X experiences a decline in active users and inconsistent reporting

The popular social media platform formerly known as Twitter now rebranded as X, is facing increasing scrutiny over its user metrics and the accuracy of its reported numbers. A recent analysis by Apptopia, which tracks mobile app user habits, has raised questions about the platform’s performance. According to Apptopia’s data, X currently has around 121 million daily active users, a significant discrepancy from the 253 million daily active users reported by X itself.

“Since Musk bought the company in October 2022, it’s lost approximately 13% of its daily active users. And its rebrand from Twitter to X accelerated the decline.” as per Big Technology. 

Notably, Apptopia’s analysis also indicates that the users who remain on the platform continue to engage with it at similar levels, and the recent introduction of X’s Threads feature has not had a direct impact on the user decline.

The accuracy of user metrics and claims regarding X’s growth is debated. X initially reported 250 million daily active users post-Musk takeover, but Musk stated 20% were bots, raising doubts. If Musk’s claim of bot reduction is valid, X added 12 million users and replaced 47.6 million fake profiles within the same timeframe, questioning the credibility of his claims. Typically, social platforms have about 1.8 times more monthly users than daily users. Based on this ratio, X likely has around 223 million monthly active users, significantly lower than the reported 550 million.

Furthermore, Apptopia’s analysis indicates that there is a widening gap between daily and monthly users on the platform. This suggests that X may have even fewer monthly active users than this calculation would indicate, potentially ranking it behind other social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and Pinterest in terms of active users.

The discrepancies in user metrics and Musk’s assertions leave open questions about X’s actual user base and its current trajectory as it navigates a changing landscape under Musk’s ownership. However, CEO Linda Yaccarino seems to be optimistic about the company’s future, as she said at the Code Conference that the Musk-owned social media platform is “just about break even” and could turn a profit in early 2024.