2021 NUMBERS: Ofcom media & stats for the UK

If you look at a glacier while drinking a cup of coffee you’ll think there’s no such thing as global warming.

Compare snapshots of the same ice over time and you’ll see how much has changed.

During the turbulence of 2020 we could all hear the cracks of ice moving below our feet. We knew something was happening but not what. In the media landscape Ofcom are the scientists analysing the data to see what the changes.

Online Nation published in June 2021 gives a picture of how much has changed. Want a two word summary?

‘Changed lots.’

But the real value is going to the report and spending time reading it yourself.

Why? Because you’ll find data more relevant to you.

Until you do, here’s bitesize summaries.

The headline figures for UK over 18s

94 per cent are online.

82 per cent use social media.

82 per cent was the increase in food and drink sales online in 2020.

91 per cent of over 65s online use Facebook.

62 per cent play games online.

On average they spend three hours thirty seven minutes online.

On average they spend one hour twenty one minutes watching video on demand sites like Netflix or BBC iplayer.

Zoom soared from 200,000 users peaking at 13.7 million users in March 2020 falling to 10.4 million at the start of 2021.

88 per cent receive or send email.

Age dictates how much time is spent online. For over 55s, this is two hours 46 minutes a day while for 18-to-24-year-olds it rises to four hours 31 minutes a day.

Headlines for children

Gaming and video dominate how under 18s use the internet.

Children spend three hours 48 minutes online a day.

More than 95 per cent of children use video sharing platforms.

55 per cent of under 18s have had a negative experience online.

Boys prefer YouTube for social video.

Girls prefer TikTok for social video.

40 per cent of 13 to 17-year-olds post video content.

Of five to seven-year-olds, 30 per cent use social media, 37 per cent use messaging and 95 per cent watch video

Of eight to 11-year-olds, 44 per cent use social media, 64 per cent messaging and 96 per cent watch video.

For 12 to 15-year-olds 87 per cent use social media, 91 per cent messaging apps and 99 per cent watch video.

Social video

We watch a lot of short videos of 10 minutes or less.

The most popular trends of what to watch in 2020 were music video followed by home exercise with campaigns on hot topics like black lives matter in third place.

31 per cent of over 18s post video.

Social media users

The age demographics show a different pattern of platform use.

Facebook is strong across older age groups while 16 to 24-year-olds like a range of apps from YouTube, TikTok, Pinterest, Snapchat and Instagram.

News consumption

More than half of adults go online with news as a reason for switching on their web-enabled devices.

But trust is low for what people read and watch online with just 16 per cent trusting something from social media – almost a third of those who distrust it.

64 per cent look at online headlines weekly.

35 per cent get their news from social media.

News and information sites in the UK

There’s a useful breakdown of news and info sites.

Local news is important with Reach plc – formerly Trinity Mirror – topping the charts.

Reach plc 41.4 million
News UK 40.4 million
Mail online / Daily Mail 37.4 million
BBC 37.0 million
gov.uk 25.9 million
Wikipedia 24.8 million
Independent / London Evening Standard 24.6 million
NHS 23.4 million
USA Today 20.6 million
Immediate Media 20.4 million

Access to online v print

Print remains strong amongst the older generation while it is a minority pursuit for those under 55. However, online news is strong.

Age / Print news consumption / Online news consumption

15 to 24-yers-old / 21 / 61

25 to 24-years-old / 19 / 57

35 to 44-years-old / 22 / 63

45 to 54-years-old / 44 / 56

55 to 64-years-old / 51 / 46

65-years-old / 76 / 26

The most popular messaging apps by users

WhatsApp 31.4 million
Messenger 21.1 million

Nextdoor makes an appearance

The US-owned firm has started to have cut through in the UK with 3.9 million users declared.

The platform is overwhelmingly used by older users with 54 per cent of users over 54-years-old. Just two per cent are aged 18 to 24.

Audio is starting to make a mark

Clubhouse has pioneered audio chat on social media but has failed to make a lasting mark.

Just 130,000 people use the invite-only is app with Twitter launching ‘Spaces’ and Facebook experimenting with their equivalent ‘hotline.’