Facebook: number of monthly active users worldwide 2008-2021

How many users does Facebook have?

With roughly 2.85 billion monthly active users as of the first quarter of 2021, Facebook is the biggest social network worldwide. In the third quarter of 2012, the number of active Facebook users surpassed one billion, making it the first social network ever to do so. Active users are those who have logged into Facebook during the past 30 days. During the first quarter of 2021, the company stated that 3.45 billion people were using at least one of the company's core products (Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, or Messenger) each month.

Facebook’s beginnings

Founded in 2004, Facebook is currently the biggest social networking service based on global reach and total active users. Launched by Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg and some of his contemporaries, the service was initially only available to Harvard students but soon expanded to regional universities, the Ivy League and further colleges before opening up to high school students and global users aged 13 or over. As of January 2021, India ranks first in terms of Facebook user base size.

How Facebook works

Facebook users must register before using the social network and are free to create a personal profile in order to interact with other users which they can add as friends. Furthermore, Facebook users may join user groups based on workplace, college or school and can also categorize their Facebook contacts into lists. Users can post status updates or other content, and message each other. Facebook users can also interact with a wide selection of applications including social games or other Facebook-owned services like photo-sharing app Instagram.

Facebook on mobile

As of January 2021, most Facebook users access the social platform almost exclusively via mobile devices. The availability of Facebook on mobile has enabled the company to lay an early claim to mobile-first online markets such as India. Facebook also publishes apps based on original Facebook features such as Facebook Messenger. The wide range of Facebook-related apps ensure that the company is one of the most popular app publishers worldwide based on downloads.