Meta says that Reels now account for more than 50% of the time people spend on Instagram, a significant jump from just over 20% in 2022. That’s more than a twofold increase in two years, highlighting how much short-form video now drives engagement on the platform.

Mark Zuckerberg confirmed the update, saying, “Reels and video continue to drive engagement, with Reels alone now making up 50% of the time that’s spent within the app.” This is part of a trend Meta is seeing across its platforms. The company says video, in general, makes up over 60% of the time people spend on Facebook and Instagram.

Meta’s video push is a direct response to TikTok and YouTube Shorts

Reels was launched in 2020 as Meta’s answer to TikTok’s rapid growth. TikTok popularized the vertical scroll video feed and captured the youth demographic early on. In response, both Meta and YouTube launched Reels and Shorts as alternatives.

TikTok still leads in global cultural influence. However, Meta’s data shows Reels is starting to catch up, as users are watching and resharing them at a massive scale. Meta claims people now reshare Reels over 4.5 billion times every day.

YouTube Shorts is also seeing traction, averaging over 200 billion daily views, according to recent data. That’s a massive number and gives YouTube a strong position in the video ad market.

With ongoing regulatory pressure on TikTok in countries like the U.S., users and creators are increasingly looking for safer or more stable alternatives. The uncertainty around TikTok’s availability may have led some users to spend more time on rival platforms.

That puts Reels in strong competition with both YouTube and TikTok. Each of these platforms is now competing for the same type of user attention: short, swipeable video content that encourages daily engagement.

Meta explores a separate Reels app and new formats

As engagement with Reels grows, Meta is reportedly considering spinning off Reels into a standalone app. That would make Reels a more direct competitor to TikTok by turning the feature into its own full-screen, scroll-first video platform.

This isn’t new for the company. Instagram Stories, for instance, once closely mirrored Snapchat’s format. And Facebook Messenger was previously embedded in Facebook before becoming a separate app. A dedicated Reels app could give Meta more room to innovate specifically around short-form video, potentially with more creative tools, monetization options, or algorithm tweaks optimized for video discovery.

Meta is also experimenting with ways to create more exclusivity around content. The platform is testing “lockable Reels,” which let creators hide videos behind a secret code. Users will need to enter the code to access the content.

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