https://www.thetimes.com/uk/social-...rise-female-popularity-social-media-lnttpxxzt/https://archive.is/Y7XjB
More than half of Reddit’s 30 million UK users are women
Reddit, once described by sceptics as “a gathering place for incels”, may not be where you would expect to find women discussing investments and business insights.
However, the platform has shed its reputation and become the fastest-growing social platform for women in the UK.
Communities dedicated to women’s health including endometriosis, personal finance — Henrys (high earners, not rich yet) and Fire (financial independence, retire early) — and television shows such as Bridgerton and The Traitors, have amassed thousands of followers in the past year.
Nicole Heard, Reddit’s regional lead for the UK, Nordics, Netherlands, Canada and Australia, said that millions of women saw the website as a “vital collective handbook for navigating day-to-day life”.
For many new adopters, the appeal lies in its lack of glossy aesthetics and influencer-driven algorithms. Grace Firmin-Guion, 31, a communications manager, found invaluable travel advice while planning an eight-month global trip.
“People use it to share their real experiences as opposed to just the highlights, which you might get on Instagram or TikTok,” she said.
“I do still use Instagram, but less now I’m on Reddit and am trying not to be on my phone so much,” she said. “My relationship with Reddit is a bit more intentional because I’m going on it to look for a specific thing or answer. Instagram is more about mindless scrolling.”
Steve Huffman, Reddit’s chief executive, rings the bell at the New York Stock Exchange in March 2024
More than 116 million people used the site globally last year. Half of its 30 million UK users were women, with more than one third Generation Z.
It is now the fourth-highest-reaching social platform in the country, ahead of TikTok, Snapchat, and Pinterest, according to the media regulator Ofcom.
Reddit is a vast digital bulletin board divided into thousands of topic-specific communities called “subreddits”, covering everything from global news to niche hobbies.
Users democratically vote on posts, acting as collective editors to determine which content rises to the top and gains the most visibility.
Forty-five per cent of women on Reddit in the UK have children, fuelling a boom in communities dedicated to pregnancy and parenting.
Heard attributed the surge in female users to widespread digital fatigue. “Women in the UK are increasingly turning to Reddit, exhausted by online spaces that are overwhelmingly polished,” she said, adding that she saw a “need for genuine, human perspectives”.
She added that it offered an opportunity to share and ask for advice in an anonymous space, allowing women to discuss vulnerable experiences and frustrations without being judged.
“They can disclose things they might not even feel comfortable talking about with family and friends,” she said.
The migration to Reddit has been accelerated by the deteriorating experience fans report on other social platforms, most notably X.
One 35-year-old female GP, who wanted to remain anonymous, increased her Reddit usage significantly over the past two years, after removing herself from “increasing toxic” platforms.
“I used to be on Twitter, but after the Elon Musk takeover, I found it increasingly toxic,” she said. “As a black woman, it was difficult to avoid racist and sexist content that was allowed to proliferate unchecked.”
She found Reddit offered a sanctuary during “late-night, anxious motherhood spirals” where she could browse breastfeeding tips and product reviews.
“I like Reddit because I can avoid content that I find upsetting or useless a lot more easily,” she said. “It’s a lot easier to congregate online around likeminded people while still being able to seek out more diversity of thought if I’m in the mood for it. It reminds me of old-school internet chat rooms.”
The anonymity that once shielded internet trolls is also being embraced by some women for professional and personal gain.
Marianne Olaleye uses Reddit for her business
Marianne Olaleye, 31, founder of the marketing agency Jaiku, originally dismissed Reddit as a gathering place for incels.
The term incel, a portmanteau of involuntary celibate, is defined by the government as a “community of men who forge a sense of identity around their perceived inability to form sexual or romantic relationships”.
However, Olaleye now uses the platform as a primary resource for business growth. She said she found fellow users prepared to share information anonymously about strategies or statistics while eliminating the “personal branding” noise on LinkedIn.
“It’s really hard to get actual tangible advice on the internet these days,” Olaleye said.
“As a woman agency owner, Reddit gives me access to rooms that I might not naturally be invited into. Reddit has helped to make the agency world, which can be a bit of an old boys’ club, more accessible.”
How did Reddit go from ‘incel hotspot’ to women’s ‘guide to life’?
Social media platform receives a user-led rebrand as women turn to the once male-dominated site in search of advice from investments to parentingMore than half of Reddit’s 30 million UK users are women
Reddit, once described by sceptics as “a gathering place for incels”, may not be where you would expect to find women discussing investments and business insights.
However, the platform has shed its reputation and become the fastest-growing social platform for women in the UK.
Communities dedicated to women’s health including endometriosis, personal finance — Henrys (high earners, not rich yet) and Fire (financial independence, retire early) — and television shows such as Bridgerton and The Traitors, have amassed thousands of followers in the past year.
Nicole Heard, Reddit’s regional lead for the UK, Nordics, Netherlands, Canada and Australia, said that millions of women saw the website as a “vital collective handbook for navigating day-to-day life”.
For many new adopters, the appeal lies in its lack of glossy aesthetics and influencer-driven algorithms. Grace Firmin-Guion, 31, a communications manager, found invaluable travel advice while planning an eight-month global trip.
“People use it to share their real experiences as opposed to just the highlights, which you might get on Instagram or TikTok,” she said.
“I do still use Instagram, but less now I’m on Reddit and am trying not to be on my phone so much,” she said. “My relationship with Reddit is a bit more intentional because I’m going on it to look for a specific thing or answer. Instagram is more about mindless scrolling.”
Steve Huffman, Reddit’s chief executive, rings the bell at the New York Stock Exchange in March 2024
More than 116 million people used the site globally last year. Half of its 30 million UK users were women, with more than one third Generation Z.
It is now the fourth-highest-reaching social platform in the country, ahead of TikTok, Snapchat, and Pinterest, according to the media regulator Ofcom.
Reddit is a vast digital bulletin board divided into thousands of topic-specific communities called “subreddits”, covering everything from global news to niche hobbies.
Users democratically vote on posts, acting as collective editors to determine which content rises to the top and gains the most visibility.
Forty-five per cent of women on Reddit in the UK have children, fuelling a boom in communities dedicated to pregnancy and parenting.
Heard attributed the surge in female users to widespread digital fatigue. “Women in the UK are increasingly turning to Reddit, exhausted by online spaces that are overwhelmingly polished,” she said, adding that she saw a “need for genuine, human perspectives”.
She added that it offered an opportunity to share and ask for advice in an anonymous space, allowing women to discuss vulnerable experiences and frustrations without being judged.
“They can disclose things they might not even feel comfortable talking about with family and friends,” she said.
The migration to Reddit has been accelerated by the deteriorating experience fans report on other social platforms, most notably X.
One 35-year-old female GP, who wanted to remain anonymous, increased her Reddit usage significantly over the past two years, after removing herself from “increasing toxic” platforms.
“I used to be on Twitter, but after the Elon Musk takeover, I found it increasingly toxic,” she said. “As a black woman, it was difficult to avoid racist and sexist content that was allowed to proliferate unchecked.”
She found Reddit offered a sanctuary during “late-night, anxious motherhood spirals” where she could browse breastfeeding tips and product reviews.
“I like Reddit because I can avoid content that I find upsetting or useless a lot more easily,” she said. “It’s a lot easier to congregate online around likeminded people while still being able to seek out more diversity of thought if I’m in the mood for it. It reminds me of old-school internet chat rooms.”
The anonymity that once shielded internet trolls is also being embraced by some women for professional and personal gain.
Marianne Olaleye uses Reddit for her business
Marianne Olaleye, 31, founder of the marketing agency Jaiku, originally dismissed Reddit as a gathering place for incels.
The term incel, a portmanteau of involuntary celibate, is defined by the government as a “community of men who forge a sense of identity around their perceived inability to form sexual or romantic relationships”.
However, Olaleye now uses the platform as a primary resource for business growth. She said she found fellow users prepared to share information anonymously about strategies or statistics while eliminating the “personal branding” noise on LinkedIn.
“It’s really hard to get actual tangible advice on the internet these days,” Olaleye said.
“As a woman agency owner, Reddit gives me access to rooms that I might not naturally be invited into. Reddit has helped to make the agency world, which can be a bit of an old boys’ club, more accessible.”
