What Is the Internet Used For?
With more and more internet users around the world, there’s no doubt that it’s the best place to be marketing a business.
The internet is a wealth of information and using it opens up a world of endless possibilities. But with so many ways to market, knowing how and where to do so may be a challenge. To start, one of the most important questions you need to answer is: What is the internet used for?
Top uses of the internet: key takeaways
- Gathering information, be it in the form of staying up to date with news, finding inspiration for things to do, or getting to know new products and brands, are why most people use the internet.
- Finding information leads the list ranking the top uses of the internet. Three in five (60.3%) internet users list it as a reason they go online.
- Other top uses of the internet include education purposes, listening to music, and general browsing.
Uses of the internet: top 10
|
Reason to use the internet |
Percentage of internet users who list it as a reason they use the internet |
|---|---|
|
Finding information |
60.3% |
|
Staying in touch with friends and family |
56.8% |
|
Watching videos, TV shows, or movies |
52.3% |
|
Keeping up to date with news and events |
50.8% |
|
Researching how to do things |
48.5% |
|
Finding new ideas or inspiration |
45.6% |
|
Accessing and listening to music |
45.3% |
|
Researching products and brands |
43.5% |
|
Filling up spare time and general browsing |
41.9% |
|
Education and study-related purposes |
38.3% |
What do people use the internet for?
The latest data on the top uses of the internet shows that entertainment, communication, and information are the three main reasons people around the world use the internet.
Topping the list of the most popular uses of the internet is “finding information,” with more than six in 10 (60.3%) people worldwide listing it as a reason they go online.
This is followed by staying in touch with friends and family at 56.8%. Given the prevalence and penetration of social media today, it should come as no surprise this ranks among the top uses of the internet.
The number of people using social media has been increasing since the dawn of social media. Projected at 5.17 billion users worldwide in 2024, this number is expected to continue rising and hit 5.85 billion by 2027.
The internet is also a great source of entertainment: 52.3% of the global population uses it to watch videos, TV shows, and movies. In fact, there’s been an increase in demand for video streaming services over the past few years as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fourth-most popular use of the internet is keeping up to date with news and events—50.8% of global internet users do so. And data shows that they’re not only visiting the websites of more traditional media outlets like CNN and the New York Times but also digital news platforms like Yahoo! News and Google News.
Rounding out the five most popular uses of the internet is “researching how to do things” with 48.5% of global internet users doing so.
Top uses of the internet: sixth to 10th
Finding new ideas or inspiration is the sixth-most popular reason consumers go online, and it is followed by accessing and listening to music.
As an ecommerce owner, it might interest you to know that as many as 43.5% of people worldwide turn to the internet to research products and brands. In fact, many of the top product discovery platforms are digital, such as social media ads, brand websites, and consumer review sites.
Filling up spare time and education-related purposes complete the list of the top uses of the internet, which 41.9% and 38.3% of consumers state as a reason they go online, respectively.