Instagram User Growth declines

Instagram User Growth declines to single digits for the first time in the US from 10.1% in 2018 to 6.7% in 2019.

According to a report by eMarketer, and their forecast, they estimate that Instagram User Growth will be slower than expected and will decline further until the end of the forecast period - 2023.

The figures are expected to decline further with the growth being 4.5% in 2020, 3.2% in 2021, 2.2% in 2022, and 1.8% in 2023. Older users not joining the platform at the expected rate, the revival of Snapchat and the rise of TikTok are touted to be the reasons for the platform's declining growth.

The US is a vital region for the platform with the highest number of users - 116 million users(2019). Instagram's declined growth rate in its prime market may also hint a downfall in other regions.

India holds the second-highest number of users globally with an estimate of 73 million users. Although, TikTok's growth in India is turning out to be threatening for Instagram.

TikTok has exploded in India in 18 months, from January 2018 to August 2019 it has managed to penetrate 30% of all Indian smartphones. TikTok also tops the 'Most Time Spent by Indians on a Social Media app' list with 34.1 minutes. Instagram is third on the list with 23.8 minutes.

Also Read: Why Instagram is hiding likes?

TikTok has also topped the most downloaded apps list on all three levels, Google Play Downloads, App Store Downloads, and Overall Downloads. A whopping 44% of these downloads were stemmed from India.

An analyst at eMarketer maintains that despite the declined user growth Instagram is expected to maintain its second place because of its growing ad revenues and overall penetration.

Although Snap CEO Evan Spiegel at a Digital Life Design " target="_blank">Conference mentioned that TikTok could surpass Instagram in terms of popularity. When asked if TikTok could grow faster and bigger than he said it's possible because 'talent-based content' is often more interesting than 'status-based content'.

Facebook has already duplicated TikTok with the upcoming app Lasso, soon to be also launched in India.

Additionally, Instagram was also found to be working on a feature called Clips and the striking similarities suggest it’s a clone of TikTok. Despite continuous efforts, the downfall of Instagram may have begun.