How Many Tweets are Sent Out Per Day?

Written by: April Asgapo

Updated: May, 13, 2023

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Twitter is a micro-blogging social networking site where users post short messages or “tweets.” It is a global platform people go to for information, entertainment, communication, business, etc. 

Launched in 2016, a simple communication idea became one of the world’s most visited websites. It has 237.8 million daily active users. How many tweets are posted per day?

The Number of Tweets Posted Per Day

More than 500 million tweets are sent out daily. This means 6,000 tweets per second, 350,000 per minute, 500 million per day, and 200 billion per year. 

With the heavy volume, Twitter implemented a limit of 2,400 tweets daily per user to reduce downtime and technical errors. 

1. 80% of tweets come from 10% of active Twitter users in the US.

Despite the millions of Twitter users, only 10% are responsible for the majority of the tweets of US adults on record. The remaining 20% come from 90% of users who are not frequent tweeters

(Truelist)

2. 82% of users open Twitter for entertainment purposes

A survey revealed that 82% of users posting at least 20 times a month open Twitter for entertainment. 78% of users use the app to stay informed, while 77% see it as a space to express their opinion.

Interestingly enough, users who do not open the app frequently also visit Twitter for the same reasons — 76% of them use the app for entertainment, 65% for information, and 29% for expression. 

(Statista)

3. An average user spends at least 6 minutes daily on Twitter

The US has a daily screen time of more than 7 hours, according to Comparitech. 2 hours and 14 minutes of that time are spent on social media. 

However, only 6 minutes are spent on Twitter. Users tend to spend more time on other platforms like Facebook, which gets 22 minutes, and Instagram, with 11 minutes. 

(Truelist)

4. One-third of tweets by US adults are political 

33% of tweets from Twitter users in the US aged 18 and above are political. 78% of these are from users aged 50 and older. 

(Pew Research Center)

Factors Affecting Tweet Count

The numbers are unsurprising since Twitter is a virtual place where different communities gather. Besides celebrity gossip, what are the reasons behind all the tweets? 

Below are some elements that influence tweet numbers. 

  • Events 

In this digital world, people post everything that happens. That’s why real-life events create millions of tweets. 

With news channels having Twitter accounts, reports no longer stay on TV or paper. Breaking news is immediately shared by CNN or BBC through a tweet, and the public reacts by replying or retweeting. 

Speaking of TV, film affairs are always the talk of Twitter town. In August 2013, people went online to discuss the airing of Hayao Miyazaki’s Castle in the Sky. The website struck a one-second peak with 143,199 tweets per second

Sports events are also one of the biggest reasons for the heavy tweet volume. Whenever Super Bowl or NFL starts, you’ll see Twitter fans cheering for a touchdown, guessing who wins, or talking about controversies.

In 2014, there were 627 million tweets posted about the FIFA World Cup. During the final game, 618,725 tweets were made in one minute. 

  • Call-to-Action

This is a common marketing method that businesses do for more engagement. On Twitter, brands do this by asking potential customers for retweets or replies. 

Dunkin’ Donuts once asked who wanted to be the first to try their Pumpkin Dunkin’ K-Cup packs. More than 500 replies flooded the thread. 

In 2017, a high-school student asked the fast-food chain Wendy’s how many retweets would equal free chicken nuggets for one year. The original tweet gained almost 4 million retweets. 

Compared to Facebook’s 0.119%, Twitter’s engagement rate for ads is 1-3%. Retweets and replies help brands get the needed engagement while Twitter gains more tweet counts. 

  • Content 

What you tweet matters. Users tend to engage more with tweets that contain images or videos. 

A survey revealed that 82% of users watch videos on Twitter. Videos uploaded directly on Twitter generate 2.5x more replies and 2.8x more retweets. 

However, Twitter is also about messages. The platform is known as a space to express opinions. 

#BlackLivesMatter began in 2013 when the shooter of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was acquitted. Over the years, the hashtag became an instrument to condemn racism and police violence. 

In 2020, around 390 million tweets (or 206 tweets per second) related to #BlackLivesMatter. It is 2020’s second most-tweeted hashtag. 

Wrap Up

Social media is more than just a space to cure boredom but a communication medium that fills you with the world’s affairs and promotes your freedom of expression. It helps businesses reach their target audience. 

The current world lives and breathes social media. 

Sources: (Truelist), (Statista), (Truelist), (Pew Research Center)