TikTok tops 1 bln users in 5 years

For the last couple of years, TikTok’s stature as a social media platform has grown rapidly, and is now a household name despite the presence of social media giants like Facebook and Twitter.

In the second half of 2021, TikTok boasted that it joined the elite club of social media applications to reach one billion active users.

According to data presented by Buyshares, TikTok is the second-fastest social media platform to 1 bln users, just behind Facebook, after reaching the milestone in just 5.1 years.

TikTok’s origin started with an app in September 2016 and was popularised in mainland China known as Douyin. TikTok is the international version of the Chinese app and has become a household name since, with the platform’s rise to popularity happening in breakneck speed.

Out of major social media platforms, TikTok accomplished the feat the second-fastest with Facebook Messenger the only social media app to beat it after accomplishing the feat in just 4.9 years. Arguably, the speed of TikTok’s rise is far more impressive than Facebook Messenger which was already in operation as an extension of the Facebook website before it was released as an app. This gave Messenger a significant headstart compared to TikTok.

The next fastest after TikTok is Chinese app WeChat which took a little over 7 years to accomplish the feat. Facebook’s (now Meta) other apps such as its main app for Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp took 7.7 years, 8.5 years and 8.7 years, respectively, to reach the milestone. Video-sharing platform, Youtube also took a little over 8 years to reach 1 bln users.

“TikTok is the social media platform that is generating a lot of buzz in the last couple of years, particularly among the younger generations,” said Robert Pascal, Tech editor at Buyshares.

“The app’s popularity is impossible to miss as it has fully permeated mainstream pop-culture, ensuring that the 1 bln user mark is not the only milestone the platform will break in the near future.”