Thais Spend Nearly 8 Hours Daily on the Internet, Using Social Media to Maintain Relationships, Read News, and Stay Connected

It was arguably a night of "emptiness" during the #FacebookDown and #InstagramDown incidents lasting about 2 hours on 6 March, temporarily disabling Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and Meta's Threads apps in Thailand and worldwide.

The disruption affected not only the online world but also unsettled many Thais, given social networking's strong role in daily life, alongside social media's importance in marketing, commerce, sales, and business communications.

Regarding how addicted Thais are to social media, Datareportal's Digital 2024: Thailand report shows there are 63.21 million internet users in Thailand, spending an average of 7 hours and 58 minutes online daily — a notably high figure.

Additional analysis by DAD at the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA) indicates the top 10 reasons Thai internet users engage online in the digital era as follows.

1. Searching for information (64.4%)
2. Following news updates and events (60.3%)
3. Watching videos, TV shows, or movies (58.0%)
4. Seeking new ideas or inspiration (55.6%)
5. Researching how to do things (50.3%)
6. Accessing and listening to music (50.1%)
7. Communicating with friends and family (48.6%)
8. Playing games (44.6%)
9. Filling free time and general web surfing (43.5%)
10. Researching products and brands (39.6%)

Note: The sample includes internet users in Thailand aged 16 to 64 years.

The same report states that Thailand currently has 49.10 million social media users, representing 68.3% of the population.

On average, Thais spend 2 hours and 31 minutes daily on social media, using an average of 6.7 platforms per month. The top 10 reasons for Thai social media use are diverse and noteworthy as follows.

• Maintaining contact with friends and family (57.6%)
• Reading news (39.2%)
• Filling free time (36.8%)
• Checking what people are talking about (35.9%)
• Finding inspiration for actions and purchases (32.3%)
• Sharing and discussing opinions with others (31.8%)
• Avoiding missing out (Fear of Missing Out, FOMO) (31.2%)
• Searching for products to buy (31.1%)
• Watching or following sports (26.8%)
• Following celebrities or influencers (26.2%)

Sources:Thailand (Datareportal), DAD NIDA