British kids are showing more interest in TikTok than YouTube at a younger age, according to a new Childwise report on media use and activities. 

The UK research agency interviewed 2802 kids and teens between ages five and 18 during September and November 2022, finding that the top choice of app/website for kids ages seven to 18 is TikTok. Twenty-three percent of respondents said they preferred the social network, with YouTube a close second at 21%. Snapchat (11%), Roblox (10%), Instagram (4%) and Netflix (3%) rounded out the list.

The findings show that TikTok use appears to be aging down. Although a fall 2022 KidsKnowBest report found that kids were switching from YouTube to TikTok at around age 10, the new data from Childwise indicate that age is dropping as the app continues to gain traction. 

Girls (32%) show more interest in the social network than boys (15%), and both demos interest continues to increase with age. One in three 13- to 14-year-olds and 17- to 18-year-olds said TikTok is their top app/website of choice. 

The generally shorter length of content and automatic style of recommendations are more appealing on TikTok, says Childwise research director, Simon Leggett. “YouTube is great for more in-depth videos, but young people often don’t have the time for that, and scrolling the sidebar for recommendations [on Youtube] is a step more than is required via TikTok,” he says.

TikTok usage also increased in 2022 compared to 2021, according to the report. Three out of five kids ages seven to 18 (62%) use it, which is a 31% increase.

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