By 2026, social media has become essential infrastructure: more than 5.6 billion people worldwide use some kind of platform.[1] Below, we review which platforms are considered most important today, both globally and in the Hungarian market, and then look at where the industry is heading in 2027.
The Global Top List: What Does an International Strategy Rely On?
In terms of size, the Meta empire continues to lead the way. Facebook’s monthly active user count is above 3 billion, making it still the world’s largest social network – although its organic reach has now dropped to around 1.5%, which strengthens the role of paid advertising.[2] Instagram and WhatsApp are practically neck and neck, both close to 3 billion users – according to some analyses, WhatsApp even became the world’s “favorite” platform during 2025 based on user preferences.[2] YouTube, with its ad reach of over 2.5 billion and average monthly user time of 28 hours, also ranks prominently.[2]
TikTok remains the defining platform for Generation Z today: with an average daily usage time of nearly one and a half hours, it has the strongest engagement metrics.[3] Threads doubled its user base within a year (from 200 million to over 400 million), and in January 2026 it even overtook X on mobile.[1] X’s user count is declining year over year – the only major platform showing a sustained decline.[1] LinkedIn remains the leading channel for B2B marketing, posting revenue of $17.1 billion in its 2025 fiscal year, while video content uploads grew by 34% in a year.[1] Reddit is also worth mentioning, having posted 68% annual revenue growth since going public, and is now the third most visited website in the United States – valuable to brands primarily because of its research-oriented, high-purchase-intent audience.[1]
The Hungarian Market: A Different Order, A Different Logic
Domestic social media usage doesn’t simply mirror the global ranking. Facebook and Messenger remain extremely strong: Hungarian users consider Messenger the most important app (46%), followed by Facebook (25%), then Instagram (15%), TikTok (13%) and YouTube (11%) based on subjective importance.[4] This means that staying in touch and daily communication in Hungary is still primarily tied to Meta apps, while TikTok is increasingly winning the competition for attention time.
TikTok’s growth in Hungary has been remarkable over the past two years: the domestic user base grew from 1.1 million at the start of 2024 to 2.4 million monthly active users in the first quarter of 2026 (a 118% increase), making it the fourth largest platform, behind Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.[5] The composition of the Hungarian TikTok audience is also broadening: 60% of users belong to Generation Z and Y, 25% are parents aged 35–50, and the rest are over 50.[5] In addition, TikTok’s advertising CPM is significantly lower than that of Meta platforms, making the channel attractive for many domestic small and medium-sized enterprises.[5]
What to Expect in 2027?
1. Artificial intelligence will become the basic infrastructure of content production
By 2027, most successful marketers will use AI throughout the entire content workflow – not because AI alone produces better content, but because it speeds up production, leaving more time for strategic thinking.[6] At the same time, there is an opposing consumer trend: nearly a third of users would be less likely to choose a brand that visibly uses AI-generated ads, meaning that a human tone remains a distinguishing factor.[7]
2. Social media platforms are permanently taking over the role of search engines
Younger generations increasingly start their product research on TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram instead of traditional search – this behavior has given rise to so-called Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), which no longer optimizes for keywords but for direct answers.[8]
3. Social commerce continues to explode
TikTok Shop could record $23.4 billion in US e-commerce revenue in 2026, running a bigger online business than Target or Costco – by 2027, the platform’s share of US social commerce could grow from the current 18.2% to 24.1%.[9] Globally, the social commerce market could rise above $2.1 trillion by the end of 2026, increasingly driven by AI-based, real-time purchase-intent recognition.[10]
4. The role of influencers
The global value of the creator economy is currently around $250 billion, and according to Goldman Sachs estimates, it could reach $480 billion by 2027.[7] However, the driver of growth is not the camp of mega-influencers, but the mid-sized creator segment earning between $10,000–100,000 a year, which delivers the best engagement metrics and the lowest cost per reach.[7]
5. Community becomes more important
For brands, follower count will increasingly matter less than how well they succeed in building a genuine, conversation-based community around their content – in the long run, this results in more stable engagement and trust than a one-time viral hit.[6]
The Hungarian Market: A Different Order, A Different Logic
TikTok’s growth in Hungary has been remarkable over the past two years: the domestic user base grew from 1.1 million at the start of 2024 to 2.4 million monthly active users in the first quarter of 2026 (a 118% increase), making it the fourth largest platform, behind Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.[5] The composition of the Hungarian TikTok audience is also broadening: 60% of users belong to Generation Z and Y, 25% are parents aged 35–50, and the rest are over 50.[5] In addition, TikTok’s advertising CPM is significantly lower than that of Meta platforms, making the channel attractive for many domestic small and medium-sized enterprises.[5]