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How much time is spent per user on each post on Instagram: on viewing the image, liking the post and/or commenting.
Hello! Thanks for your question about the time an Instagram user spends, on average, on viewing a post, liking it, or commenting on it.
The short version is that, after searching extensively through social media reports and articles from trusted organizations and media sites, I have determined that the information you requested is not publicly available. This is because the focus of articles and reports on social media is on the average time spent per day or per usage occasion, the frequency of usage in a day and in a month, and the number of interactions per brand post.
However, I was able to learn that, according to mobile intelligence company Quettra, 90 million U.S. Instagram users in June 2015 spent a total of 13.6 million hours in a total of 503.6 million sessions. In addition, I was able to find that U.S. Instagram users access the application six times a day and 11 days a month, and, of Instagram active users worldwide, 94% are sharers, 81% are commenters, 73% are socializers, 80% are creators, 68% are reviewers, and 3% are passives.
Below you will find a deep dive of my methodology and findings.
METHODOLOGY
To answer your question, I tried several approaches, including your preferred strategy. I scoured through social media reports and articles from trusted organizations and media sites such as advertising news sites Adweek.com and AdAge.com.
I searched for the following as well: time spent liking, viewing, or commenting on Instagram or social media; breakdown of time spent on Instagram or social media; time spent per post on Instagram or social media; time spent per visit and frequency of interactions per visit; Instagram engagement or interactions.
Unfortunately, after attempting all these strategies, I was unable to find a direct answer to your question. The answer is not readily available and could not be triangulated given the limited information on the subject.
FINDINGS
While I could not find a direct answer to your question, I was able to gather some information about this topic, which I think will be helpful for your project. You may see this information below.
1. As shown on page 23 of the Sensis Social Media Report 2016, the average time Instagram users spent per Instagram visit or usage occasion in 2016 is as follows:
Up to 2 minutes - 11%
3 to 5 minutes - 20%
6 to 10 minutes - 17%
11 to 15 minutes - 8%
16 to 30 minutes - 9%
Over 30 minutes - 31%
Overall, the average time per usage occasion is 24.1 minutes, a 167% increase from the figure in 2015. According to page 22 of the Sensis Social Media Report 2015, the average time per visit then was only 9.02 minutes.
The number of Instagram usage occasions per week, on the other hand, had increased from 25.67 in 2015 to 29.4 in 2016, as can be seen on pages 21 and 22 of the 2015 and 2016 reports, respectively.
These findings were based, though, on surveys of 800 randomly chosen Australian consumers (not American consumers).
2. Mobile intelligence Quettra analyzed the usage of Instagram of 90 million U.S. users and found that, in June 2015, they spent a total of 13.6 million hours in a total of 503.6 million sessions on the application.
Based on these figures, we can estimate the amount of time spent per session.
13,600,000 hours x 60 minutes/hour = 816,000,000 minutes
816,000,000 minutes / 503,600,000 sessions = 1.62 minute/session
It appears, based on Quettra's study, that U.S. Instagram users spent, on average, 1.62 minutes per session in 2015. This figure does not seem realistic, though, especially when compared to Sensis' finding for Australians.
3. As mentioned in an April 2017 SmartInsights.com article, Instagram users access the application six times a day and 11 days a month. This is based on a survey of 1,952 owners of smartphones in the United States.
4. According to page 21 of GWI's Social Media Engagement report, of Instagram active users, 94% are sharers, 81% are commenters, 73% are socializers, 80% are creators, 68% are reviewers, and 3% are passives. The findings in the report were based on a survey of over 170,000 internet users worldwide.
5. Based on a research study done in 2014 on 13,533 teen Instagram users and 13,352 adult Instagram users, teens, compared to adults, are less inclined to post photos. They tend to be more active, however, in other Instagram activities such as liking, tagging, and commenting.
CONCLUSION
To wrap it up, after searching extensively through social media reports and articles from reputable organizations and media sites, a direct answer to your question could not be found. However, I was able to gather the following information, which you may find useful: a total of 13.6 million hours was spent by 90 million U.S. Instagram users in a total of 503.6 million sessions in June 2015; U.S. Instagram users access the application six times a day and 11 days a month; and, of Instagram active users worldwide, 94% are sharers, 81% are commenters, 73% are socializers, 80% are creators, 68% are reviewers, and 3% are passives.
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