The TikTok Statistics Marketers Need To Know In 2021

As a marketer, you know the best way to put things in perspective is to look at the numbers. If you are eager to create a TikTok channel for your brand, these TikTok statistics will determine the existing opportunities for your business.

Without further ado, let’s get started!

12 General TikTok Statistics & TikTok User Statistics Marketers Must Know

Below are the must-know TikTok statistics that marketers should know. Check them out!

#1: TikTok Has 689 Million Monthly Active Users

According to DataReportal, TikTok has 689 million monthly users as of January 2021, making it the 7th largest social network regarding the number of users. Without counting users from China, this is quite an impressive figure.

It is also worth mentioning that this social platform has 100 million monthly users in the United States alone, accounting for almost 14% of the total number. This figure proves the U.S a fertile land for marketers who intend to advertise on TikTok.

As for the Asian market, while a majority of Western TikTok users are from Musical.ly, and the Eastern audience, specifically China, has their own Chinese version of the app, known as Douyin. This explains why the Chinese audience doesn’t count into TikTok’s active users.

Douyin, TikTok’s predecessor, or more like a sister, has a user base of 600 million daily active users. Together, TikTok & Douyin have over 1 billion active users globally, jumping to the 5th position and surpassing Instagram and WeChat.

Despite being banned in India back in 2020 and in several other countries, the international version of TikTok was on its way to reach 120 million active users, while Instagram and Snapchat failed to do so with the same amount of time.

Plus, it only took TikTok less than 3 years to get the same number of users Instagram gained in 6 years, counting from its launch. As for Facebook, the number is 4 years.

#2: TikTok Has Been Downloaded More Than 2 Billion Times

TikTok has officially become the most popular overall app downloaded worldwide – more than 2 billion times!

In 2019, the platform reached its first billion download milestone. Within the next eight months, TikTok gained another milestone with an added number of half a billion downloads. Considering that the app was only launched in 2016, these TikTok stats are quite impressive, aren’t they?

The app is still on the track of expanding more and more, so it comes as no surprise to see TikTok doubling its number of downloads in just over a year.

More specifically, in the first quarter of 2020, TikTok was downloaded 315 million times! Compared to the prior quarter, there is an immense 58% increase in number.

The upsurge in downloads can be traced down to last year’s Coronavirus pandemic lockdown. During the COVID-19 pandemic, people had more screen time than ever before, and they needed something entertaining to kill time.

Undoubtedly, there’s YouTube, yet it’s still not enough. People wanted a new way to stay connected and entertained, resulting in driven downloads.

#3: TikTok Is Accessible For Over 200 Countries

Despite the bans in several countries, including India – the second-most populous country, TikTok is available in more than 200 nations.

In the past year, about 50 countries have been enlisted to TikTok’s service map. Thus, this video-streaming platform is also available in 75 languages, covering quite a large part of the world’s population.

We have to admit it’s quite impressive to see the app gather such an enormous audience in a short span of time while expanding into new markets. As a marketer, you know what it means. Your business has a higher chance of reaching a larger customer base when using TikTok as a form of social media marketing.

While you’re more likely to get increased exposure to the target audience, your potential consumers can be located anywhere in these countries.

#4: The Top TikTok User Has 117 Million Followers

Charli D’Amelio has over 117 million followers on TikTok as of June 2021. This number is more than the Philippines’ population in 2020. The famous TikToker is known for recreating the Renegade choreography from her fellow dancer –  Jahlaiah Harmon.

Before breaking this record, Charli D’Amelio was known among youngsters on TikTok for posting dance videos as well as making video-breaking dance moves into easier choreography. The 17-year-old girl is also the first-ever to reach 100 million followers on this video-streaming platform.

The second most famous TikToker is Addison Rae, with 78 million followers. You can see the follower gap between the two users is quite significant.

#5: Users Spend An Average Of 52 Minutes Per Day On TikTok

Studies show that Internet users spend an average of 52 minutes per day on the platform. This bias means people are either using this social networking app to make content themselves or watch the existing plethora of others’ content.

Android devices alone spend an average of 13.3 hours streaming on the platform a month. The reason lies in its popularity amongst Asian nations, which is the dominance of Android smartphones.

Now, let’s make a comparison with other social media. While social media users spend almost the same amount of time on Instagram (53 minutes), it is somewhat less on Snapchat (49.5 minutes). Currently, Facebook is ahead of the game, with an average screen time of 58.5 minutes.

As a marketer, you ought to know that the more time people spend scrolling these apps, the bigger ad exposure is. Utilizing these platforms is a good opportunity for brands to hop in and advertise their business. Take note, fellows!

#6: The Word “TikTok” Is The Third Most Common Search On YouTube

It is common for people to make spelling mistakes when looking up a word; the same thing goes for TikTok. “TikTok,” and “Tik Tok,” are the third-most common searches on YouTube. Imagine if we also count “TikTik” and “Tik Tik”?!

#7: 9/10 Users Use TikTok More Than Once Daily

90% of TikTok users come back to visit the app more than several times per day. Even better, they’re very active on the app. 68% of the users spend time watching videos from content creators, and 55% upload their own content.

What do these TikTok stats tell you? There is an obvious preference to watching someone else’s videos than making your own. A vast number of respondents from the 2020 GlobalWebIndex survey mentioned that they use the app to find funny/entertaining content.

These people see different types of video content on the platform as a source of entertainment. However, this doesn’t stop the rest from sharing their own videos. The remaining Internet users account for quite an astonishing number – 55%, demonstrating the creative liberty and simplicity of TikTok.

#8: TikTok’s Parent Company Bytedance Is The World’s Most Valuable Startup

TikTok’s parent company – ByteDance is estimated to be valued at a whopping $250 billion in March 2021, being the world’s most valuable startup. It can be quite astonishing for some people as the Chinese company was valued at $180 billion as of late 2020.

The world’s most valuable startup once belonged to Uber in 2019, with a total value of $75 billion at that time. But time has changed. One can never be #1 for too long.

Many investors are expecting the initial public offering (IPO) of Byte Dance, which is predicted to happen sometime in 2021 in Hong Kong. Once everything has settled, the startup’s value is going to increase even more rapidly.

#9: A Vast Majority Of American Users Are Under 30

Research conducted in April by the Research Center shows that U.S adults from the age of 18-29 years old account for 48% of American TikTok users. The number decreases to 20% for adults of 30-49 years old, 14% in the age of 50-64 years old, and 4% for 65 and up.

Let’s take a deeper look at this. At the beginning of 2017’s fourth quarter, there were approximately 2.6 million adult users in the United States. A year later, that number increased nearly three times to reach 7.2 million. In September 2018, the statistics began to skyrocket, attaining 14.3 million in just half a year.

The drive-in users resulted from a series of challenge videos that Jimmy Fallon – the host of The Tonight Show, encouraged people to participate in. Not only was there a tremendous increase regarding the users, but the average engagement rate and downloads were also developed exponentially.

It is worth mentioning that 29% of U.S teens consider TikTok as their favorite social media app, and they’ve actually learned a lot from the app, from makeup tips to daily hacks with tasks around the house.

Even better, 25% of Gen Zers in the US said they’re willing to stay on this social media platform even though TikTok is at risk of a ban. Teens’ spirit? We think so as well.

Source: Pew Research Center

#10: Android Users Make Up For More Than 90% Of TikTok Downloads

Again, due to its popularity in Asian countries, more than 90% of the app downloads were made on Android devices. The only exception to this is the United States, where IOS users dominate.

#11: TikTok Has A #79 Alexa Ranking

In terms of app-engagement rate, Alexa estimated that TikTok ranks 79nd as the most viewed site throughout the world. The statistic was reported recently, in June 2021.

While this doesn’t sound like a big deal, it is actually a clear demonstration of the increase of TikTok over time. This time last year, the app ranked 412nd. In early January 2019, the platform had an Alexa ranking of 3,225 and 4,778 by the end of November 2018.

#12: TikTok Makes $110 Million Per Month From User Spending

The video-streaming platform allows users to purchase coins worth up to $100 to reward their favorite creators. According to recent TikTok usage statistics in 2021, TikTok makes up to $110 million a month from user spending alone.

Another interesting fact: Americans have one of the highest spendings on TikTok coins since its launch in 2018, specifically $23.1 million. This figure accounts for 24% of TikTok’s in-app purchases, which is quite remarkable as TikTok’s largest markets regarding the users and downloads might be China and India (before the ban).

Also, this figure makes TikTok the second-biggest app in consumer spending, just after Tinder.

Once you get a hold of these statistics, you will understand the platform and its impact on today’s generation much better.

Now, you’re probably wondering, “How to check my statistics on TikTok?” Worry not! The next section includes a detailed guide to help you.

How To Check My Statistics On TikTok?

To check your TikTok statistics, you’ll need to have a Pro account first. The process is easy and can be carried out by opening Privacy and Settings -> Manage My Account -> Switch to Pro Account.

You will see two options available: Creator and Business; choose the one that matches your content category accordingly. Then, you’ll find a new analytics button right under your account options.

Note: TikTok will only keep track of your statistics after the change is made. Analytics from when you had a regular account won’t be recorded. Also, you won’t be able to see the metrics right away; it takes roughly 7 days for the insight to show up as the platform needs time to collect your data. 

Conclusion

It is no exaggeration to say TikTok is doing so much better than just replacing Musical.ly or Dubsmash. The ease for everyone to become a creator as well as the creative freedom make it appealing to users.

It’s undoubted that TikTok is becoming more and more popular among not only Gen Z but also millennials and baby boomers. With these TikTok statistics, marketers should be able to get into a better perspective of future digital marketing.

Good luck, and thank you for reading!