How Is Social Media Really Impacting American Spending?

Alexandra Pastore
3 min read

Chime’s latest consumer survey research takes a deep dive into the one shopping channel that most (if not all) consumers interact with on a daily basis: social media. From taking in videos made by content creators on Instagram Reels to clicking “buy now” on TikTok Shop, social media apps are undoubtedly influential on shoppers’ purchase decisions throughout their journey, with some key consumer behaviors falling into place.

Janelle Sallenave, Chime’s chief spending officer, told WWD that as social media is a central part of consumers’ daily lives “it was only natural for [Chime] to dive into how platforms like Instagram and TikTok are shaping shopping behaviors. We wanted to understand how these platforms influence the purchasing decisions of Americans, especially as social shopping continues to grow alongside traditional e-commerce.”

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According to Chime’s survey, which interviewed 2,000 American adults split evenly across generations (500 Gen Z, 500 Millennials, 500 Gen X and 500 Baby Boomers) who shop on social media during September 2024, Americans average three hours per day “window shopping” on social media. And while this browsing does not always lead to buying, for many the likelihood of a purchase is high.

Importantly, the act of “just browsing” likely leads to a purchase, according to 99 percent of Americans in Chime’s survey. Twelve percent of respondents even said that “just browsing” always results in a purchase, while nearly 30 percent said that the behavior often results in a purchase. Breaking down all purchases made on social media, Chime’s data revealed apparel as the most often purchased item on social media (46 percent), followed by fashion accessories (30 percent), tech gadgets (27 percent), beauty products (26 percent), personal care items (25 percent) and home goods (25 percent).

The act of browsing products takes place during the workday for 63 percent of Americans, with peak social media purchases taking place on Saturday. During the day, social media purchases peak at 2:36 p.m. On average, Americans spent $168 on social media purchases in the last six months.

While shopping through social media was occurring across the generations, Sallenave said it’s important to point out that there is still a bit of a shopping divide between them. “Seventeen percent of Gen Z shops for personal care items on Mondays to combat post-weekend blues, while 24 percent of Gen X prefers Sundays for home goods.”

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