Instagram is growing 10x than Facebook
Meta has released fresh insights into how Facebook and Instagram perform in Europe, as part of its transparency obligations under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA).
Platform Growth: Instagram’s Rapid Rise
- User base per platform (Jan–Jun 2025):
- Facebook: ~263.6 million monthly active users (MAU) in the EU
- Instagram: ~281.8 million MAU—overtaking Facebook in usage.
- Growth since March 2024:
- Facebook: modest growth of 0.65%
- Instagram: robust increase of 6.17%
- Notably, Facebook even lost users in the Netherlands, Greece, and Germany, signaling a shifting preference toward Instagram in Europe .
Moderation Landscape: Human Steady, Trends in Policy Enforcement
- Meta continues to employ 40,000 human moderators across the EU—unchanged since its 2023 reporting .
- Spam removal has decreased on both platforms, while bullying and harassment removals have increased significantly on Facebook. At the same time, hate speech removals dropped by 20%, although changing categorization complicates direct comparisons.
Deeper Insight: Expanded DSA Data (April–September 2024)
Supplementary reporting under the DSA provides richer context, capturing the scale of moderation and operational practices across Meta’s EU platforms:
- Workforce & audit process:
- Over 1,000 staff dedicated to DSA compliance
- 40+ specialists spent 20,000+ hours supporting independent audits
- Achieved over 90% full compliance, with no adverse audit findings
- Content removals:
- Facebook: ~49.3 million removals (automated: ~46.7 million)
- Instagram: ~12.1 million removals (automated: ~10.5 million)
- Localization & moderation accuracy:
- Support in all 24 official EU languages
- Median response times: 25.8 hours for Facebook, 8.6 hours for Instagram
- Automation overturn rate (accuracy metric): 7.47%
- User recourse:
- Facebook: 3.5 million appeals → ~871,759 restorations
- Instagram: 1.5 million appeals → ~268,853 restorations
What This Means
Instagram is expanding its lead in EU usage, reflecting shifting user preferences and engagement. Meanwhile, Meta’s commitment to moderation transparency is evident in sizeable staff allocations, fast response times, and high compliance across EU-language needs. Still, evolving content standards and gaps in hate speech categorization point to ongoing challenges.
Summary Table
| Theme | Key Insight |
|---|---|
| User Growth | Instagram growing 10× faster than Facebook in EU—now larger than Facebook |
| Moderation Resources | Steady 40K human moderators; strong audit compliance (>90%); widespread language support |
| Content Removal | Tens of millions removed (mostly via automation), with modest error rates |
| Transparency & Appeals | Fast authority response times; millions of user appeals handled and many restorations |
