Meta Threads Reaches Over 175 Million Monthly Active Users

According to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Meta Platforms’ latest social media venture, Threads, has surpassed 175 million monthly active users. Launched on July 5 last year, Threads aimed to capitalize on the tumultuous period during Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter, now rebranded as X.

The app achieved a remarkable milestone, attracting 100 million users in less than a week. This rapid adoption was facilitated by a seamless integration with Instagram, allowing users to effortlessly set up their Threads profiles. Despite this initial success, some early adopters eventually disengaged from the platform.

Zuckerberg’s Reflection and User Engagement:

Reflecting on Threads’ journey, Zuckerberg wrote in a Threads post, “What a year.” In April, he reported that the app had over 150 million monthly active users.

However, the monthly average user count only provides a partial view of Threads’ popularity. The platform has yet to disclose critical metrics such as daily active user count and average time spent per user. Market intelligence firm Sensor Tower highlighted that while Threads expanded internationally and introduced new features, it struggled to maintain user engagement.

In June, Sensor Tower data revealed that users engaged with Threads for an average of three sessions and seven minutes daily, a significant decrease of about 79% and 65%, respectively, compared to the previous July.

Monetization and Strategic Direction:

Threads does not feature advertising, resulting in minimal revenue generation for Meta. Recently, the platform joined the Fediverse, a collective of social media sites supporting the ActivityPub protocol, enabling cross-platform user interaction.

eMarketer analyst Jasmine Enberg noted that Threads’ future direction remains unclear. “A year after launch, we know what Threads isn’t, but we don’t know what it is,” she commented. Enberg suggested that a lack of direction and original content could hinder its growth.

Future Prospects and Advertiser Interest:

Enberg raised a strategic question for Meta: whether to maintain Threads as a standalone app or redirect user engagement back to Instagram. Despite these uncertainties, advertisers’ interest in Threads remains high, providing a potential avenue for future monetization and growth.