Our fifth installment in the “comprehensive guide” category will focus on Ukraine’s social media situation. First, a few preliminary stats before we dig deeper:
- There were around 28.57 million internet users in Ukraine in January 2023
- The internet penetration was about 79.2%
- There were more than 26.7 million social media users in the country in January 2023
- The social media penetration was around 74%
- 76.8% of the 18+ population was using social media at the start of 2023
- 53.1% of the social media users were male and 46.9% were female
- Facebook had around 12.85% million users in Ukraine in early 2023
- Facebook was used by around 35.6% of Ukraine’s total population in early 2023
- There were 26.7 million YouTube users in Ukraine at the start of 2023
- There were 11 million Instagram users in Ukraine in early 2023
- TikTok had 13 million users in Ukraine in early 2023
- Facebook Messenger had around 7.75 million users in Ukraine in January 2023
- There were around 4.3 million LinkedIn users in Ukraine in 2023
- Twitter had 595.9 thousand users in Ukraine in 2023
Alright, that’s enough of a general overview. Next, we’re going to look at several main topics:
- Most Popular Social Media Platforms in Ukraine (2022) by Share of Visits
- Web traffic referrals from social media
- Facebook overview
- YouTube overview
- Instagram overview
- TikTok overview
- Facebook Messenger overview
- LinkedIn Overview
- Traditional Media Activity in Polish Publications Regarding the War in Ukraine 2022-2023
- The popularity of Social Media Platforms in Ukraine January-February 2021 by Age Group
Ready to begin? Then let’s start with the first section!
Section I: Most Popular Social Media Platforms in Ukraine (2022) by Share of Visits
First, we’re going to look at the most popular social media sites in Ukraine based on the share of visits. This statistic is up-to-date as of 2022 because, well, 2023 hasn’t ended yet.
Here’s the table:
| Social Media Platform | Share of Visits |
| 45.5% | |
| 15.59% | |
| 11.71% | |
| YouTube | 11.28% |
| 9.23% | |
| VKontakte | 2.47% |
| 1.87% | |
| Others | 2.36% |
Facebook had almost half of the total share of visits for 2022, followed by Pinterest, then Instagram, and then YouTube.
What’s surprising to me isn’t Facebook’s domination but rather Pinterest taking second place in front of Instagram and even YouTube.
We all knew that Pinterest has been steadily growing in the past few years and this year, they’ve even started a collaboration with Amazon to freshen up their monetization strategies.
YouTube, again, seems to be lagging behind even Pinterest, with only 11.71% of the total share of visits in 2022.
Section II: Web Traffic Referrals from Social Media
This section will look at the share of web traffic that leads to third-party sites coming from social media links (any platform and any device).
Here’s the data:
| Platform | Share of Web Traffic |
| 34.88% (-41% year-on-year change) | |
| 11.45 (+104.8% year-on-year change) | |
| 13.54% (+47.5% year-on-year change) | |
| 20.35% (+48.2% year-on-year change) | |
| YouTube | 10.81% (+51.4% year-on-year change) |
| 2.92% (+101.4% year-on-year change) | |
| Tumblr | 3.33% (+170.7% year-on-year change) |
| 0.53% (-20.9% year-on-year change) | |
| VKontakte | 2.08% (+20.9% year-on-year change) |
| Others | 0.11% (-21.4% year-on-year change) |
Tumblr experienced the biggest bump in its share of web traffic directed to third-party websites in 2023, an astounding 170.7%. Though, even now, its share of traffic is a measly 3.33%.
Imagine what it was before it went up by 170.7%. Based on my calculations, it had some 1.2-1.25% overall traffic share before this increase.
Next, Twitter had the biggest increase at 104.8%, reaching an 11.45% share of traffic. This was likely caused by the invasion of Russia, prompting many to take to social media to report what was happening.
Facebook, on the other hand, dropped by 41% in terms of web traffic shared with third-party websites in the same period. It was the biggest decrease out of all platforms, which begs the question – why?
It’s quite possible that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was the main cause of Facebook’s loss of traffic referrals because Facebook is not exactly a news-centric platform.
Twitter, on the other hand, is based on the idea that news trumps everything. The platform makes it easy for people to offer real-time updates on the situation.
It’s also possible that Facebook imposed certain content restrictions that blocked outbound third-party links.
A more detailed analysis would be necessary to clarify the root cause of Facebook’s loss of referral traffic, which, unfortunately, I don’t possess.
Section III: Facebook Overview in Ukraine
Facebook had a pretty rough period in Ukraine this time of the year. Here are the overall stats for Facebook’s advertising side of the business in 2023:
| Category | Value |
| Total Number of Users | 20.6 million |
| Total Potential Reach of Ads on Facebook | 12.85 million |
| Facebook Ad Reach vs. Total Population | 35.6% |
| Quarter-on-Quarter Change in Reported Facebook Ad Reach | -4.1% (-550 thousand) |
| Year-on-Year Change in Reported Facebook Ad Reach | -16.8% (-2.6 million) |
| Facebook Ad Reach vs. Total Internet Users | 45% |
| Facebook Ad Reach vs. Population Aged 13+ | 40.9% |
| Female Facebook Ad Reach vs. Total Facebook Ad Reach | 57.9% |
| Male Facebook Ad Reach vs. Total Facebook Ad Reach | 42.1% |
As I said, Facebook was faced with a sharp decline in popularity in Ukraine, and this is visible from the decrease in ad reach, both quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year.
Facebook’s ad reach extends to around 35.6% of Ukraine’s total population, which is still a pretty solid figure for the Meta company.
However, it’s clear that things aren’t looking good for Facebook in Ukraine, but it’s also true that the platform is the last thing Ukrainians are worrying about right now.
They may have refocused their attention on news-centered apps like Twitter or YouTube given the current state of affairs in their country.
Speaking of YouTube and Twitter, let’s have a look and see how they’re doing.
Section IV: YouTube Overview in Ukraine
YouTube has been doing a lot better compared to Facebook. In fact, YouTube has experienced a 10.81% increase in referral traffic in 2023 in Ukraine.
Here’s a general rundown of its stats:
| Category | Value |
| Total Potential Reach of Ads on YouTube | 26.7 million |
| YouTube Ad Reach vs. Total Population | 74% |
| Year-on-Year Change in Reported YouTube Ad Reach | -4.6% (-1.3 million) |
| YouTube Ad Reach vs. Total Internet Users | 93.5% |
| YouTube Ad Reach vs. Population Aged 18+ | 22.6 million |
| YouTube’s Ad Reach Age 18+ vs. Total Population Age 18+ | 76.8% |
| Female YouTube Ad Reach vs. Total YouTube Ad Reach | 53.1% |
| Male YouTube Ad Reach vs. Total YouTube Ad Reach | 46.9% |
YouTube’s ads reach around 93.5% of all Ukrainian internet users, which is more than half of Facebook’s ad reach. But that’s something you’d expect from YouTube.
The video platform also has a reach of 74% vs. Ukraine’s total population, which is again, more than half that of Facebook’s.
And, apparently, YouTube reaches more women than men with its ads, just like Facebook. Though, YouTube’s gender disparity is somewhat smaller compared to Facebook.
Ever since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, there have been more and more YouTube videos being posted from the front, showing the current state of the war. Despite this, YouTube’s ad reach experienced a 4.6% decrease on a year-on-year basis in 2023.
Let’s move on to Twitter!
Section V: Twitter Overview in Ukraine
Twitter is another newsworthy website, just like YouTube, and some would say that it’s even more so. Let’s see how it’s been doing in Ukraine this year. Here’s the data:
| Category | Value |
| Total Potential Reach of Ads on Twitter | 595,900 |
| Twitter Ad Reach vs. Total Population | 1.7% |
| Quarter-on-Quarter Change in Reported Twitter Ad Reach | +26.6% (+125,000 users) |
| Year-on-Year Change in Reported Twitter Ad Reach | -34.5% (-314,000 users) |
| Twitter Ad Reach vs. Total Internet Users | 2.1% |
| Twitter Ad Reach vs. Population Aged 13+ | 1.9% |
| Female Twitter Ad Reach vs. Total Twitter Ad Reach | 34.7% |
| Male Twitter Ad Reach vs. Total Twitter Ad Reach | 65.3% |
Out of all apps on this list, Twitter has the smallest ad reach, by far. But the reason I’m including it now is that it’s a news-centered platform. And news, as well as real-time information sharing, are important for Ukraine now.
But, it seems that Twitter hasn’t exactly increased its ad reach over time. The year-on-year statistic shows that quite the opposite, Twitter has been losing users left and right.
However, the quarterly stat shows an increase of 26.6%, so maybe the war really has brought more Ukrainian users to Twitter. It’s impossible to form a conclusion this soon, so we should see the situation change in the future.
Instagram, though, should have more interesting stats to show us in Ukraine, eh?
Section VI: Instagram Overview in Ukraine
Will Instagram fare better than its bigger brother, Facebook? Let’s see the data:
| Category | Value |
| Total Potential Reach of Ads on Instagram | 11 million |
| Instagram Ad Reach vs. Total Population | 30.5% |
| Quarter-on-Quarter Change in Reported Instagram Ad Reach | -5.2% (-600,000 users) |
| Year-on-Year Change in Reported Instagram Ad Reach | -31.7% (-5.1 million) |
| Instagram Ad Reach vs. Total Internet Users | 38.5% |
| Instagram Ad Reach vs. Population Aged 13+ | 35% |
| Female Instagram Ad Reach vs. Total Instagram Ad Reach | 58.4% |
| Male Instagram Ad Reach vs. Total Instagram Ad Reach | 41.6% |
It seems that Instagram is just a bit worse than Facebook, overall. Its year-on-year ad reach decrease is almost double that of Facebook, though (2.6 million vs. 5.1 million).
Instagram also has a smaller ad reach vs. internet users and population compared to Facebook, let alone YouTube.
This isn’t surprising, though, given that Instagram is very detached from the concept of news or a worthwhile platform for people at war to use. Even Facebook is more useful than Instagram in that regard.
Still, the war might not be the only reason why Instagram has been losing ground on a year-on-year basis in Ukraine. The popularization of TikTok might have had something to do with it too.
Speaking of TikTok, let’s see how it fares in the Ukraine of 2023!
Section VII: TikTok Overview in Ukraine
You might not be surprised to learn that TikTok has been gaining ad reach in Ukraine as of 2023:
| Category | Value |
| Total Potential Reach of Ads on TikTok | 13.01 million |
| TikTok Ad Reach vs. Total Population | 36.01% |
| Quarter-on-Quarter Change in Reported TikTok Ad Reach | +7.1% (+858,000 users) |
| Year-on-Year Change in Reported TikTok Ad Reach | +23.3% (+2.5 million users) |
| TikTok Ad Reach vs. Total Internet Users | 45.5% |
| TikTok Ad Reach vs. Population Aged 13+ | 44.2% |
| Female TikTok Ad Reach vs. Total TikTok Ad Reach | 53.3% |
| Male TikTok Ad Reach vs. Total TikTok Ad Reach | 46.7% |
So far, TikTok is the only platform to have increased its ad reach in Ukraine as of 2023. It increased by 7.1% quarterly and by 23.3% yearly, bringing 2.5 million users more in 2023.
While TikTok doesn’t have nearly as much ad reach compared to YouTube, it’s the only platform (so far) with positive ad reach growth.
In fact, TikTok also has a bigger total ad reach than Facebook, which is saying a lot. What’s more, my theory about Ukrainians refocusing their attention on worthwhile apps during the Russian invasion seems to fall flat when we look at TikTok.
TikTok is, by any and all standards, not really a worthwhile app. You don’t post about meaningful stuff most of the time, and neither do you watch meaningful stuff. It’s all about fast-paced entertainment.
And maybe that’s what many people need, just to take their minds off of pressing things in their lives.
Anyway, let’s move on to the next section!
Section VIII: Facebook Messenger Overview in Ukraine
Next, we’re going to look at Facebook Messenger and see how it fares compared to TikTok, Facebook, Twitter, and the rest.
Here’s the data:
| Category | Value |
| Total Potential Reach of Ads on Facebook Messenger | 7.75 million |
| Facebook Messenger Ad Reach vs. Total Population | 21.5% |
| Quarter-on-Quarter Change in Reported Facebook Messenger Ad Reach | -2.5% (-200,000 users) |
| Year-on-Year Change in Reported Facebook Messenger Ad Reach | -17.6% (-1.7 million users) |
| Facebook Messenger Ad Reach vs. Total Internet Users | 27.1% |
| Facebook Messenger Ad Reach vs. Population Aged 13+ | 24.7% |
| Female Facebook Messenger Ad Reach vs. Total Facebook Messenger Ad Reach | 61.6% |
| Male Facebook Messenger Ad Reach vs. Total Facebook Messenger Ad Reach | 38.4% |
Just like its parent company, it looks like Messenger has been losing ad reach quarterly and yearly. It lost around 1.7 million users in terms of ad reach, on a yearly basis. And that’s quite a lot by any standards.
That’s around 4.62% of Ukraine’s entire population as of 2023.
Moreover, Messenger doesn’t have a very expansive ad reach, to begin with – just 24.7% of all users aged 13+. That pales in comparison with almost any other app’s ad reach.
But this doesn’t mean Messenger has suddenly become unprofitable. Far from it. Declines like this are “relatively normal” for an app like Messenger. It should get back on track as time passes, or when the war ends.
Last but not least, let’s have a look at LinkedIn:
Section IX: LinkedIn Overview in Ukraine
LinkedIn does seem to sing to a different tune compared to its social media brethren. Here’s the data:
| Category | Value |
| Total Potential Reach of Ads on LinkedIn | 4.3 million |
| LinkedIn Ad Reach vs. Total Population | 11.9% |
| Quarter-on-Quarter Change in Reported LinkedIn Ad Reach | +4.9% (+200,000 users) |
| Year-on-Year Change in Reported LinkedIn Ad Reach | +19.4% (+700,000 users) |
| LinkedIn Ad Reach vs. Total Internet Users | 15.1% |
| LinkedIn Ad Reach vs. Population Aged 13+ | 14.6% |
| Female LinkedIn Ad Reach vs. Total LinkedInk Ad Reach | 45.7% |
| Male LinkedIn Ad Reach vs. Total LinkedIn Ad Reach | 54.3% |
LinkedIn has been increasing its ad reach constantly, both yearly and quarterly, in Ukraine. In the last quarter, 200,000 new Ukrainian users began using the app/platform.
In the last year, over 700,000 new Ukrainian users created a LinkedIn account. It looks like the professional industry in Ukraine is developing ever faster. People are becoming more interested in their professional lives more than ever before.
LinkedIn has a larger ad reach compared to Twitter, at least, but can’t quite compare to the other platforms on this list.
Now, how about a more war-related statistic?
Section X: Traditional Media Activity in Polish Publications Regarding the War in Ukraine 2022-2023
This is a very specific statistic but I find it quite interesting – it shows the share of media activity regarding the war in Ukraine, on publications in Poland. And it’s a very recent statistic.
Let’s look at the data first:
| Medium of Communication | Share of Media Activity |
| Internet | 82% |
| Radio | 10% |
| Press | 5% |
| Television | 3% |
The vast majority of war-related publications in Poland appeared on the internet, a whole 82% of all the publications. It’s to be expected since the internet is much more accessible than television, radio, and even the press.
It’s quite interesting to see that radio publications are twice as popular as press ones, and almost 4 times as popular as television publications.
I guess it’s because radios are more accessible than both the press and television.
Let’s have a look at the next section, though!
Section XI: Popularity of Social Media Platforms in Ukraine January-February 2021 by Age Group
Unfortunately, I don’t have more recent data that shows the popularity of social media based on the age group. However, this should do:
| Social Media Platform | 18-29 Years Old | 30-39 Years Old | 40-49 Years Old | 50-59 Years Old | 60+ Years Old |
| 83% | 83% | 70% | 48% | 21% | |
| YouTube | 61% | 56% | 48% | 30% | 17% |
| 58% | 45% | 33% | 12% | 5% | |
| Telegram | 39% | 23% | 16% | 7% | 2% |
| 13% | 8% | 7% | 1% | 1% | |
| Vkontakte | 6% | 8% | 5% | 4% | 3% |
| Odnoklassniki | 3% | 3% | 2% | 2% | 3% |
| 4% | 1% | 1% | 2% | 0% | |
| TikTok | 2% | 1% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Do not use social media | 2% | 5% | 15% | 35% | 69% |
| Difficult to answer | 1% | 2% | 4% | 1% | 2% |
Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram were (and still are) the most popular social media platforms in Ukraine back in 2021, with Facebook being the absolute ruler.
83% of all the country’s 18-29 years-old were using Facebook at that time, which means Facebook had an 83% penetration rate within that age bracket.
What’s fascinating is that TikTok was the least-used social media platform in Ukraine. Not even the 18-29 age bracket had any particular interest in it. Only 2% used the platform.
Another interesting discovery is that almost 70% of the 60+ population didn’t use social media at all. This might be caused by the significant difference in mentality and priorities for the older generation.
That’s all I could find on Ukraine’s social media, I’m afraid. I hope the data presented above is useful to you. As always, stay tuned for more Whizcase analyses of social media!
Sources
- Statista – Leading Social Media Websites in Ukraine in 2022, Based on Share of Visits
- Data Reportal – Digital 2023: Ukraine
- Statista – Traditional Media Activity in Publications About the War in Ukraine in Poland from 2022 to 2023
- Statista – Share of Social Media Users in Ukraine in January and February 2021, by Age Group
