social media marketing strategies.
Alongside branded content, robust social media analytics tools provide these insights. Uncover the social media trends applicable for your brand, and never miss a thing by making use of a social listening tool.
In this blog, we expand on some of the key South African social media statistics found in the Global Digital Report 2025 - produced in partnership with Meltwater and We Are Social.
Table of contents:
General 2025 Social Media Statistics for South Africa
Internet Usage in South Africa
eCommerce & Online Shopping Statistics for South Africa
South African Social Media Usage
Main Reasons For Using Social Media in South Africa
Most Used Social Platforms in South Africa
Influencer Following in South Africa
South African Digital & Social Media Statistics: Key Takeaways
General 2025 Social Media Statistics for South Africa
- 50.8 million people use the internet (78.9%)
- 26.7 million people use social media (41.5%)
- 124 million mobile connections are active (193% of the population)
As of early 2025, there are over 50 million internet users in South Africa. This is up over 2.5 million users from 2024, showing the continued growth of internet accessibility in the country. Interestingly, although there are over 50 million internet users, only 26.7 million are social media users. Although this is up 2.7% year-on-year, it shows how much growth potential is still available to social media platforms.
Cellular mobile connections number 124 million. For context, many South Africans make use of more than one mobile connection, which is why this figure exceeds the figures for total population.
Device Ownership
- 99.3% of internet users own smartphones
- 79.1% own laptops, MacBooks, or PCs
- 28.6% own smart wrist devices
99.3% of South African internet users own smartphones, further underlining the accessibility of mobile phones and the connection preference of the user. In comparison, 79.1% of users own a computer. This is why South African brands should adopt a mobile-first approach to their marketing, both in terms of strategy and creative rollout.
Looking at the statistics behind the media consumption in South Africa, it is notable to see that neither television nor radio have dipped, despite the domination of the internet and online accessibility. Broadcast TV is used by 89.5% of South African internet users (in comparison to 76.2% who stream video content), and broadcast radio is used by 79.4% of users (with 78.8% of users streaming music content).
This shows that, even with internet access, TV and radio media maintain their popularity. For brands, this presents the opportunity for omnichannel marketing, ensuring presence across online and traditional media spaces.
Internet Usage in South Africa
While some 14 million South Africans do not have access to the internet, those that do spend more time online, on average, than any other country in the world. South African users spend an average of 9 hours, 37 minutes per day actively online.
Average Internet Usage in South Africa
- South African users daily time spent on the internet: 9 hours, 37 minutes
- Global average: 6 hours, 38 minutes
South Africa has the highest internet usage rate in the world. This figure is almost exactly the same as last year, suggesting that many internet users in South Africa have developed (and are comfortable with) an always-online lifestyle.
Main Reasons for Using the Internet in South Africa
Information access is a major factor for users aged 16 - 64 using the internet, tying into 4 of the top 5 reasons listed.
- Finding information - 84%
- Researching how to do things - 77.7%
- Staying in touch with friends and family - 72.6%
- Finding new ideas or inspiration - 71.2%
- Researching products and brands - 68.7%
Top Website Types Visited in South Africa
- Social networks - 99.3%
- Chat and IM - 99%
- Email - 97.1%
- Search engines - 95.3%
Website and app usage in South Africa reflects the main reasons listed for using the internet, namely information sourcing and talking to friends and family. Entertainment websites, such as music services and food delivery apps, are noticeably less popular than social and communication websites.
Online Learning Statistics for South Africa
South African users don’t just spend the most time online, they’re also the country with the most users turning to the internet as a source of learning. 58.5% of users watch tutorials, educational content, and how-to-videos every week. The global average: 40.2%.
Concerns Regarding Misinformation
While social media, websites and other online presence gives brands credibility, South Africans are statistically less likely to trust internet information. 80.5% of South African internet users express concerns about misinformation online, a figure only topped by Kenyan and Nigerian internet users, and considerably higher than the global average of 58.8%.
eCommerce & Online Shopping Statistics for South Africa
Online shopping continues to grow in South Africa, crossing the 10 million mark and exhibiting a healthy growth rate of 9.3% (up to 10.4 million online shoppers from 9.49 million this time last year). Mirroring South Africa’s reliance on mobile phone connections, 51.7% of all online purchases were made via smartphones.
- 10.4 million South African internet users made a purchase online in 2024
- 51.7% of purchases were made via mobile phones
The growth of the eCommerce sector in South Africa provides brands with further opportunities to reach their end user, both in terms of actual sales as well as online advertising. Note that these numbers only include B2C eCommerce sales and don’t include marketplace or user-to-user sales facilitated online.
Factors Driving Online Purchases in South Africa
- 67.3% of users cite free delivery as the biggest driver behind a purchase
- 53.8% of users are invested in loyalty programs
- 43.8% of users are interested in coupons or discounts
For South African internet users, discount mechanisms trump convenience factors when driving purchase behaviour. Incentives such as free delivery or a loyalty points system prove to be considerably more effective than the convenience aspect of next-day delivery or a simple checkout system.
South African Social Media Usage
South Africans are some of the most active social media users in the world. 26.7 million users aged 18 and above have used social media at the beginning of 2025 – the equivalent to 59.9% of the total population aged 18 and above.
Social media users in South Africa increased by 700 000 between early 2024 and early 2025. The gender split is negligible (48.7% female, 51.3% male), and the average number of platforms per user sits at just over 8.
Daily Time Spent on Social Media
On average, a South African internet user spends 3 hours 36 minutes on social media per day.
This is more than 1.5 times that of the global average - 2 hours 21 minutes - and puts South Africa only behind Kenya and Chile in terms of time spent on social media platforms. For brands, this shows what an important aspect social media makes to an overall marketing strategy for South African audiences.
Meltwater’s Marketing Tip: As South Africans are on social media for a significant amount of time, brands need to be aware of the social trends and conversations happening in their industry. Consumer preferences and behaviours are constantly evolving, so using social media monitoring tools like the Meltwater social listening tool allows brands to follow trends, create content, plan effective campaigns, connect with audiences and correctly position their brand.
Main Reasons For Using Social Media in South Africa
South African internet users look to social media for several reasons, including networking, reading new articles, watching videos or live streams, or conducting work-related research.
- Keeping in touch with friends and family - 64.8%
- Reading news stories - 45%
- Finding inspiration for things to do and buy - 43.6%
- Seeing what's being talked about - 39.2%
- Filling spare time - 38.8%
Communication and inspiration make up most of the reasons South African social media users spend time on the platforms. Knowing where (and why) users spend their time where they do can allow brands to create content that enhances the overall social media experience, rather than simply creating content and hoping it resonates with audiences.
Use of Social Media For Work Activities
Compared to the global average of 38.3%, 52.6% of South African users say that social media makes up part of their work activity. This can be directly related, as a social media manager or coordinator, or using social media to find information and conduct research.
Brand Presence on Social Media
- 63% of South African users visit social media to seek out brand content
- The global average is exactly 50%
South African users are some of the most likely to turn to social media to learn more about brands. For brands, this provides the opportunity to use social media in the same way: by providing users with the type of content they may be looking for. Practically, this could be anything from new features or product launches to more soft-sell content like behind-the-scenes material.
Understanding this purchasing behaviour is crucial. If users are looking to social media platforms in the pre-purchase phase, a seamless integration from the platform to the sale channel is key. Even if they aren’t interested in purchasing yet, brands can provide audiences with a good customer experience and begin to shape brand loyalty.
Most Used Social Platforms in South Africa
- WhatsApp - 93.8% of all active users
- Facebook - 88.6%
- TikTok - 76.9%
- Instagram - 71.4%
- Messenger - 67.8%
WhatsApp, TikTok and the Meta suite of Facebook, Instagram and Messenger make up the 5 most used social media platforms in South Africa.
Average Time Spent on Social Media Apps
- TikTok - 26 hours, 39 minutes per month
- YouTube - 25 hours, 15 minutes per month
- WhatsApp - 23 hours, 42 minutes per month
- Facebook - 16 hours, 18 minutes per month
- Instagram - 8 hours, 11 minutes per month
In terms of time spent on the platform, 4 of the top 5 social media apps make considerable use of video content.
With users spending significant time on platforms that heavily feature video content such as TikTok, YouTube, and WhatsApp, marketers should prioritise video as a key component of their digital strategy. Engaging, well-crafted video content has become essential to capture attention and drive meaningful interactions across these top social media apps.
Favourite Social Media Platforms in South Africa
For South African internet users, 3 platforms stand out as favourites: WhatsApp is 1 in every 3 users' favourite social media app with 34%, followed by TikTok with 23.8% and Facebook with 18.1%.
Social Media Growth in South Africa
Total number of users: 26.7 million
Year-on-year growth: 700 000 (2.7%)
YouTube
Total number of users: 25.3 million
Year-on-year growth: 200 000 (0.8%)
TikTok
Total number of users: 23.4 million
Year-on-year growth: 5.93 million (34%)
Total number of users: 15 million
Year-on-year growth: 3 million (25%)
Total number of users: 7.4 million
Year-on-year growth: 450 000 (6.5%)
Influencer Following in South Africa
Influencer marketing has boomed in the last few years, and is seen as both favourable and credible by South African internet users. Compared to the global average of 22%, 33.6% of South Africa’s social media users say that they follow influencers and online experts.
Meltwater’s Global Digital Report in October 2024 showed that 23.2% of internet users watch weekly video content, with 19.5% citing influencer-led content as their main reason for using social media.
Meltwater’s Marketing Tip: The influencer industry has evolved, and continues to evolve, as an effective way to get the attention of new users. It is important to have an influencer marketing platform like the Meltwater influencer marketing suite to be able to find, vet, activate and influencers for impactful results that amplify your brand. We have compiled lists of the top South African female influencers and the top beauty influencers in South Africa.
South African Digital & Social Media Statistics: Key Takeaways
South Africa’s digital landscape is booming, offering huge potential for marketers. With a large, engaged audience spending significant time online, particularly on mobile, brands have a unique opportunity to connect where it matters most. Social media is a key touchpoint, and the rise of influencer marketing signals a shift towards more authentic, trusted connections with consumers.
Additionally, South Africans are increasingly turning to the internet for information, creating an opportunity for brands to provide valuable educational content. With concerns about misinformation on the rise, building trust through credible and transparent communication is crucial. To stay ahead, marketers need to embrace these trends and create dynamic, mobile-first strategies that speak directly to South Africa’s diverse and active digital audience.
Ready to boost your brand across digital platforms or leverage social listening? Contact Meltwater South Africa today. Our suite of solutions uses powerful AI technology to turn data into insights that you can act on, helping you meet your business goals.
