(SURVEY) Insights on a Potential TikTok Ban in the U.S.

If Congress’s latest attempt at effectively banning TikTok in the United States is successful, what will happen to its 150 million users? Where will they go and how will they spend the time they used to spend on TikTok?

That’s the question many brands and their agencies have asked since the idea of a ban was first floated in 2020.

Today, MGH attempted to finally answer that question through the release of results from a March 14, 2024 study, on the heels of the House of Representatives passed bill.

The answer?

Instagram and its Reels platform stand to benefit most from the ban, with YouTube Shorts following close behind. In fact, the study found that 58% of users would use Instagram Reels instead of TikTok, with 52% of them choosing YouTube Shorts.

Facebook and its Reels offering would also see a benefit with 49% of users choosing to increase their time on that platform.

X (formerly Twitter), with a smaller user base of just 95 million U.S. users and no shortage of recent controversy, would see only 23% of TikTok users choosing to spend more time on its platform.

Just 8% of the survey’s respondents said they would not choose to use any new platforms, indicating that the vast majority of TikTok’s users are ready to jump to another ship if TikTok’s is forcibly sunk.

The study also asked TikTok’s users how important the app is to their daily lives, measuring the effect this type of legislation could have on voter sentiment in an election year.

Unsurprisingly, 52% of TikTok’s users described the app as “Important” to their daily lives, with 31% saying it is “Very important” and 21% describing it as “Somewhat important.”

With a userbase of 150 million in the U.S., this could equate to 82.5 million potential voters being stripped of something they describe as “important” to their daily lives.

While it’s to be determined how the Senate will choose to vote, the results are clear: TikTok matters. But if it’s stripped away, its users are ready to spend their social media time on another popular platform.

Survey results below:

If TikTok was banned and you were no longer able to use the platform in the U.S. which platforms would you use instead? Please check all that apply.

• Reels (Instagram): 58%
• Reels (Facebook): 49%
• YouTube Shorts: 52%
• X (Formerly Twitter): 23%
• Other: 2%
• I would not use any new platforms: 8%

How important is TikTok in your daily life?

• Very important: 31%
• Important: 21%
• Neutral: 21%
• Not very important: 16%
• Not at all important: 10%