Social Media in the Middle East and North Africa 2025 edition

Since 2012, this annual report series has tracked the evolving role of social media across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). This 2025 edition takes a new thematic approach, moving away from the platform-by-platform structure of earlier reports to focus on three major forces shaping the region's digital landscape: freedom of expression, the creator economy, and the role of Arab youth. MENA remains home to some of the world's most digitally saturated populations. Saudi Arabia and the UAE rank first and second globally for TikTok reach relative to population; Saudi Arabia also leads the world for YouTube reach, while the UAE tops the global LinkedIn ranking. Social media advertising in the region is projected to reach $4.26 billion in 2025, concentrated on platforms including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. The report examines how the GCC's creator economy has grown by 75% over two years, with 263,000 professional influencers now operating across the Gulf states. It documents the institutional maturation of this sector — from state-backed initiatives such as Dubai's 1 Billion Followers Summit and Saudi Arabia's Creators HQ, to the emergence of creator-led businesses, live shopping, and influencer-driven tourism campaigns. At the same time, the report chronicles escalating threats to freedom of expression. Saudi Arabia executed journalist Turki al-Jasser in June 2025, the first high-profile state killing of a journalist since Jamal Khashoggi's murder in 2018. Egypt arrested or prosecuted at least 29 content creators in mid-2025. Jordan banned 12 independent news websites. Iran imposed sweeping internet shutdowns during nationwide protests. More journalists and media workers were killed in 2025 than in any year since the Committee to Protect Journalists began documentation in 1992. The report also explores how the region's young population — with approximately 55% of the MENA population under 30 — is shaping digital culture, social commerce, and civic engagement, while navigating structural barriers including unemployment, political exclusion, and digital inequality. Each chapter is authored by a different contributor, preserving distinct analytical voices while drawing on published platform data, industry reports, NGO research, and academic literature. The report is the latest in a series that represents one of the longest-running annual assessments of social and digital media in the MENA region.