REVEALED: The social media capital of the UK

• North London borough is top of social media usage rankings 
• North Norfolk is the least social media active  
• Top features six London boroughs 
• Social media usage across the UK was analysed to discover the areas that spend the most and least time on social platforms 

New research has revealed Islington is the social media capital of the UK.   

 A new study has revealed that Islington is the UK’s social media capital, with its residents spending the longest amount of time online per capita. 

The study by cybersecurity and privacy experts VPN Overview analysed ONS data across more than 400 areas of the UK to discover the country’s social media capital. 

 The research looked at the internet usage among different age groups compared to the demographic make-up of each unitary authority, district and borough in the UK. 

 Islington ranked top of the list with residents spending an average of one hour 45 minutes on social media each day. This is driven by the fact that the borough has one of the highest proportions of women under 35 in any area of the UK.   

 Women aged 16 to 24 spend the longest amount of time on social media each day, estimated at an average of 192 minutes – three hours and 37 minutes – while women between 25 and 34 years old spend around two hours and 42 minutes on social each day. 

 In Islington, 16% of women are between 16 and 24 – considerably higher than the UK average of 10%, while 27% are between 25 and 34, which is more than double the national average of 13%. 

 As a result, the North London borough, which has a population of 248,115, is estimated to spend a combined total of 434,136 hours on social sites and apps each day. 

THE TOP 10 AREAS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA APP AND SITE USAGE IN THE UK
UK area	Daily Hours Spent per Person	Population Area	Overall Rank
Islington	1hr 45	248,115	1
Tower Hamlets	1hr 42	331,969	2
Lambeth	1hr 40	321,813	3
Manchester	1hr 38	555,741	4
Wandsworth	1hr 38	329,735	5
Nottingham	1hr 37	337,098	6
Oxford	1hr 37	151,584	7
Southwark	1hr 37	320,017	8
Hackney	1hr 37	280,941	9
Brighton & Hove	1hr 36	291,738	10

Tower Hamlets is the UK’s second biggest user of social media per person in the UK, with an estimated average of one hour and 42 minutes online per person each day.  

 In third place was Lambeth, recording daily usage average of one hour 40 minutes per person among the London borough’s population of 321,813. 

 Outside of London, the UK’s most social media hungry place is Manchester, where the estimated average time online per person is one hour and 38 minutes. The city has one of the UK’s highest percentages of women the ages of 16 and 24 (18%) as well as 17% of men in the same age group, the demographic which spends the third highest amount of time online each day. 

 The London borough of Wandsworth places fifth in the list, with an estimated one hour 38 minutes online daily, while Nottingham is sixth.

THE BOTTOM 10 AREAS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA APP AND SITE USAGEIN THE UK
UK area	Daily Hours Spent per Person	Population Area	Overall Rank
North Norfolk	1hr 00	105,167	1
Rother	1hr 01	96,716	2
East Lindsey	1hr 03	142,030	3
East Devon	1hr 05	148,080	4
Tendring	1hr 06	147,353	5
South Hams	1hr 06	87,946	6
West Devon	1hr 06	56,139	7
Dorset	1hr 06	379,791	8
New Forest	1hr 07	179,649	9
Torridge	1hr 07	68,719	10

North Norfolk is the least social media active area in the UK, individuals spend one hour on social media sites and apps daily. Rother, in East Sussex has the second lowest social media usage in the country, at an estimated one hour and one minute per person each day. East Lindsey in Lincolnshire spends the third least time on social media – one hour and two minutes a day. 

 A spokesperson for VPN Overview said: “Social media has become an integral part of people’s daily lives, and so many have relied on it, particularly in the past 18 months, to stay in touch with friends and family. However, it is also important to remain aware of the risks of spending too much time on social platforms.”