Instagram Reels was launched in August 2020.

Reels is a vertical screen video format that can be used to record short-form, 15-second videos (or longer).

The following Instagram Reels statistics will address the popularity of Reels and briefly discuss the short-form video concept. 

Did you know that Vine started the now trending idea of short-form videos back in 2013 with 6-second videos?

Vine may no longer be a platform, but the ideas that were spawned from it took shape after 2013 on Musical.ly in 2014, TikTok in 2017, and between 2020 and today, we have Reels and YouTube Shorts.

Instagram Reels is an Instagram feature that supports the short-form video format, but you can also turn these videos into longer ones if needed.

We will discuss the statistics related to Reels and its popularity, usage, revenue, etc.

Post Contents

Key Statistics

  • Instagram users watch 17.6 million hours of Instagram Reels daily.
  • The adoption rate for Instagram Reels is higher than TikTok’s.
  • 2.35 billion monthly active users on Instagram use Reels.
  • In Brazil, Instagram is expected to grow by 21 million users.
  • Female users account for 51% and male users account for 49% of all Instagram users.
  • Instagram Reels have an engagement rate of 3.79% on average among accounts with under followers. 
  • Brazil was the testing market for Instagram Reels, “Cenas”.
  • 80% of brands on Instagram have published at least one Instagram Reel.
  • The sports industry accounts for 92% of Instagram Reels.
  • 31.5% of Instagram’s user base is between 25 to 34 years old.

Top Instagram Reels Statistics in 2024

Instagram Reels Statistics

1. Instagram users watch 17.6 million hours of Instagram Reels daily.

Every day, Instagram users watch 17.6 million hours of Reels.

However, this pales in comparison with TikTok where over users watch 197 million hours of short-form video.

Even though engagement looks good, Instagram (Meta) has yet to be able to reach TikTok-like engagement.

(Business Insiders)

2. In 2022, the adoption rate for Instagram Reels is higher than TikTok’s.

While Reels doesn’t compete well with TikTok watch hours, it does compete in the adoption of the feature.

In terms of the adoption rate of Reels on Instagram shows that it’s used by 74% of the users on the platform. Only 49% of TikTok users use the platform for video creation.

This data matters to marketers, influencers, and other creators.

(Business Insider India)

3. 2.35 billion monthly active users on Instagram use Reels.

Instagram itself has 2.35 billion monthly active users.

All of its users interact with Reels in some way or another. That’s a large audience and reach for marketers, brands, and influencers.

Also, by the end of 2023, Instagram is expected to reach 2.5 billion users.

It’s not finished growing and it’s not expected to stop growing.

(Demand Sage)

4. In Brazil, Instagram is expected to grow by 21 million users.

Brazil is coming up in the Instagram world in terms of users.

In fact, it’s expected that Brazil’s user base on Instagram will see a rise of 17.13% by 2027.

That represents 21 million new users in Brazil. This increase will be a total of 143.56 million users in the country.

(Statista)

5. Female users account for 51% and male users account for 49% of all Instagram users.

Essentially, Instagram doesn’t contribute to the “gender gap” in terms of having more male users than female.

Of those who identify as female on the Instagram platform, 51% are women.

For those who identify as male, 49% of Instagram’s users are male. 

(Instagram)

6. Instagram Reels have an engagement rate of 3.79% on average among accounts with under followers. 

Instagram Reels have an engagement rate of 3.79% on average among accounts with under followers.

Instagram Reels has some high engagement rates on accounts ranging from under 5,000 to about 10,000 followers.

The highest is 3.79% for accounts with fewer than 5,000 followers.

The second highest engagement rate generated from Instagram Reels is 3.72% among accounts with 5,000 to 10,000 followers. 

(Demand Sage)

7. Brazil was the testing market for Instagram Reels, “Cenas”.

Before the rest of the world was introduced to Instagram Reels, it was tested in Brazil in 2019 as “Cenas” in an effort to compete with TikTok.

By doing the testing in Brazil Instagram was able to focus on customization and onboarding.

Why Brazil?

According to Robby Stein, Instagram’s director of product management, it was because of Brazil’s large Instagram user population and its musical culture. 

(TechCrunch)

8. 80% of brands on Instagram have published at least one Instagram Reel.

In the third quarter of 2022 the Social Media Benchmark Report declared that 80% of brands that engage on Instagram had published at least one Instagram Reel.

For perspective, only 41% of brands on the platform were posting Reels in 2021.

Due to its growing popularity, this should come as no surprise.

(Emplifi)

9. The sports industry accounts for 92% of Instagram Reels.

Sports is a popular industry on Instagram. In fact, 92% of sports organizations and events publish Reels.

Likewise, 88% of brands in the sporting goods industry publish Reels to increase their follower engagement.

As mentioned in an earlier statistic, they are able to boost their engagement by 22% using Reels.

(Emplifi)

10. 31.5% of Instagram’s user base is between 25 to 34 years old.

In terms of age demographics, 31.5% of its users fall between 25 and 34 years old, which is the highest of all age groups.

Second to the 25-34 age demographic is the 18 to 24 age groups with 30.1% of Instagram’s users.

Next is the 34 to 44 age group which accounts for 16.1% of Instagram users. 

(Demand Sage)

11. Only 2.1% of Instagram users are over 65 years old.

To follow number 10, we will address the lower usage figures in its user base.

The lowest user age group is over 65 years old and accounts for only 2.1% of users.

Furthermore, 3.6% of its users are between 55 and 64 years old.

Instagram users between 45 and 54 make up 8%.

Finally, 8.5% of Instagram users fall between 13 and 17 years old.

(Demand Sage)

12. 77% of Instagram users in India said they bought something after watching Reels.

In a survey of Instagram users in India, 77% said they had made a purchase of a service or product after watching Reels.

Therefore, we can safely say that Reels do drive engagement that results in purchases.

Even though this study is from India, there’s little doubt that this trend is occurring all over the world.

(Latestly)

13. 50% of Instagram users discover content from the Explore page where Reels can be featured.

Successful Instagram Reels may get featured on the Instagram Explore page where 50% of its users go to discover content.

Most Instagram Reels creators know that it’s vital to have a public account with content that makes the Explore page.

This is where most people on the platform find new things.

(Hootsuite, Influencer Marketing Hub)

14. Reels are shared via direct messages nearly one billion times per day.

The Reels feature has really opened the door to people in terms of finding new content, hobbies, interests, and such.

This has resulted in more loyal connections with brands, businesses, influencers, and creators.

In fact, Instagram Reels are now shared around one billion times each day via direct messages (DMs).

(Business Insider 2)

15. In August 2023, Instagram Reels turns 3 years old.

August 2023 is quickly approaching.

Soon, the Instagram Reels feature will turn 3 years old.

Since its launch in August 2020, Reels has become one of the most popular marketing methods as well as one of the most popular ways people engage on the platform and find things to buy.

(Demand Sage)

16. Khaby, a popular Instagram influencer has the record for the most-watched Reel with 289 million views.

Khaby instagram

Khaby Lame is an influencer on Instagram and has the most viewed Reel on the platform with 283 million views and counting.

Khaby is mostly known for sharing his silent reactions to videos.

His expressions range from sarcastic to funny.

This most viewed video is called “Learn from Khaby”.

So far, it’s holding onto its most-viewed status.

(Yahoo Style)

17. As of early 2022, the Instagram Reels feature is the fastest growing feature on the globe.

Between early 2021 and early 2022, the Reels feature on Instagram has risen above the crowd to become the fastest growing feature on the planet.

It has now overcome Instagram Stories in terms of engagement rates.

Every day, more brands, businesses, and influencers are implementing Reels into their marketing strategies.

(Google Trends)

18. 67% of NFL teams’ Instagram Reels achieve more engagement than their conventional IG posts.

While this relates to sports, it’s still significant data to know.

Instagram Reels have enhanced NFL team Reels engagement by 67%, which is higher than their standard video engagement on the platform.

Instagram users tend to prefer short-form videos over longer videos. 

(Entrepreneur)

19. Reels Ads on Instagram reach 10.7% of the 13-plus audience.

Advertisers have a massive audience of over 13-year-olds.

In fact, 10.9% is your ad reach on the platform.

That may not look like much to some people, but when you consider that Instagram has over 2.5 billion worldwide users, that audience turns into over 272.5 million users.

(Hootsuite Blog)

20. The Nike brand averages 4.6 million watches on Instagram Reels.

Nike instagram

Nike is one of the sporting goods brands that gets a lot of engagement through Reels.

In fact, this brand get an average of 4.6 million views per Instagram Reel they share.

Their highest performing Reel has gotten over 6.7 million views and its lowest performing Reel 3.4 million views. 

(Hootsuite Blog)

FAQs

What is Instagram Reels? 

Instagram Reels was launched in 2020 to overtake TikTok’s popularity.

The popularity of short-form videos has grown since the concept’s introduction by the failed platform Vine and the successful platform TikTok. 

This is an Instagram feature that lets you record and share short-form videos throughout the Instagram community.

You can also edit your videos with the features within Reels, add sounds or music, enhance with effects, and other things to make your video more appealing. 

How Do You Use Instagram Reels?

The Reels feature makes things easy and clear so almost anyone can create and share their short-form videos.

You simply need to tap on the “plus sign” that is in the middle of the lower app menu.

From here, you choose what you want to “add” to Instagram. 

Look at the middle to right side bottom of the screen and you will see “Post”, “Story”, “Reel”, and “Live”. Choose “Reel” and then open the “Camera”.

At this point, you can start recording, editing, and sharing your video.

Is Instagram Reels an Effective Marketing Tool?

Since Instagram Reels is shared across the users on the platform, with a public account, you can reach out to your audience and related audiences through the Reels feature.

Even though Instagram Reels isn’t getting the watch hours that TikTok is, it’s still getting over 17 million per day.

That means that if you’re a brand, business, influencer, or other creator on the platform, you have access to a huge audience of Instagram users (over two billion).

If you’re on Instagram, you have seen Reels from celebrities, famous influencers, brands, companies, athletes, and other people sharing videos.

These Reels users are seeing 22% more Instagram engagement, which means it’s an effective marketing tool.

What’s the Difference Between Reels and Stories?

This is one of the most asked questions among Instagram users. We’re going to provide you with the simplest explanation we can.

The Stories feature displays your Story for only 24 hours.

You can pin it to your profile later to add it to highlight albums, organizing them to ensure access to your viewers and followers.

Reels has its own section on your Instagram profile feed, so when you post a Reel, it will remain on your profile until or unless you delete it.

You can edit it after you record it or save it and edit it later from your profile feed.

Also, Stories lets you post images/photos while Reels is solely short-form video.

Conclusion

Whether you’re a marketer or a curious Instagram user, you now know how many monthly active users (MAUs) engage with Instagram Reels, which is equal to its user base. 

Additionally, we have learned that Reels does improve engagement and offers high engagement rates.

Also, since the platform continues to grow with more users, your overall marketing and advertising audience is getting larger.

We hope these Instagram Reels statistics have helped you better understand the feature and how to use it. 

Sources

Business InsiderBusiness Insider IndiaDemand SageInstagramTechCrunch
EmplifiLatestlyInfluencer Marketing HubHootsuite BlogBusiness Insider 2
Yahoo StyleGoogle TrendsEntrepreneur