This is a list of major active social networking websites and excludes dating websites (see Comparison of online dating websites). For defunct social networking websites, see List of defunct social networking websites.
This list is not exhaustive, and is limited to notable, well-known sites. The Alexa website rankings are from various time periods.
Name | Description/focus | Date launched | Registered users | Registration | Global Alexa page ranking |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
43 Things | Goal setting and achievement | 1 January 2005 | 3,000,000[1] | Closed | 12,914[2] |
Academia.edu | Social networking site for academics/researchers | September 2008 | 18,000,000[3] | Open | 824[4] |
About.me | Social networking site | October 2009 | 5,000,000[5] | Open | 1,447 |
Advogato | Free and open source software developers | 1999 | 13,575[6] | Open | 292,620[7] |
aNobii | Books | 2006 | Open | 26,939[8] | |
AsianAvenue | A social network for the Asian American community | 1997 | Open | 170,384[9] | |
aSmallWorld | European jet set and social elite worldwide | March 2004 | 550,000[10] | Invite-only | 580,060[11] |
Athlinks | Running, swimming | 2001 | 139,458[12] | Open | 69,170[13] |
Audimated.com | Independent music | 2010 | Open | 656,507[14] | |
Bebo | General | July 2005 | 117,000,000[15] | Open to people 13 and older | 4,169[16] |
Biip.no | Norwegian community | 1 June 2005 | 430,000[17] | Requires Norwegian phone number | 81,916[18] |
BlackPlanet | Black Americans | 1 September 1999 | 20,000,000[19] | Open | 7,193[20] |
Bolt.com | General | 1996 | Open | 589,595[21] | |
Busuu | Language learning community (headquartered in Madrid, Spain) | 16 May 2008 | 12,000,000[22] | Open | 4,976[23] |
Buzznet | Music and pop-culture | 2005 | 10,000,000[24] | Open | 6,955[25] |
CafeMom | Mothers | December 2006 | 1,250,000[26] | Open to moms and moms-to-be | 1,293[27] |
Care2 | Green living and social activism | 1998 | 9,961,947[28] | Open | 1,930[29] |
CaringBridge | Not for profit providing free websites that connect family and friends during a serious health event, care and recovery.[30] | 1997 | 9,500,000[31] | Open to people 18 and older[32] | 4,279[33] |
Classmates.com | School, college, work and the military | 1995 | 50,000,000[34] | Open to people 18 and older[35] | 3,284[36] |
Cloob | General. Popular in Iran | 2004 | Open | 749[37] | |
CouchSurfing | Worldwide network for making connections between travelers and the communities they visit. | 2003 | 2,967,421[38] | Open | 2,231[39] |
CozyCot | East Asian and Southeast Asian women | 2001 | 150,000[40] | Open | 36,959[41] |
Crunchyroll | Anime and forums. | 2006 | Open | 5,721[42] | |
Cucumbertown | Networking for cooks | 2012 | Open | 175,796[43] | |
Cyworld | General. Popular in South Korea. | 1999 | 24,000,000[44] | Open | 1,616[45] |
DailyBooth | Photo-blogging site where users upload a photo every day | 13 February 2009 | Closed | 5,963[46] | |
DailyStrength | Medical & emotional support community - physical health, mental health, support groups | 4 November 2007 | Open | 10,511[47] | |
delicious | Social bookmarking allowing users to locate and save websites that match their own interests | September 2003 | 8,822,921[48] | Open | 436[49] |
DeviantArt | Art community | 7 August 2000 | 26,000,000[50] | Open to people 13 and older | 131[51] |
Diaspora* | Decentralized, user-owned, open source, nonprofit, privacy aware, general | November 2010 | 669,000+[n 1] | Open | NA[n 2] |
Disaboom | People with disabilities (amputees, cerebral palsy, MS, and other disabilities) | 2007 | Open | 218,135[52] | |
Dol2day | Politic community, social network, Internet radio (German-speaking countries) | 15 May 2000 | 40,200[53] | Open | 385,237[54] |
DontStayIn | Clubbing (primarily UK) | April 2003 | Open | 86,535[55] | |
Draugiem.lv | General (primarily LV, LT, HU) | April 24, 2004 | 2,600,466[56] | Invitation only | 2,698[57] |
douban | Chinese Web 2.0 website providing user review and recommendation services for movies, books, and music. | 2005 | 46,850,000[58] | Open | 106[59] |
Doximity | U.S. Physicians and medical doctors. | 2011 | 400,000[60] | U.S. physicians only | 27,539[61] |
Dreamwidth | Blogging. | 2009 | Open | 6,384[62] | |
DXY.cn | Chinese online community for physicians, health care professionals, pharmacies and facilities | 2000[63] | 2,000,000[64] | Open | 8,367[65] |
Elftown | Community and wiki around fantasy and sci-fi. | Feb 2002 | 185,000[66] | Open, approval needed | 43,277[67] |
Ello | General | March 2014[68][69] | Invite only while in beta | 106,782[70] | |
Elixio | Business executives jet set and global elite. | July 2007 | 80,000[71] | Invite-only | 545,268[72] |
English, baby! | Students and teachers of English as a second language | 2000 | 1,600,000[73] | Open | 29,585[74] |
Eons.com | For baby boomers and mature internet users age 40 and beyond. | Jul 2006 | Open to people age 40 years and older | 73,767[75] | |
eToro | Social investing, finance | May 2007 | 2,500,000[citation needed] | Open | 1,591[76] |
Experience Project | Life experiences | 2007 | Open | 2,658[77] | |
General: photos, videos, blogs, apps. | February 2004 | 1.28×10 9[78] | Open to people 13 and older | 2[79] | |
Fetlife | People who are into BDSM | January 2008 | 2,701,715[80] | Open to people "of legal age to see adult content" | 4,131[81] |
FilmAffinity | Movies and TV series | 2002 | 250,000[82] | Open | 3,151[83] |
Filmow | Movies and TV series | 2009 | Open | 44,630[84] | |
FledgeWing | Entrepreneurial community targeted towards worldwide university students | Feb 2009 | Open to university students | 696,513[85] | |
Flixster | Movies | 2007 | 63,000,000[86] | Open to people 13 and older | 4,012[87] |
Flickr | Photo sharing, commenting, photography related networking, worldwide | February 2004 | 32,000,000[88] | Open to people 13 and older (Yahoo! Login) | 48[89] |
Focus.com | Business-to-business, worldwide | 2005 | 850,000[90] | Open to people 13 and older | 12,114[91] |
Fotki | Photo sharing, video hosting, photo contests, journals, forums, flexible privacy protection, friend's feed, audio comments and unlimited custom design integration. | October 1998 | 1,632,565 | Open | 8,011[92] |
Fotolog | Photoblogging. Popular in South America and Spain | 2002 | 20,000,000[93] | Open | 3,168[94] |
Foursquare | Location based mobile social network | 2009 | 20,000,000[95] | Open | 817[96] |
Friendica | Distributed, federated, privacy aware, open source, general | July 2010 | Open | 354,946[97][n 2] | |
Friends Reunited | UK based. School, college, work, sport and streets | July 2000 | 19,000,000[98] | Closed | 29,239[99] |
Friendster | General. Popular in Southeast Asia. No longer popular in the western world | 2002 | 90,000,000[100] | Open to people 16 and older. | 12,167[101] |
Fuelmyblog | Blogging community | July 2007 | 50,000[102] | Open | 85,547[103] |
Fyuse | A spatial photography app and website which lets users capture and share interactive 3D images. | 2014 | Open | 359,026 | |
Gab.ai | social networking service created as an alternative to social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Reddit. | 2016 | 310,000[104] | Open | 17,112 [105] |
Gaia Online | Anime and games. Popular in United States, Canada and Europe. Moderately popular around Asia. | 2003 | 23,523,663[106] | Open to people 13 and older | 6,277[107] |
GamerDNA | Computer and video games | 21 September 2006 | 310,000[108] | Open | 59,730[109] |
Gapyear.com | Travel social network | July 1998 | Open | 74,763[110] | |
Gather.com | Article, picture, and video sharing, as well as group discussions | 25 Feb 2005 | 465,000[111] | Open | 3,062[112] |
Gays.com | Social network for LGBT community, guide for LGBT bars, restaurants, clubs, shopping | 16 May 2008 | 100,000[113] | Open, global | 224,302[114] |
Geni.com | Families, genealogy | 16 January 2007 | 15,000,000[115] | Open | 5,958[116] |
Gentlemint | Community for sharing and discussing all things manly | 25 November 2011 | Open | 100,196[117] | |
GetGlue | Social network for entertainment. | 28 October 2008 | 2,000,000[118] | Open | 3,735[119] |
GirlsAskGuys | Community where people help each other by sharing their experiences & opinions. | June 2007 | 450,000[120] | Open | 4,798[121] |
Gogoyoko | Fair play in music - social networking site for musicians and music lovers. | 1 Oct 2009 | Invite only while in beta | 145,552[122] | |
Goodreads | Library cataloging, book lovers. | December 2006 | 13,000,000[123] | Open | 327[124] |
Goodwizz | Social network with matchmaking and personality games to find new contacts. Global, based in France. | October 2010 | 110,000[125][126] | Open | 597,008[127] |
Google+ | General | 28 June 2011 | 1.6×10 9[128] | Open to people 13 and older [129] | NA[n 3] |
GovLoop | For people in and around government. | May 2008 | 138,576[130] | ||
Grindr | For gay and bisexual men.[131] | March 2009 | 2,400,000 | Open | 90,354[132] |
Grono.net | Poland | 2,000,000[citation needed] | Open | 395,036[133] | |
Habbo | General for teens. Over 31 communities worldwide. Chat room and user profiles. | August 2000 | 268,000,000[134][135][136] | Open to people 13 and older | 15,255[137] |
hi5 | General. Popular in Nepal, Mongolia, Thailand, Romania, Jamaica, Central Africa, Portugal and Latin America. Not very popular in the United States. | 2003 | 80,000,000[138] | Open to people 13 and older. | 902[139] |
Hospitality Club | Hospitality | 328,629[140] | Open | 99,562[141] | |
Hotlist | Geo-social aggregator rooted in the concept of knowing where users' friends are, were, and will be. | 80,000[142] | Open | 155,811[143] | |
HR.com | Social networking site for human resources professionals. | 1999 | 194,000[144] | Open | 79,591[145] |
Hub Culture | Global influencers focused on worth creation. | November 2002 | 20,000[146] | Invite-only | 152,756[147] |
Ibibo | Talent based social networking site that allows to promote one's self and also discover new talent. Most popular in India. | 3,500,000[148] | Open | 1,143[149] | |
Identi.ca | Twitter-like service popular with hackers and software freedom advocates. | 395,695[citation needed] | Open | 7,290[150] | |
Indaba Music | Online collaboration for musicians, remix contests, and networking. | 350,000[151] | Open, global | 45,039[152] | |
Influenster | Online product sampling and review platform. | 2010 | 850,000[153] | Open, global | 8,612[154] |
A photo and video sharing site. | October 2010 | 300,000,000[155] | Open to anyone 13 or older | 41 | |
IRC-Galleria | Finland | 505,000[156] | Open to Finnish speaking people 12 and older | 36,982[157] | |
italki | Language learning social network. 100+ languages. | 500,000[158] | Open, global | 18,956[159] | |
Itsmy | Mobile community worldwide, blogging, friends, personal TV-shows | 2,500,000[160][failed verification] | 770,100[161] | ||
Jaiku | General. Microblogging. Owned by Google | February 2006 | Open to people 13 and older | 62,910[162] | |
Jiepang | Location-based mobile social network. In Chinese language | 2010 | 3,000,000[163] | Open | 14,790[164] |
Kaixin001 | General. In Simplified Chinese; caters for mainland China users | Open to the general public | 284[165] | ||
Kiwibox | General. | 1999 | 2,400,000[166] | Open to people 13 and older | 104,563[167] |
LaiBhaari | Marathi social networking | 2010 | 250,000 | Open | 952,782[168] |
Last.fm | Music | 2002 | 30,000,000[169] | Open | 772[170] |
Late Night Shots | Message boards, member profile pages, spotting other members | 2006 | 20,000 (2008)[171] | Invite-only | 228,888[172] |
LibraryThing | Book lovers | 29 August 2005 | 1,300,000[173] | Open to people 13 and older | 10,800[174] |
Lifeknot | Shared interests, hobbies | Open to people 18 and older | 1,071,686[175] | ||
Business and professional networking | May 2003 | 200,000,000[176] | Open to people 14 and older[177] | 12[178] | |
LinkExpats | Social networking website for expatriates. 100+ countries. | Open, global | 800,451[179] | ||
Listography | Lists. Autobiography | Open | 92,525[180] | ||
LiveJournal | Blogging. Popular in Russia and among the Russian-speaking diaspora abroad. | 15 April 1999 | 17,564,977[181] | Open (OpenID) | 115[182] |
Livemocha | Online language learning | 5,000,000[183] | Open | 4,100[184] | |
Makeoutclub | General | 9 August 1999 | Open | 756,300[185] | |
MEETin | General | Open | 318,979[186] | ||
Meetup (website) | General. Used to plan offline meetings for people interested in various activities | Open to people 18 and older | 481[187] | ||
Meettheboss | Business and finance community, worldwide. | Open | 315,513[188] | ||
MillatFacebook | General, created in response to Facebook [189] | May 2010 | 461,200[190] | Open | 236,663[191] |
Minds | Free, open source, decentralized, and based on a foundation of transparency and privacy | June 2015[192] | 1,000,000[193] | Open | 11,191[194] |
mixi | Japan | 25 October 2000 | 24,323,160[195] | Open | 232[196] |
MocoSpace | Mobile community, worldwide | 2005 | 3,000,000[197] | Open to people 14 and older | 9,882[198] |
MOG | Music | Open to people 14 and older | 13,955[199] | ||
MouthShut.com | Social network, social media, consumer reviews | Open | 3,340[200] | ||
Mubi | Auteur cinema | 200,000 | Open | 18,225[201] | |
MyHeritage | Family-oriented social network service | 30,000,000 [202] | Open | 3,756[203] | |
My Opera | Blogging, mobile blogging, photo sharing, connecting with friends, Opera Link and Opera Unite. Global | 7,300,000[204] | Closed | NA[n 3] | |
Myspace | General | August 2003 | 30,000,000+[205][failed verification][206] | Open to ages 13 and older. | 3,239[207] |
Nasza-klasa.pl | School, college and friends. Popular in Poland | 11,000,000[208] | Open | 75,145[209] | |
Netlog | General. Popular in Europe, Turkey, the Arab world and Canada's Québec province. Formerly known as Facebox and Redbox.[210] | 95,000,000[211] | Open to people 13 and older | 545[212] | |
Nexopia | Canada | 1,400,000[213] | Open to people 13 and older [214] | 25,241[215] | |
Ning | Users create their own social websites and social networks | 2005 (Networks 2007) | Open to people 13 and older | 378[216] | |
Odnoklassniki | Connect with old classmates. Popular in Russia and former Soviet republics | 45,000,000[217] | Open | 65[218] | |
Open Diary | First online blogging community, founded in 1998 | 1998 | 5,000,000[219] | Open to people 13 and older | 28,134[220] |
Orkut | General. Owned by Google Inc. Popular in India and Brazil.[221] | 22 January 2004 | 100,000,000[222] | Closed | 319[223] |
OUTeverywhere | Gay/LGBTQ community | Open | 445,440[224] | ||
PatientsLikeMe | Online community for patients with life-changing illnesses to find other patients like them, share their data with others, and learn more about their condition to improve their outcome. | 2006 | 109,587[225] | Open to people 13 years and up | 69,514[226] |
Partyflock | Dutch virtual community for people interested in house music and other electronic dance music. | 10 November 2001 | 321,125 | Open to people 18 years and up | 16,828[227] |
Pingsta | Collaborative platform for the world's internetwork experts | Invite-only, only Internet experts | 2,533,640[228] | ||
Online pinboard for organizing and sharing things you love | 2011 | Open | 38[229] | ||
Plaxo | Aggregator | 50,000,000[230] | Open | 5,310[231] | |
Playfire | Computer and video games | Open to people 13 and older | 38,259[232] | ||
Playlist.com | General, music | Open to people over 13 | 8,026[233] | ||
Plurk | Micro-blogging, RSS, updates. Very popular in Taiwan | Open | 1,991[234] | ||
Poolwo | Social networking site from India | 7 January 2014 | 12,350[235] | Open | 764,227[236] |
Qapacity | A business-oriented social networking site and a business directory | Closed | 20,640[237] | ||
Quechup | General, friendship, dating | 2007 | Open to those over 16 | 82,914[238] | |
Quora | Questions and answers | 2009 | Open | Template:Nta[239] | |
Qzone | General. In Simplified Chinese; caters for mainland China users | 480,000,000[240][241] | Open to the general public | NA[n 3] | |
Raptr | Video games | Open | 25,664[242] | ||
Ravelry | Knitting and crochet | 3,000,000[243] | Open | 2,334[244] | |
Renren | Significant site in China. Was known as 校内 (Xiaonei) until August 2009. | 160,000,000[245] | Open | 95[246] | |
ReverbNation.com | Social network for musician and bands | 500,000[247] | Open to people 16 and older | 1,806[248] | |
Rooster Teeth | Social network and community site | 4 October 2004[249] | 2,581,527[250] | Open to people 13 and older | 5,336[251] |
Ryze | Business | 500,000[252] | Closed | 71,324[253] | |
ScienceStage | Science-oriented multimedia platform and network for scientists | Open | 61,668[254] | ||
ShareTheMusic | Music community. Sharing and listening to music free and legally | Open | 612,429[255] | ||
Shelfari | Books | 11 October 2006 | Open | 18,152[256] | |
Sina Weibo | Social microblogging site in mainland China. | 14 August 2009 | 300,000,000[257] | Open | 28[258] |
Skoob | Collaborative social network for Brazilian readers | 2009 | 420,000[259] | Open | 28,449[260] |
Skyrock | Social network in French-speaking world | 22,000,000[261] | Open | 710[262] | |
Smartican | Open social networking portal | 31 January 2013 | 260,000[263] | Open | 26,458[264] |
SocialVibe | Social network for charity | 435,000[citation needed] | Open | 101,364[265] | |
Sonico.com | General. Popular in Latin America and Spanish and Portuguese speaking regions. | 50,000,000[266][267] | Open to people 13 and older | 2,676[268] | |
SoundCloud | Repository of original music pieces and networking. | 10,000,000[269] | Open | 299[270] | |
Spaces | Russian social network targeted to mobile phone users | Open | 9,953[271] | ||
Spot.IM | A service for webmasters to add social networking functionality to their websites | 2012 | 250,000[272] | Open | 68,016[273] |
Spring.me | Social network for meeting people | September 2013 | Open to people 13 and older | 4,967[274] | |
Stage 32 | US-based social network and educational site for creative professionals in film, television and theater | February 2012 | 175,000[citation needed] | 35,382[275] | |
Stickam | Live video streaming and chat. | 9,000,000[276] | Closed | 9,201[277] | |
Streetlife | UK based. Links members according to where they live | 21 March 2011 | 1,000,000[278] | Open | 18,757 [279] |
StudiVZ | University students, mostly in the German-speaking countries. School students and those out of education sign up via its partner sites schülerVZ and meinVZ. | 17,000,000[280] | Open | 7,080[281] | |
Students Circle Network | A social network connecting students, teachers and institutions to course resources, study groups and learning spaces. | December 2010 | Open | 345,110[282] | |
StumbleUpon | Stumble through websites that match users' selected interests | 20,000,000[283] | Open | 146[284] | |
Tagged | General. | October 2004 | 100,000,000[285] | Open | 288[286] |
Talkbiznow | Business networking | Open | 136,346[287] | ||
Taltopia | Online artistic community | Open | 281,501[288] | ||
Taringa! | General (primarily Argentina) | 11,000,000[289] | Open to people 13 and older | 214[290] | |
TeachStreet | Education / learning / teaching - more than 400 subjects | Open | 422,704[291] | ||
TermWiki | Learning / languages / translation - 1.2 million terms in more than 1300 subjects | May 2010 | Open | 22,997[292] | |
The Sphere | A private online social luxury network with exclusive personalized services | December 2008 | 1,300[293] | Invite-only | 1,115,305[294] |
TravBuddy.com | Travel | 2005 | 1,588,000[295] | Open to people 18 and older | 21,523[296] |
Travellerspoint | Travel | 2002 | 310,000[297] | Open | 15,275[298] |
Tsu | General | 2008 | Open | 5,230[299] | |
tribe.net | General | Open | 8,081[300] | ||
Trombi.com | French subsidiary of Classmates.com | 4,400,000[301] | 16,227[302] | ||
Tuenti | Spanish-based university and high school social network. | 12,000,000[303] | Open | 16,484[304] | |
Tumblr | Microblogging platform and social networking website. | February 2007 | 226,950,000[305] | Open | 41[306] |
General. Micro-blogging, RSS, updates | 15 July 2006 | 645,750,000[307] | Open to all ages [308] | 8[309] | |
Tylted | Mobile social game network[310] | 2007 | 3,000,000[311] | Open to people 14 and older | 737,508[312] |
Untappd | Beer check-in social network.[313] | October 2010 | 3,200,000 | Open | 15,509Untappd.com Site Info. Alexa. Retrieved 10 August 2017.</ref> |
Uplike | General | 2011 | 1,050,039[314] | Open | 288[315] |
VK | General, including music upload, listening and search. Popular in Russia and former Soviet republics. | September 2006 | 249,409,900[316] | Open | 38[317] |
Vampirefreaks.com | Gothic and industrial subculture | 1999 | 1,931,049[318] | Open to users 13 and over | 21,052[319] |
Viadeo | Global social networking and campus networking available in English, French, German, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese | 35,000,000[320] | Open | 435[321] | |
Virb | Social network that focuses heavily on artists, including musicians and photographers | 2007 | Open | 33,371[322] | |
Vox | Blogging | Open | 56,558[323] | ||
Wattpad | For readers and authors to interact and e-book sharing | Open | 7,036[324] | ||
WAYN | Travel and lifestyle | May 2003 | 10,000,000[325] | Open to people 18 and older | 1,367[326] |
WeeWorld | Teenagers - 9 to 17 | 30,000,000[327] | Open to ages 10 and older. | 18,317[328] | |
We Heart It | Image-based social network focused on inspiration, expression and creativity | 2008 | 20,000,000[329] | Open | 899[330] |
Wellwer | Community without borders, where sharing is everything. | September 2011 | Open to people 13 years and older | 370,755[331] | |
Wepolls.com | Social polling network | Open | 1,204,376[332] | ||
Wer-kennt-wen | General | General | 2,147[333] | ||
weRead | Books | June 2007 | 4,000,000[citation needed] | Open | 305,720[334] |
Wooxie | Blogging and micro-blogging | Open | 111,538[335] | ||
WriteAPrisoner.com | Site networking inmates, friends, family | September 2000 | 66,000[336] | Open to people 18 years and older | 228,915[337] |
Xanga | Blogs and "metro" areas | 1998 | 27,000,000[338] | Open | 3,943[339] |
Business (primarily Europe (Germany, Austria, Switzerland)) | 11,100,000[340] | Open | 270[341] | ||
Xt3 | Catholic social networking, created for World Youth Day 2008 | Open | 712,292[342] | ||
Yammer | Social networking for office colleagues | 2008 | Must have company email | 3,622[343] | |
Yelp, Inc. | Local business review and talk | Open | 186[344] | ||
Yookos | General: photos, videos, blogs, games. | Open | 53,498[345] | ||
Zoo.gr | Greek web meeting point | 2004 | 890,000[346] | Open | 34,577[347] |