The world's largest social network connecting billions of people.
Facebook at a glance
Facebook is a social media website and one of the most visited sites in United States, currently ranked #3 in the country. It was founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg, Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz, Chris Hughes and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California, United States. Today Facebook is owned by Meta Platforms Inc.. Our estimates put its audience at ≈ 17 billion visits per month. The business earns money mainly through advertising in feed, stories, reels and marketplace, messenger and whatsapp business messaging, meta verified subscriptions. Its closest rivals include TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, X (Twitter).
Traffic statistics
Traffic history
| Period | Visits | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | ≈ 16.5 billion / month | +1% |
| Q2 | ≈ 16.8 billion / month | +2% |
| Q3 | ≈ 17.2 billion / month | +2% |
| Q4 | ≈ 17.0 billion / month | -1% |
Traffic sources
- Direct55%
App opens, bookmarks
- Organic search18%
Brand and people searches
- Referral15%
Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp
- Social8%
- Paid & other4%
Audience & demographics
- Men52%
- Women48%
- Age 18-2418%
- Age 25-3425%
- Age 35-5434%
- Age 55+23%
Facebook's audience has aged up over time; it remains the largest social network globally and is especially strong among 25-54 year olds.
Geographic reach
- United States15%
- India12%
- Brazil6%
- Indonesia5%
- Other62%
SEO profile
- Organic keywords
- Billions of profile and page names
- Estimated organic traffic
- Hundreds of millions of visits / month
- Strongest clusters
- Brand, people names, business pages
Top organic keywords
| Keyword | Position | Volume | Traffic share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Very high | — | |
| facebook login | 1 | Very high | — |
| marketplace | 1-3 | High | — |
| facebook watch | 1-3 | Medium | — |
Backlink profile
- Referring domains
- Hundreds of millions
- Link profile
- Social profiles, login buttons, share widgets
Top referral sources
- Direct / app50%
- Google Search20%
- Meta family apps20%
- Other referrals10%
Technology stack
Website technologies
Advertising & analytics technologies
Facebook's stack is optimised for real-time social graphs, personalised feeds and ad delivery at massive scale.
Mobile app statistics
- Mobile share of sessions
- ≈ 68%
- Daily app opens
- Billions
Company information
- Website
- facebook.com
- Sector
- Social Media
- Owner
- Meta Platforms Inc.
- Owner type
- Public company
- Founders
- Mark Zuckerberg, Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz, Chris Hughes
- Founded
- 2004
- Headquarters
- Menlo Park, California, United States
- Employees
- 70,000+
- Ownership
- Publicly traded (NASDAQ: META); Mark Zuckerberg controls a majority of voting shares
- Valuation
- Market cap approximately USD 1.5 trillion
- Revenue
- Meta revenue approximately USD 160 billion annually; advertising is the core
- Languages
- 100+ languages
- Top traffic sources
- Direct, mobile app, Google search, referral
Ownership, investors & funding history
Financials
- Revenue trend
- Advertising recovery with Reels and AI investments
- Profitability
- Highly profitable; one of the largest ad businesses
- Cost base
- Infrastructure, R&D, Reality Labs, content moderation
Business model & revenue
Facebook connects users and monetises attention through highly targeted advertising. It also offers business messaging, verified subscriptions and commerce tools for sellers.
- Advertising in Feed, Stories, Reels and Marketplace
- Messenger and WhatsApp business messaging
- Meta Verified subscriptions
- In-app purchases and game payments
- Commerce and checkout fees
Products & services
Personalised content feed from friends, pages and groups.
Peer-to-peer buying and selling.
Video and Reels destination.
Interest and community groups.
In-app dating service.
Messaging platform integrated with Facebook.
Seller ecosystem
- Business pages
- 200 million+
- Advertisers
- Millions
- Marketplace sellers
- Hundreds of millions
Employee statistics
Customer statistics
Main competitors
Overview
Facebook is the world's largest social network. Founded in 2004, it connects billions of people and serves as a major digital advertising platform under Meta Platforms.
Traffic Statistics
Facebook attracts roughly 17 billion monthly visits and has more than 3 billion monthly active users. Daily active users exceed 2 billion.
Traffic Sources
Direct traffic and mobile app opens dominate, followed by Google organic search for brand and people queries and referrals from other Meta apps.
Audience & Demographics
Facebook's user base is broad and global, with particularly strong usage among 25-54 year olds. The platform has aged up over time while remaining essential for community and commerce.
Geographic Reach
The United States, India, Brazil and Indonesia are the largest markets. Facebook operates in more than 100 languages.
SEO Profile
Facebook ranks for billions of brand, people-name and business-page queries. Its public profiles and pages generate enormous organic search visibility.
Technology Stack
Facebook runs a custom PHP/Hack backend, React front end, GraphQL APIs and distributed database systems optimised for real-time social graphs.
Social Media Statistics
Facebook's corporate accounts reach tens of millions of followers across X, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn.
Mobile App Statistics
The Facebook app has more than 5 billion Google Play downloads. Mobile accounts for roughly 68% of sessions.
Company Information
Facebook is headquartered in Menlo Park, California. It was founded by Mark Zuckerberg, Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes.
Ownership & Investors
Meta Platforms Inc. is publicly traded on NASDAQ. Mark Zuckerberg controls a majority of voting shares.
Financials
Meta generates approximately USD 160 billion in annual revenue, overwhelmingly from advertising.
Business Model
Facebook monetises attention through targeted advertising, business messaging, verified subscriptions and commerce fees.
Products & Services
Products include News Feed, Marketplace, Watch, Groups, Dating, Messenger and the broader Meta family of apps.
Competitors
Competitors include TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, X, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Company History & Milestones
From Harvard launch in 2004 to opening globally in 2006, the 2012 IPO and Instagram acquisition, the 2014 WhatsApp/Oculus deals and the 2021 Meta rebrand.
Latest News
Meta is expanding AI-powered advertising tools and Reels monetisation.
User Reviews & Ratings
Praised for connections and community; criticised for privacy, ads and moderation.
Pros & Cons
Pros: unmatched reach, ad tools, groups and Marketplace. Cons: privacy issues, youth decline, ad load and moderation.
Key Statistics
~17 billion monthly visits, 3 billion+ monthly active users, 2 billion+ daily active users, #3 U.S. ranking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who owns Facebook? Meta Platforms. Is it free? Yes, ad-supported. How many users? 3 billion+ monthly active.
Data Sources
Meta filings, investor presentations, Statcounter and Similarweb estimates.
Last Updated
2026-09-10
Related Websites
Instagram, WhatsApp, X, TikTok and LinkedIn.
Website Rankings
#3 in the United States and #3 worldwide.
Revenue & Funding History
2012 IPO raised USD 16 billion; subsequent growth funded organically from advertising cash flow.
Employee Statistics
Meta employs more than 70,000 people across engineering, sales, moderation and Reality Labs.
Customer Statistics
3 billion+ monthly active users and 200 million+ business pages.
Backlink Profile
Hundreds of millions of referring domains from social profiles, login buttons and share widgets.
Top Organic Keywords
"facebook", "facebook login", "marketplace", "facebook watch" and people/business names.
Top Referral Sources
Direct app opens, Google Search and Meta family apps.
Website Technologies
PHP/Hack, React, GraphQL, distributed databases, mobile-first architecture.
Advertising & Analytics Technologies
Meta Ads Manager, Facebook Pixel, Conversions API, Audience Network.
API & Developer Information
Graph API, Marketing API, Messenger API, Instagram Basic Display API and Business Suite API.
International Seller Opportunities
Facebook Marketplace, Shops and Business Messaging enable sellers to reach global buyers.
Company history & milestones
- 2004
Founded at Harvard by Mark Zuckerberg and friends
- 2006
Opens to everyone aged 13+ with a valid email
- 2012
IPO on NASDAQ; acquires Instagram
- 2014
Acquires WhatsApp and Oculus
- 2021
Rebrands parent company to Meta Platforms
- 2023
Pushes Reels, AI and cost efficiency
Latest news
- Meta expands AI-powered ad toolsMeta Newsroom · 2026
- Facebook Reels monetisation growsTechCrunch · 2026
Pros & cons
Pros
- Largest social network with unmatched reach
- Powerful advertising targeting tools
- Groups and Marketplace create strong engagement
- Integrated family of apps (Instagram, WhatsApp)
Cons
- Privacy and data scandals over the years
- Declining youth engagement in some markets
- Ad-heavy experience
- Content moderation controversies
Key statistics
Frequently asked questions
Who owns Facebook?
Facebook is owned by Meta Platforms Inc., a public company.
Is Facebook free?
Yes, the core service is free and ad-supported.
How many users does Facebook have?
Over 3 billion monthly active users.
Popular searches
Data sources & confidence
- Meta public filingsMeta Investor Relations
- Meta investor presentationsMeta
- StatcounterStatcounter
- Similarweb estimatesSimilarweb
- Data confidence
- High for ownership and public user metrics; traffic estimates are third-party approximations.
- Last updated
- 2026-09-10
Social media profiles & statistics