Web Content, Search Portals and Social Media Market Report 2026

The web content, search portals and social media market size has grown rapidly in recent years. It will grow from $768.29 billion in 2025 to $867.3 billion in 2026 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.9%. The growth in the historic period can be attributed to growth of internet penetration, rise of social networking platforms, expansion of mobile devices, increase in digital advertising spend, adoption of search engine marketing.

The web content, search portals and social media market size is expected to see rapid growth in the next few years. It will grow to $1.43 trillion in 2030 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.4%. The growth in the forecast period can be attributed to advancement in ai-driven content discovery, rising demand for personalized digital experiences, growth of cloud-based content platforms, increasing importance of data-driven marketing, expansion of video and audio streaming consumption. Major trends in the forecast period include creator economy monetization models, short-form and snackable content growth, platform algorithm transparency demands, voice and visual search optimization, community-driven content moderation.

The increasing adoption of smartphones, tablets, and other internet-enabled electronic devices is expected to drive the growth of the web content, search portals, and social media market in the coming years. Mobile and electronic device penetration refers to the rising use of internet-accessible devices that allow users to access digital content, navigate online platforms, and participate on social media. This growth in device adoption is fueled by technological innovations, enhanced network connectivity, and higher data consumption among users. Web content, search portals, SEO services, and social media platforms benefit from this trend through increased user traffic, higher content consumption, and greater demand for digital marketing and online engagement services. For example, in January 2025, Priori Data, a Germany-based market intelligence platform, reported that smartphone adoption in the United States rose from approximately 311 million users in 2023 to around 316 million users in 2024. Consequently, the growing penetration of mobile and electronic devices is propelling the expansion of the web content, search portals, and social media market.

The increasing adoption of digital advertising is anticipated to drive the expansion of the web content, search portals, and social media market in the coming years. Digital advertising involves promoting products, services, or brands through online channels to effectively reach and engage target audiences. The growth of digital advertising is fueled by rising online consumer activity, the demand for targeted marketing, and the capability to track campaign performance in real time. Web content platforms, search portals, SEO services, and social media facilitate digital advertising by enhancing website visibility, attracting and retaining users, generating targeted traffic, and boosting brand awareness, credibility, and authority. For example, in January 2024, A Medium Corporation, a US-based online publishing platform, reported that digital advertising spending reached a record $271.2 billion in 2023. Consequently, the rising adoption of digital advertising is contributing to the growth of the web content, search portals, SEO services, and social media market.

Major companies operating in the web content, search portals, and social media market are emphasizing strategic collaborations, such as Baidu Inc.'s alliance with Quhuo Limited, to better serve their existing consumers. The partnership between Baidu Inc. and Quhuo Limited seeks to leverage Baidu's newly launched artificial intelligence-powered ERNIE Bot, a next-generation, large-scale pre-training language model, to support diverse business scenarios. For example, in April 2023, Quhuo Limited, a China-based blue-chip on-demand consumer service company with technologically advanced, end-to-end operational solutions, announced a collaboration with Baidu Inc. to gain access to ERNIE Bot, the recently introduced large language model (LLM). Quhuo will soon have complete access to ERNIE Bot's extensive capabilities, which can interpret human languages and generate accurate, logical, and articulate responses comparable to human communication. This strategic partnership reflects Quhuo's commitment to employing innovative artificial intelligence (AI) to facilitate a wide range of business operations, including front, middle, and back-office functions, while continuing to advance its existing technological solutions. Baidu Inc. is a China-based technology company specializing in Internet-related products and services and artificial intelligence.

Major companies operating in the web content, search portals and social media market are Google LLC, Facebook Inc., Tencent Holdings Limited, Baidu Inc., Netflix Inc., Twitter Inc., LinkedIn Corporation, Reddit Inc., Pinterest Inc., Snap Inc., TikTok Inc., YouTube LLC, Instagram LLC, WhatsApp Inc., Tencent Holdings Limited, LINE Corporation, Viber Media S.à r.l., Telegram Messenger LLP, Tumblr Inc., Flickr Inc., Vimeo LLC, SoundCloud Limited, Spotify AB, Pandora Media LLC, iHeartMedia Inc., Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc., Tidal Music AS, Deezer SA, Shazam Entertainment Limited.

Asia-Pacific was the largest region in the web content, search portals, and social media market in 2025. Middle East is expected to be the fastest growing region in the forecast period. The regions covered in the web content, search portals and social media market report are Asia-Pacific, South East Asia, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East, Africa. The countries covered in the web content, search portals and social media market report are China, India, Japan, Australia, Indonesia, South Korea, Bangladesh, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Hong Kong, Taiwan, New Zealand, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Ukraine, USA, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Peru, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Iran, Turkey, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa.

The web content, search portals and social media market includes revenues earned by entities by offering services such as enabling customers to interact, creating and sharing content and information including pictures, video and audio files. This market includes revenues from sales from advertisement and other services offered on social media platforms. The market value includes the value of related goods sold by the service provider or included within the service offering. Only goods and services traded between entities or sold to end consumers are included.

The market value is defined as the revenues that enterprises gain from the sale of goods and/or services within the specified market and geography through sales, grants, or donations in terms of the currency (in USD unless otherwise specified).

The revenues for a specified geography are consumption values that are revenues generated by organizations in the specified geography within the market, irrespective of where they are produced. It does not include revenues from resales along the supply chain, either further along the supply chain or as part of other products.

This product will be delivered within 1-3 business days.