Threads Daily Active Users Plunge Roughly 70%, Says Report

Meta is faced with a pressing need to innovate and improve its recently launched Twitter competitor, Threads, as user engagement continues to dwindle following an initial surge in sign-ups.

According to data from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, daily active users on Threads have fallen for a second consecutive week to 13 million, representing a steep 70% drop from the app’s peak numbers on July 7. Average time spent on the app has also experienced a significant dip, from 19 to 4 minutes, reports The Wall Street Journal.

By contrast, Twitter’s daily active users remain steady at around 200 million, with users spending an average of 30 minutes a day on the platform.

Despite the concerning trend, Meta executives have expressed that they anticipated such a decline after Threads amassed over 100 million sign-ups within a week of its launch. According to them, the drop-off isn’t alarming and they’re focusing on rolling out new features to enhance the user experience before shifting focus to monetization.

Richard Hanna, a professor at Babson College who studies social-media strategy and digital marketing, suggested that Threads needs to expand its capabilities to retain user interest. Some users have criticized the app’s resemblance to Instagram in terms of content, complaining about the prevalence of brand accounts.

Threads responded to user feedback by reposting a video of Adam Mosseri, head of Meta’s Instagram unit, promising an array of new features, including support for multiple accounts, the ability to edit posts, and the introduction of a chronological feed option.

Despite recent technical glitches delaying the rollout of these new features, analysts believe that Threads still stands a chance due to Meta’s significant resources and patience.

“Meta definitely has the patience, they have the money, and they have the engineering talent,” said Debra Aho Williamson, a principal analyst at Insider Intelligence. The current focus, according to Meta’s executives, is on stabilizing the platform before concentrating on growing the community.

Threads makes it easy for existing Instagram users to try the app by leveraging the same login and also an easy one-tap to follow the same people. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said their goal is to monetize the app once it reaches 1 billion users.