The last three years have seen a surge in Twitter use among American adults.
That’s the latest finding from Pew’s Internet & American Life project, who measured Twitter use among those aged 18+ in their new social media study. According to Pew, 18% of American adults are now using Twitter – up from just 8% back in the Fall of 2010. That’s an increase of 125% in less than three years.
The bulk of the gains come from the younger crowd – those aged 18 to 29. In the latest study, 30% of that age group reported using Twitter. Back in 2010, that figure was just 14%.
Twitter’s explosion mimics that patterns seen for social media as a whole, which can now claim 72% adoption among American adults.
“Today, 72% of online adults use social networking sites. Although younger adults continue to be the most likely social media users, one of the more striking stories about the social networking population has been the growth among older internet users in recent years. Those ages 65 and older have roughly tripled their presence on social networking sites in the last four years – from 13% in the spring of 2009 to 43% now,” says Pew.
Oddly enough, the older demographic is the only one that hasn’t jumped on the Twitter bandwagon over the past 3 years. While use by those aged 65 and older has increased on other social networks, Twitter hasn’t seen that uptick. In fact, just 5% of the 65 and older crowd use Twitter, up only a percent from the 4% that reported using it back in 2010.
Based on Pew’s research, your typical Twitter user is a black or hispanic person between the ages of 18 and 29, with at least some college, making more than $30,000 per year.