New York Times Reports That Twitter Is Not Popular With Teenagers

Twitter Users: How Old Are You?

August 27, 2009

And here I thought by tweeting, I was keeping up with the kids! Not so, says The New York Times, which reports that despite Twitter's massive prominence, it has not found popularity with teens (what, are they all just sexting or something? Just kidding).

In fact, only 11 percent of its users are 12 to 17 years old — interesting since teen adoption helped blast MySpace into popularity years ago. So who is using Twitter? Us oldies, apparently! I kid, but I do want to know how old the average tweeter is, since so many GeekSugar readers are also Twitter users.

Source: Getty

20 Comments

3 years 36 weeks

How Can Twitter grow my Spa business?

akamikazebutterfly 3 years 37 weeks

i'm in my late 30's and am currently using twitter as a means to an end, but i have to honestly say i find it difficult (and facebook even more so) as its such a different way to communicate that i'm not used to. i'm a bit surprised at the survey results as i assumed teens would have been the driving force.

macgirl 3 years 37 weeks

I use Twitter for very different things. I broadcast Mac news and tips. I also interact with people that do the same. Twitter is a great resource for information. I wish there would have been another check box beyond +25. Sometimes I feel like I'm the oldest person that reads these blogs ;-)

macgirl 3 years 37 weeks

elladebella 3 years 37 weeks

I am 14. Most use Facebook but in my school, but Twitter is getting popular.

kcwebgirl 3 years 37 weeks

i'm 30 and i love my twitter despite the crashes and stuff. i don't want the little brats on twitter. is nothing sacred anymore? everything awesome about twitter is for us grown folks!

amandaaa 3 years 37 weeks

courtiebby 3 years 37 weeks

I'm 14, and I am the only person that I know of in my school that uses Twitter. It's not all that well known here in Western Australia. Well, in my town anyway. I use it a lot, but that's mainly to keep up with all my friends overseas, not my friends in real life. Yeah, I don't actually know anyone else my age who uses it.

BellaEdward4ever 3 years 37 weeks

I'm almost 15 and none of the kids I know at my school use twitter. We all use facebook, and since pretty much every teenager in my area (probably the country) does too, there's no point in having twitter to keep us all updated. facebook is good for teens because not only can you communicate with everyone easily and find new friends, you can discuss homework, social events, etc. Also, my friend tried twitter for a little while...he had to get rid of his account because all these creepy old men started following him.

rach716 3 years 37 weeks

I'm a BIG fan of Twitter, I think it's an amazing tool for keeping up with people, getting the news, finding reviews on products/movies/restaurants, etc. For me, it serves a very different purpose than Facebook, which I also use. I think people who say Twitter is dumb/pointless or that they don't like it, don't fully understand all that you can do with it! Vivaciousv: I think that makes us middle-aged! hahaha

rach716 3 years 37 weeks

I'm a BIG fan of Twitter, I think it's an amazing tool for keeping up with people, getting the news, finding reviews on products/movies/restaurants, etc. For me, it serves a very different purpose than Facebook, which I also use. I think people who say Twitter is dumb/pointless or that they don't like it, don't fully understand all that you can do with it!Vivaciousv: I think that makes us middle-aged! hahaha

vivaciousv1114 3 years 37 weeks

I'm 24 and I don't use either Facebook or Myspace. But I do love Twitter. Although I do turn 25 in a couple of months, does that make me one of the oldies? lol

Gdeeaz 3 years 37 weeks

i am 19 and i only know a few ppl my age who use twitter.

3 years 37 weeks

I graduated in 1979 and I'm seeing many old college and high school classmates on Facebook and Twitter, with varying degrees of use. Some post several times each day and take quizzes and play games, some post only once every couple of months.

3 years 37 weeks

Last week, my stepdaughter called twitter "facebook for old people." :/