13 Facebook Video Statistics That Matter For Businesses and Creators

In October 2021, Mark Zuckerberg revealed Facebook would change its name to “Meta” as a part of a larger rebrand to reflect the company’s growing focus on the metaverse—an interconnected virtual social environment. The focus beyond social media comes after years of data privacy issues, public criticism, and government regulations.

The social app itself will continue as “Facebook”. Facebook remains a key platform for social video ads in the U.S. and worldwide. Facebook’s ad targeting options and content ranking algorithm continue to evolve to meet ethical and lawful expectations as the giant continues to face regulatory actions. The social app’s precise targeting and massive reach—will keep advertisers committed to Facebook video for the foreseeable future.

Digital video is booming. Traffic from online videos will constitute over 82% of all global consumer internet traffic by 2022. Omdia estimates that by 2024, Facebook will represent 30% of online video ad revenue globally (a market share valuation of $35 billion).

Facebook Inc.’s Q3 2021 earnings call revealed large upcoming investments in AI and Machine Learning capabilities to improve Facebook’s in Feed and video experience.

Meta plans to double-down on Facebook video to keep pace with increased:

• User consumption of digital video
• User adoption of Live video and video updates on Stories
• Output of branded video from advertisers
• Data points that demonstrate high user engagement with video

Both Facebook Live and Facebook video have greatly impacted how we consume and deliver content on the largest social media network.

See the biggest Facebook video statistics below:

1. Video now accounts for almost half of all time spent on Facebook.
2. The average watch time for videos on Facebook is 10 seconds.
3. Facebook has nearly 2 billion daily active users.
4. Facebook Live videos produce 6 times as many interactions as traditional videos.
5. 1 out of 5 Facebook videos is a Live video.
6. 47% of total ad recall happens in the first 3 seconds of a video ad.
7. 1.25 billion people visit Facebook Watch monthly.
8. 85% of videos are played without sound.
9. Over 60% of video revenue now comes from mobile-first video.
10. Vertical video is the leading Facebook video format.
11. The average view-through rate for Facebook ads is 30%.
12. Branded Facebook videos earn on average a 13% organic reach and 6% engagement rate.
13. 8 billion video views happen daily through Facebook video.

Facebook Video Statistics: Top Facebook Video, User Behavior, And Demographic Stats

1. Video now accounts for almost half of all time spent on Facebook

More than 500 million people now watch video on Facebook every day and over 2 billion people per month watch videos that are eligible for In-Stream ads—ads shown before, during, or after videos.

2. The Average Watch Time For Facebook Videos Is 10 Seconds

The Facebook video average watch time benchmark is 10 seconds and it takes a minimum of 3 seconds in user watch time to count as a single “view.”

Most users judge a video based on the first 10 seconds. Viewers watching beyond the 10-second mark are said to be “consuming the content.” High watch time results in positive sentiment as the user is likely engaged and interested. For regular video (not Live video) the optimal video length for high engagement is between 2 to 5 minutes.

3. Facebook DAU’s Are Almost At 2 Billion

More than 3.6 billion people use at least one Meta-owned app monthly. Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp have consistently ranked in the top five of U.S. and worldwide app installs every month since late 2019. Facebook remains the largest social media app and its large outreach is one of the most enticing features for marketers.

• Facebook daily active users (DAUs) – DAUs were 1.93 billion on average for September 2021, an increase of 6% year-over-year.
• Facebook monthly active users (MAUs) – MAUs were 2.91 billion as of September 30, 2021, an increase of 6% year-over-year.

4. Live Videos Receive 6 Times As Many Interactions As Traditional Videos

Overall, Facebook Live videos have an average engagement rate of 4.3%, compared to 2.2% for non-live videos. A study from Socialinsider reports Facebook Live videos lasting over an hour often see an uptick in engagement.

The time limit for a live video session on Facebook is 8 hours. In 2017, Facebook saw Daily watch time for Facebook Live broadcasts reach four times higher than the previous year.

5. One Of Every Five Videos Posted On Facebook Is Live

Live videos represent 18.8% of total Facebook videos, and the usage of live videos increased by 55% in 2021. Live videos give a meaningful way for people to connect with each other as well as with their favorite brands.

Live videos allow marketers to reach audiences in an off-the-cuff manner, while the long-form aspect and high level of viewer involvement make Live videos essential for a successful social video strategy.

6. 47% Of Total Ad Recall Is Achieved In 3 Seconds Of Facebook Video Campaigns

Nielsen’s data shows that 47% of ad recall happens in the first 3 seconds of watching a video ad. This means that for advertisers, it’s very possible to build awareness and impact purchase intent even if a Facebook user only sees the very beginning of a video ad.

In addition, a survey from the video ad creation platform Promo found that 71% of consumers think Facebook video ads are “relevant” or “highly relevant.” This result speaks to Facebook’s impressive ad targeting capabilities; it also suggests that ad recall may be high in part because Facebook is so skilled at serving ads that align with users’ interests.

Facebook partnered with global information and measurement company Nielsen to ascertain the value of video advertising on the social network. Going beyond view counts (a typical vanity metric), Nielsen discovered that 74% of a campaign’s cumulative impact can be achieved within the first 10 seconds of a video. As Facebook puts it, “marketers should experiment with shorter ad creative to drive value for their brand.”

7. More Than 1.25 Billion People Visit Facebook Watch Every Month

In a Q2 2021 earnings call, Mark Zuckerberg states “On-demand video, like in Facebook Watch, is also growing quickly and is now growing faster than other types of video or content in News Feed.”

Meta is also developing existing monetization methods like Stars. Facebook Stars is an in-app donation currency that allows creators to monetize their streams. In 2020, users spent $50 million of Stars to game stream creators going live on Facebook alone.

8. 85% Of Facebook Videos Are Viewed Without Sound, But…

Almost 9 of 10 Facebook videos are consumed without sound, a signal that brands should consider producing video content that can still be engaging, even in silence. To that point, Facebook found that adding captions to videos increases the watch time by 12%, on average.

Nonetheless, Facebook is beginning to test video autoplay sound as announced earlier this week despite Facebook’s own publicized research that 80% of viewers react adversely to videos with automatic sound.

9. More Than 60% of Video Revenue Now Comes From Mobile-First Video

Facebook defines “mobile-first video” as videos that are shot vertically or are under 15 seconds.The Q3 2021 earnings call revealed more than 60% of Facebook’s video revenue comes directly from mobile-first video.

10. Vertical Videos Are The Most Engaging Video Format

A study of more than 3,977,401 video posts from business pages by Socialinsider reveals vertical videos to be the most used video format on Facebook.

Vertical videos are not just the most popular format, the study also found vertical videos to have a higher engagement rate than landscape or square formats. According to the same study, Facebook video users also favor smaller captions—a trend likely influenced by TikTok and Reels. Limiting caption length to 10 words and keeping call-to-actions brief may boost engagement rates up to 0.44% on vertical Facebook videos.

11. The Average VTR On Facebook Is 30%

Separate from audience retention, the view-through rate can be calculated by dividing Unique Viewers by People Reached. WordStream and AdStage data claim the average click-through rate in Facebook ads across all industries is between 0.90% and 1.33%. These averages can vary greatly depending on the industry. Narrowing targeting and performing A/B testing allows marketers to understand which ads are producing the highest levels of engaged users.

12. 13% Organic Reach & 6.3% Engagement Rate For Branded Facebook Videos

Brands have experienced notable success by publishing Facebook videos—especially “native” Facebook videos (as opposed to links from YouTube videos, Vimeo videos, or video content published on other platforms).

Facebook’s 6.3% per-video engagement rate is especially impressive considering the highest engagement rates for top brands on Instagram (as determined from our Instagram Brand & Influencer Engagement Rate Case Study) span from a 1.4% (for Instagram’s top fashion brand channels) to 3.3% (for top Computer & Electronics brands on Instagram).

13. 8 Billion Video Views Happen Daily On Facebook

As the number of users watching video grows, Meta continues to invest and develop more opportunities for businesses and creators to reach them.

Live video specifically presents creators and businesses with a way to connect with users in the moment to build and foster communities. Monetization tools like Live Breaks for mid-roll ads and Live Shopping will greatly impact both marketers and creators looking to drive engagement.