Instagram Growth Continues to Outpace Facebook in the EU

The social media landscape in Europe continues to evolve, with Meta’s latest figures showing a widening gap between Instagram and Facebook when it comes to active users.

According to Meta’s latest reporting under the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), Instagram reached approximately 297 million active users in the EU during the first half of 2026, compared with around 264 million active users on Facebook.

The figures offer another indication of how user behaviour is shifting across Meta’s platforms and provide marketers with useful context when deciding where to focus their digital communication efforts.

Instagram Continues Its Upward Trend

While Facebook remains one of Europe’s largest social platforms, its active user numbers have remained relatively stable in recent reporting periods, with declines recorded during some previous periods.

Instagram, by comparison, has maintained a more consistent growth trajectory.

With its EU audience now approaching 300 million active users, Instagram has established a clear lead over Facebook in the region. If the current trajectory continues, the platform could move beyond the 300 million mark in the near future. For brands targeting European consumers, these numbers reinforce Instagram’s growing importance as a platform for reach, engagement and visual storytelling.

This does not mean Facebook has lost its value. With more than 260 million active users in the EU, its potential reach remains substantial. However, the difference in growth between the two platforms suggests that audience attention is increasingly moving towards Instagram.

What About Threads?

Meta’s newer social platform, Threads, is also gradually building its European audience. The platform has reached approximately 41 million users in the European Union, representing a smaller portion of its global audience of more than 500 million monthly active users.

While Threads remains significantly smaller than Instagram and Facebook in Europe, its continued development adds another layer to Meta’s expanding social ecosystem and gives brands another platform to monitor as audience behaviours evolve.

Meta Is Also Changing Its Approach to Moderation

Alongside its audience figures, Meta’s latest DSA disclosures provide insight into changes to its content moderation operations. The company reported that the number of moderators working across the EU decreased from approximately 7,700 in March to around 5,900 in its latest reporting period. This reduction comes as Meta continues to explore greater use of artificial intelligence and automated systems to support content moderation.

The latest reports also showed varying trends in the types of harmful content being identified across Meta’s platforms. Instagram recorded increases in reports relating to certain categories of harmful content, while Facebook reported declines across several areas, including hate speech, spam, bullying and harassment.

These figures need to be considered alongside changes in platform usage. A reduction in reported content does not necessarily indicate that a problem has disappeared, particularly when the number of active users or the amount of time spent on a platform may also be changing.

A Changing Social Media Landscape

Meta’s latest numbers reinforce a broader trend in European social media: Facebook remains highly relevant in terms of scale, but Instagram is increasingly capturing more audience attention and growth.

Platforms such as Instagram and TikTok have become central to visual, short form and entertainment driven content consumption, changing both user expectations and the way brands compete for attention.

For marketers, the key is not simply choosing the platform with the largest headline number. Understanding where audiences are growing, how they behave and which formats generate meaningful interaction is becoming increasingly important.

360 View

The gap between Instagram and Facebook is another reminder that social media strategies need to evolve alongside audience behaviour.

Facebook still offers significant reach and can remain highly effective for particular demographics, objectives and campaigns. Instagram’s stronger growth, however, makes it increasingly important for brands looking to connect with active audiences through visual, engaging and culturally relevant content. Rather than treating every Meta platform in the same way, brands should consider the specific role each one plays within their communication strategy.

The strongest approach is not necessarily to be everywhere. It is to understand where your audience is paying attention and create content designed specifically for that environment.

For more information, contact us at: [email protected]

Source: Social Media Today