As always, the source Inside Facebook has an in-depth look at some Facebook demographics that matter. In this case, a look at some international statistics in the 15 largest countries represented on Facebook. I only have information on four of the markets - you have to be a member of Inside Facebook Gold to get the full report. Let's see what we've got for now.
U.S. Statstics
The U.S. market has been widely documented, with slightly more female than male users (57.5%), and a healthy population of users over the age of 25. But as Facebook approaches 500 million users, approximately 70% of them are from countries outside of the United States.
We know the U.S. members are continuing to grow: 4.4 million were added in April, and another 7.8 million joined in May, bringing the U.S. total past 125 million.
United Kingdom
Let's hop over to the U.K. where, thankfully, we don't need to bring a translator (although George Bernard Shaw once said that we are "Two nations separated by a common language."). The female/male split is more of an even match, with women taking the lead at 51.1%.
But where we really see a difference is in the percentage of individuals in the 18-25 and 26-34 range - clearly this is the core market for the U.K. And with 43.5% of their users under the age of 25 (compared to the U.S.'s 39%), it's a slightly younger crowd.
Indonesia
Would it surprise you to learn that Indonesia is currently Facebook's third largest country? It shouldn't, as it's the world's fourth most populous country. It also shouldn't surprise you that the country with the largest Muslim population also has a larger male presence on Facebook: 59.2% male vs. 40.8% female.
Another huge difference: a vastly younger population. Users under 25 years of age make up 72.5% of Facebook's Indonesian population. Users over 35 only account for 8.9% of the total userbase.
Turkey
We've got a similar makeup in Turkey: more male than female - only even more so. Men comprise 64.4% of Turkish Facebook users. And they're fairly young, too: 56.5% of male users are under 25 and 63.7% of women are under 25. However, there's a healthy chunk remaining across both sexes in the 26-34 and 35-44 age range as well.
France
Not too surprisingly, when we get to France, we return to data that are more reminiscent of what we saw in the U.S. & U.K. A fairly even split of male and female users, but with just about 50% of users under 25 years of age. The over-35 crowd stands at about 25.7%, which still has a ways to go to equal the U.S.'s 38.2%.
Additional facts
Overall, Facebook's youngest country by demographics is Indonesia, which is also its third largest. It may be a while before we see a leveling out of the age of Indonesian users, but it bears following. Largest userbase over 35, in descending order: United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Spain.
What this all means is that you should check your facts and the most up to date information on whatever platform you choose to participate on in the social media space, because it's dangerous to assume that a U.S.-centric approach will work around the globe.
Image credit: chicks57 (Flickr)