"Social networking" has been around forever. It's the simple act of expanding the number of people you know by meeting your
friends' friends, their friends' friends and so on. In fact, many of us today use Twitter and Facebook to promote our existing and
upcoming businesses. And people looking to connect with other business-associated contacts usually move to sites like LinkedIn,
but one need to understand that social media is beyond Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Blogs. After observing and running an
analysis on hundreds of Social Networking sites I have listed down 40 most popular social networks across countries.
1. Facebook: To access Facebook.com, you must create an account on the site which is free. Facebook's terms of use state that
members must be at least 13 years old with valid email ID’s. After updating you're details, your Facebook profile is generated.
Using Facebook.com you can:
o
o
o
o
Browse and join networks, which are organized into four categories: regions, colleges, workplaces and high schools.
Pull contacts from a Web-based e-mail account, into Facebook.com.
Find friends in several ways, including search engine to look for a specific person and lot more.
Facebook has recently crossed 500 million users and is the most popular Social Networking site of the world.
2. MySpace: On MySpace, your social network starts growing from the first day. When you join MySpace, the first step is to create a
profile. You then, invite friends to join there and search for your friends on already profiled on MySpace these friends become your
initial Friend Space. Once the friendship is confirmed all the people in your friends' Friend Space become part of your network. In
that sense, everyone on MySpace is in your Extended Network. As part of terms of MySpace, the user must be at least 14 years old
to register.
3. Twitter: Twitter is a very simple service that is rapidly becoming one of the most talked-about social networking service
providers. When you have a Twitter account, you can use the service to post and receive messages to a network of contacts, as
opposed to send bulk email messages. You can build your network of contacts, and invite others to receive your Tweets, and can
follow other members' posts. Twitter makes it easy to opt into or out of networks. Additionally, you can choose to stop following a
specific person’s feed.
4. LinkedIn: LinkedIn is an online social network for business professionals, which is designed specifically for professional
networking, to help them find a job, discover sales leads, connect with potential business partners. Unlike most of the other social
networks, LinkedIn does not focus on making friends or sharing media like photos, videos and music. To start using LinkedIn you
need to register and create a profile page. To register to LinkedIn, you need to provide personal information. You can update the
profile with your education and job details and a summary. Additionally, you can also give and receive recommendations from coworkers and bosses. There are more than 75 million professionals registered on LinkedIn.
5. Bebo: In the United Kingdom, Bebo is the second best social network. Bebo allows users to create social networking profiles for
free. It offers many of the same features as other social networking sites. You can register a free account with Bebo and upload
photos, videos and information. The site lets you connect with old friends and make new ones using a unique user interface. The
site boasts users from more than a dozen countries, including the United States, Australia, Canada, Poland, France and Germany.
6. Friendster: Friendster was one of the first Web sites to bring it into mass culture. It was designed as a place to connect with
friends, family, colleagues and new friends over the Internet. However, it went beyond just a one-way communication. Using
Friendster, you can connect with friends and family, meet new people through the connections you already have, find people with
similar interests, backgrounds or geographical locations, join groups by activity, school or interest, interact through message posts,
games, blogs and application sharing, and share your details with the Internet community.
7. Hi5: Hi5 shares many similarities with many social network sites; however, it introduces some twists that make it worthwhile for
people who love trying out new and interesting online communities. However, it is not one of the popular sites in the United States.
This was a strategic move from the founder, therefore, Hi5 claims around 60 million members from more than 200 countries other
than the US. One of the site's biggest transformations is the addition of many entertainment options, including games.
8. Habbo: The Habbo online community is inhabited by pixelated, cartoon-character alter egos. You can meet others in public
rooms (nightclubs, restaurants, shops) and create private rooms for selected friends. Habbo employees heavily moderate the site,
catering to its solid teen user base. Most of the users of Habbo are between the age group of 13 – 18 years. Although, a major part
of the users are from the U.S., Habbo social networks is very popular in places like the United Kingdom, Japan, Sweden, Spain, Italy,
Finland and more.
9. NING: Ning is the leading online platform for the world's organizers, activists and influencers to create social experiences that
inspire action. It helps you create a safe and secure place online for like-minded people. Ning takes the idea of groups to a whole
new level. The ability to create your own community makes Ning a great home away from home for organizations and groups
looking to fill the social void.
10. Classmates: Classmates.com is different from most social networks, in the sense that most of its features are available to
premium member. The price for premium members depends on the length of the agreement – shorter term results in a higher cost
per month. Classmates.com is primarily used to reconnect with old classmates. The site features a search engine that lets you view
other people who went to the same school you attended. Creating a basic Classmates.com profile is free and easy. However, most
of the advanced features in Classmates.com are only available to paid users.
11. Tagged: Tagged is a blend of social networking features that MySpace and Facebook users will find very familiar. Tagged was
designed to help users meet lots of new people with similar interests in a short amount of time. You can access and register
directly or be invited by a friend to join Tagged. This is a free social network that allows you to view your friends’ newly uploaded
Tagged photo album. Tagged encourages its users to meet strangers based on shared interests, with the idea of growing your
network to meet as many people as possible.
12. myYearbook: myYearbook, the best place to meet new people and one of the 25 most-trafficked sites in the United States.
myYearbook has Flash-based games, and the games incorporate Lunch Money (the myYearbook virtual currency). It includes a
virtual economy through which people can purchase of gifts which members send to each other. Lunch Money is also donated by
members to their favourite charity. In 2010, myYearbook donated money to the Haiti Relief Fund to help victims of the earthquake
in Haiti.
13. Meetup: Meetup is an online social networking portal that facilitates offline group meetings in various localities around the
world. It makes it easy for anyone to organize a local group or find one of the thousands already meeting up face-to-face. More
than 2,000 groups get together in local communities each day, each one with the goal of improving themselves or their
communities.
14. MyLife: MyLife (formerly Reunion.com) is a social network service. MyLife can search over 60 social-networking sites and other
information resources on the Web. MyLife searches the web to deliver accurate and timely results. Even in cases when you don't
immediately find who you're looking for, MyLife continues searching and provides updates and alerts. MyLife suggests friends and
contacts you may know based on your profile information and existing contacts. It also intimates you when someone else is looking
for you. MyLife gives you a global view into the most popular sites your friends are part of, including LinkedIn, Facebook and
MySpace as well as 50 other sites.
15. Flixster: Flixster is a social networking site for movie fans. Users can create their own profiles, invite friends, rate movies and
actors, and post movie reviews as well. From the site, people can also get information about movies, read user-generated movie
reviews and ratings, converse with other users, get movie show times, view popular celebrity photos, read the latest movie news,
and view video clips from popular movies and TV shows. Flixster.com also operates leading movie applications on Facebook,
MySpace, iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry.
16. myHeritage: MyHeritage is a family-oriented social network service and genealogy website. It allows members to create their
own family websites, share pictures and videos, organize family events, create family trees, and search for ancestors. There are
more than 15 million family trees and 91 million photos on the site, and the site is accessible in over 35 languages.
17. Multiply: Multiply is a vibrant social shopping destination, but faster and more convenient, where sellers and buyers interact. A
user's network is made up of their direct contacts, as well as others who are closely connected to them through their first-degree
relationships. Users are also encouraged to specify the nature of their relationship with one another, making it possible to share
content based on relationship. Many shoppers in the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam have made
the Multiply Marketplace a favourite shopping destination.
18. Orkut: Orkut is a free social networking website where you can create a profile, connect with friends, maintain an online
scrapbook and use site features and applications to share your interests and meet others. The prerequisite for logging on to Orkut
is that the user must be over 18 years old. Currently, Orkut is the most popular in Brazil. The number of orkut users in India is
almost equivalent to those in its original home in the United States.
19. Badoo: Badoo is a multi-lingual social networking website. It is gaining popularity in emerging markets like Russia and Brazil.
The site allows users to create profiles, send each other messages, and rate each other’s profile pictures at no cost. However,
features that are designed to make user profile more visible to other users are provided at a cost. Badoo includes geographic
proximity feature that identifies users’ locations based on analysis of their network connection. This lets users know if there are
people near their current location who may wish to meet.
20. Gaia Online: Gaia Online is a mix of social networking and massive multiplayer online role-playing games. It is a leading online
hangout for teens and young adults, and offers a wide range of features from discussion forums and virtual towns to fully
customizable profiles and avatars. It provides a fun, social environment that inspires creativity and helps people make meaningful
connections around shared interests such as gaming, arts and anime.
21. BlackPlanet: Initially, BlackPlanet was designed as a way for African-American professionals to network. Since then, it's grown
and evolved as a site operating under the principles of Web 2.0. Members can read other members' blogs, watch music videos,
chat with one another, look for new careers and discuss news. Though BlackPlanet is not restricted to any community, this site is
more popular amongst African-American. This site helped Obama to connect to nearly 200,000 potential supporters.
22. SkyRock: SkyRock.com is a social networking site that offers its members free web space where they can create a blog, add a
profile, and exchange messages with other registered members. The site also offers a specific space for members who create blogs
showcasing their original musical compositions. SkyRock is very popular in France and French speaking markets including
Switzerland and Belgium. The site is also available in English, German, Dutch and Spanish. It’s very popular in the European Union.
23. PerfSpot: PerfSpot provides a web portal for people of any age, gender, or background to share their interests and favourite
things on the web. PerfSpot currently publishes its site in 37 different languages, with comprehensive moderator team based in the
U.S. and the Philippines that screens through up to a million pictures on a daily basis.
24. Zorpia: Zorpia.com is a social network that has a large international community. Zorpia’s features include profile customization,
networking features and an incredibly detailed search. Zorpia has an impressive music section featuring popular artists like Ashlee
Simpson, Vanessa Hudgens, Alanis Morissette and more. You can purchase a Royal Membership for extra networking options such
as an ad–free profile, extra profile design features and unlimited messaging.
25. Netlog: Netlog (formerly known as Facebox and Bingbox) is a Belgian social networking website specifically targeted at the
European youth demographic. On Netlog, you can create your own web page with a blog, pictures, videos, events and much more
to share with your friends. Netlog is pageview market leader in Belgium, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Romania and Turkey. In the
Netherlands, Germany, France and Portugal, Netlog covers the second place. Pan European, Netlog is the market leader. Netlog is
localized in over 25 languages, to enable users from around the world to access the network.
26. Tuenti: Tuenti is an invitation-only private social networking website. It has been referred to as the "Spanish Facebook”, by
many social network watchers. It is one of the largest social networking sites in Spain. It allows you to set up a profile, upload
photos, link videos and connect and chat with friends. Many other utilities, such as the ability to create events, are also offered.
From 2009, utilizing a simple interface, Tuenti user can change their language to Catalán, Basque, Galician, and English. Tuenti is
also available as an iPhone App.
27. Nasza-Klasa.pl: nasza-klasapl is considered one of the largest and most used social networking sites in Poland. It primarily
brings together school's students and alumni. The site is in polish therefore restricting its popularity only to Poland and polish
speaking people. Nevertheless, it claims to be the most popular networking site in Poland, and therefore, has found its niche in the
competitive social networking space. The site where one might say, new meets old, where the intractability is like Facebook, yet
traditional with old styled forums.
28. IRC-Galleria: IRC Gallery has been one of the most popular social networking sites for over 10 years, in Finland; with over 5.5
lakh registered users, 90% of which use the site regularly. IRC-Galleria is popular within the age group of 18-22. To be able to create
an account with this site, at least one of the uploaded images must be accepted by the administrator. While regular users can
upload only up to 60 visible images, you have the option to upgrade to VIP status that enables you to upload 10,000 visible
images. Using this site, users can communicate with other users, comments on photos, and join over a 100 communities.
29. StudiVZ: StudiVZ is the biggest social networking site in Germany. It is also popular in German-speaking countries like
Switzerland and Austria. This site works as a student directory in particular for college and university students in Europe. The site
allows students to maintain a personal page that containing their personal information like name, age, study subjects, interests,
courses and group memberships (within StudiVZ).
30. Xing: Xing, (formally known as openBC/Open Business Club) is a professional networking tool. It is popular in countries like
Germany, Spain, Portugal, Italy and France. Xing is similar to LinkedIn and claims to have professionals from over 200 countries.
Xing has two features Basic and Premium, depending on weather the user wants to use the site for free or at a cost. It is available
in different languages including English, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, Dutch, Chinese, Finnish, Swedish, Korean,
Japanese, Russian, Polish, Turkish and Hungarian; French and German being the most popularly.
31. Renren: Renren (formerly called Xiaonei Network) is one of the largest social networking sites in China, and caters to people of
Chinese origin. It is very popular amongst college students. Renren also has a WAP version, which users can access through mobile
phones. It features an instant messaging service for its users. Users can use the same username to log in both Renren and Kaixin.
Renren appeals more to Chinese college students who use internet cafes, while Kaixin001 targets Chinese white-collar workers who
have internet access at work.
32. Kaixin001: Kaixin001 is a popular professional networking tool in China. The target audience for Kaixin’s, are typically whitecollar middle class who come from a first tier city. This site in China is extremely popular among people who work for multinational
companies, ad agencies and other white collar companies. Kaixin001 has gained much more popularity since 2009, because social
networking sites, such as Myspace, Facebook, Twitter and Youtube were blocked in China.
33. Hyves.nl: Hyves, pronounced hives (from beehives) is the largest social network in Netherlands, with many Dutch visitors and
members. Hyves Payments and Hyves Games, allows you to play games and pay friends through the social network. Hyves
provides usual amenities of a social networking site, including profiles, blogs, photos, and so on. ‘Hyven’ (Hyving) became a
common word in Dutch, and is gaining popularity across Europe.
34. Millat Facebook: MillatFacebook is a Muslim-oriented social networking website. Originally launched in Pakistan, it has gained
popularity in Arab counties as well. This site came into existence after Facebook was banned in Pakisthan. Millatfacebook offers
video chat, bulletins, blogs, polls, shout box, and customization of profile page. Members can change the page CSS and design it
on their own will.
35. Ibibo: Ibibo stands for iBuild, iBond. It is an Indian social networking site. It is an umbrella site that offers a variety of
applications under its social network. The services offered include games, blogs, photo unlimited storage, mail, messenger, videos,
free SMS service, mail, polls and surveys.
36. Sonico: Sonico is a free-access social networking website focused on the Latin American audience. You can do a to rage of
things in this site including search and add friends, interact with friends over message, update their own personal profile, manage
their privacy, upload photos and videos, organize events, play games with other users. Sonico, more importantly, let’s its members
more control over their profile by giving them three distinct profiles that the user can organize based on the need: a private profile,
a public profile, and a professional profile. This site is popular in Latin America and other Spanish and Portuguese Speaking
Regions.
37. Wer-kennt-wen: Wer-kennt-wen, is one of the most popular social networking website in Germany. It is by an invitation-only
social networking website, and only for people over 14 years old. The site provides the user to write blogs, chat with friends, and
write in their guestbook. It provides users a social community for people, to interact with anybody they want.
38. Cyworld: Cyworld is a South Korean social network service. It has had a big effect on Korea’s Internet culture. Many renowned
Korean socialites and celebrities have accounts where they post upcoming tours and works. Cyword has networks in South Korea,
China, and Vietnam and is gaining popularity across Asia and the Pacific Island. Users have access to a profile page, photos,
drawings and images uploading, an avatar, neighbourhoods, and clubs.
39. Mixi: Mixi is primarily for Japanese. Mixi offers options to meeting new people, send and receive messages, writing in a diary,
read and comment on others' diaries, organize and join communities and invite their friends. The site requires users to own a
Japanese cell phone which bars anyone who is not or has not been a resident of Japan.
40. iWiW: iWiW (abbreviation for International Who is Who) is a Hungarian social networking web service. The site is an invite-only
website, where a user can provide personal information. Users can search for friends using the search tool. iWiW allows users to log
in to external websites using their iWiW credentials. iWiW is also available for iPone and Android.
Name
43 Things
Description/focus
Goal setting and achievement
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
1 January
3,000,000[2] Closed
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
12,914[3]
Name
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
2005
Academia.edu Social networking site for academics/researchers
September
211,000[4]
2008
Open
1,995[5]
About.me
Social networking site
October
2009
5,000,000[6] Open
1,447
Advogato
Free and open source software developers
1999
13,575[7]
Open
292,620[8]
Books
2006
Open
26,939[9]
AsianAvenue A social network for the Asian American community
1997
Open
170,384[10]
aSmallWorld
European jet set and social elite world-wide
March
2004
550,000[11]
Invite-only
580,060[12]
Running, swimming
2001
139,458[13]
Open
69,170[14]
Audimated.co
Independent music
m
2010
Open
656,507[15]
aNobii
Athlinks
Bebo
General
July 2005
117,000,00 Open to people
4,169[17]
0[16]
13 and older
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
Norwegian community
1 June
2005
430,000[18]
Requires
Norwegian
81,916[19]
phone number
Black Americans
1
20,000,000[
September 20]
Open
1999
Anyone who wants to tell something about a stranger or
acquaintance.
2010
Open to people
1,081,215[22]
13 and older.
General
1996
Open
589,595[23]
Language learning community (headquartered in Madrid, Spain)
16 May
2008
Open
4,976[25]
Music and pop-culture
2005
Open
6,955[27]
Mothers
Open to moms
December 1,250,000[2
and moms-to- 1,293[29]
8]
2006
be
Green living and social activism
1998
Name
Biip.no
BlackPlanet
Blauk
Bolt.com
Busuu
Buzznet
CafeMom
Care2
Description/focus
12,000,000[
24]
10,000,000[
26]
9,961,947[3
0]
Open
GlobalAlex
rankin
7,193[21]
1,930[31]
Name
CaringBridge
Description/focus
1995
General. Popular in Iran
2004
ClusterFlunk
American network for students to share files with their peers
2012
CouchSurfing
Worldwide network for making connections between travelers
and the communities they visit.
2003
CozyCot
East Asian and Southeast Asian women
Cross.tv
Crunchyroll
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
50,000,000[ Open to people
3,284[38]
36]
18 and older[37]
Open
749[39]
545,917[40]
2,967,421[4
1]
Open
2,231[42]
2001
150,000[43]
Open
36,959[44]
Faith-based social network for Christian believers from around
the world
2008
450,000[45]
Open
53,394[46]
Anime and forums.
2006
Open
5,721[47]
2012
Open
175,796[48]
1999
24,000,000[ Open
Cucumbertow
Networking for cooks
n
Cyworld
Register
ed user
s
9,500,000[3 Open to people
4,279[35]
3]
18 and older[34]
Not for profit providing free websites that connect family and
friends during a serious health event, care and recovery. [32]
Classmates.co
School, college, work and the military
m
Cloob
Date
launche
d
General. Popular in South Korea.
1,616[50]
Name
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
49]
DailyBooth
Photo-blogging site where users upload a photo every day
13
February
2009
Closed
5,963[51]
DailyStrength
Medical & emotional support community - physical health,
mental health, support groups
4
November
2007
Open
10,511[52]
Social bookmarking allowing users to locate and save websites
that match their own interests
September 8,822,921[5
Open
3]
2003
DeviantArt
Art community
7 August
2000
Diaspora*
Decentralized, privacy aware, general (open source)
November 370,000+[n
Open
1][57]
2010
delicious
didlr
Disaboom
Dol2day
Drawing service
26,000,000[ Open to people
131[56]
55]
13 and older
204,515
People with disabilities (amputees, cerebral palsy, MS, and other
disabilities)
Politic community, social network, Internet radio (German-
436[54]
40,200[61]
36,792[n 2][58]
Open
2,869,116[59]
Open
218,135[60]
Open
385,237[62]
Name
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
speaking countries)
DontStayIn
Clubbing (primarily UK)
Draugiem.lv
General (primarily LV, LT, HU)
2,600,466[6
4]
Chinese Web 2.0 website providing user review and
recommendation services for movies, books, and music.
2005
U.S. Physicians and medical doctors.
2011
DXY.cn
Chinese online community for physicians, health care
professionals, pharmacies and facilities
2000[70]
Elftown
Community and wiki around fantasy and sci-fi.
douban
Doximity
Ello
Elixio
46,850,000[
66]
400,000[68]
2,000,000[7
1]
185,000[73]
General
March
2014[75][76]
Business executives jet set and global elite.
July 2007
80,000[78]
Open
86,535[63]
Invitation only
2,698[65]
Open
106[67]
U.S. physicians
27,539[69]
only
Open
8,367[72]
Open, approval
43,277[74]
needed
Invite only
while in beta
106,782[77]
Invite-only
545,268[79]
Name
Description/focus
English, baby! Students and teachers of English as a second language
Date
launche
d
2000
Register
ed user
s
1,600,000[8
0]
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
Open
29,585[81]
798,086[82]
Epernicus
For research scientists
Open
Eons.com
For baby boomers and mature internet users age 40 and beyond.
Open to people
age 40 years
73,767[83]
and older
Open
1,591[84]
Life experiences
Open
2,658[85]
Exploroo
Travel social networking.
Open
163,545[86]
Facebook
General: photos, videos, blogs, apps.
eToro
Experience
Project
Social investing, finance
Faceparty
General. Popular UK.
Faces.com
Adult social network, mainly UK & USA
May 2007
February
2004
2,500,000
1,280,000,
000[87]
200,000
2011
[89]
Open to people [88]
2
13 and older
Invitation only
to people 18
and older
163,639[90]
Open to people 149,839[91]
18 and older
Name
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
worldwide
People who are into BDSM
January
2008
Open to people
2,701,715[9 "of legal age to
4,131[93]
2]
see adult
content"
FilmAffinity
Movies and TV series
2002
250,000[94]
Filmow
Movies and TV series
2009
Fetlife
FledgeWing
Flixster
Flickr
Focus.com
Entrepreneural community targeted towards worldwide
university students
Open
3,151[95]
Open
44,630[96]
Open to
university
students
696,513[97]
63,000,000[ Open to people
4,012[99]
98]
13 and older
Movies
2007
Photo sharing, commenting, photography related networking,
worldwide
February
2004
32,000,000[
Business-to-business, worldwide
2005
850,000[102]
100]
Open to people
13 and older
48[101]
(Yahoo! Login)
Open to people
12,114[103]
13 and older
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
Photo sharing, video hosting, photo contests, journals, forums,
flexible privacy protection, friend's feed, audio comments and
unlimited custom design integration.
October
1998
1,632,565
Open
8,011[104]
Photoblogging. Popular in South America and Spain
2002
Open
3,168[106]
Location based mobile social network
2009
Open
817[108]
Open
354,946[109][n 2]
Name
Fotki
Fotolog
Foursquare
20,000,000[
105]
20,000,000[
107]
GlobalAlex
rankin
Friendica
Distributed, federated, privacy aware, open source, general
Friends
Reunited
UK based. School, college, work, sport and streets
July 2000
19,000,000[ Open to people
29,239[111]
110]
13 and older
General. Popular in Southeast Asia. No longer popular in
the western world
2002
90,000,000[ Open to people
12,167[113]
112]
16 and older.
Friendster
Frühstückstre
General
f
Fuelmyblog
FullCircle
July 2001
Blogging community
July 2007
Geosocial networking and location-based services portal
for mobile devices
April 2009
14,800[citation
needed]
Open
1,827,621[114]
50,000[115]
Open
85,547[116]
Open
1,167,425[117]
Name
Description/focus
Gaia Online
Anime and games. Popular in USA, Canada and Europe.
Moderately popular around Asia.
GamerDNA
Computer and video games
Gapyear.com Travel social network
Gather.com
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
23,523,663[ Open to people
6,277[119]
118]
13 and older
21
September 310,000[120] Open
2006
59,730[121]
July 1998
74,763[122]
Article, picture, and video sharing, as well as group discussions
Open
465,000[123] Open
3,062[124]
100,000[125] Open, global
224,302[126]
Gays.com
Social network for LGBT community, guide for LGBT bars,
restaurants, clubs, shopping
16 May
2008
Geni.com
Families, genealogy
16 January 15,000,000[
Open
127]
2007
5,958[128]
Social network for entertainment.
28 October 2,000,000[1
Open
29]
2008
3,735[130]
GetGlue
Gogoyoko
Fair play in music - social networking site for musicians and
music lovers.
Goodreads
Library cataloging, book lovers.
Invite only
while in beta
December 13,000,000[
Open
132]
2006
145,552[131]
327[133]
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Goodwizz
Social network with matchmaking and personality games to find
new contacts. Global, based in France.
October
2010
110,000[134]
Google+
General
28 June
2011
1,600,000,
000[137]
GovLoop
For people in and around government.
Name
Grono.net
Habbo
hi5
Hospitality
Club
Hotlist
[135]
Registratio
n
Open
GlobalAlex
rankin
597,008[136]
Open to people
13 and
NA[n 3]
[138]
older
138,576[139]
2,000,000[ci
Poland
tation needed]
Open
395,036[140]
General for teens. Over 31 communities worldwide. Chat room
and user profiles.
August
2000
268,000,00 Open to people
15,255[144]
0[141][142][143] 13 and older
General. Popular
in Nepal, Mongolia, Thailand, Romania, Jamaica, Central
Africa, Portugal and Latin America. Not very popular in the USA.
2003
80,000,000[ Open to people
902[146]
145]
13 and older.
Hospitality
328,629[147] Open
99,562[148]
Geo-social aggregator rooted in the concept of knowing where
users' friends are, were, and will be.
80,000[149]
155,811[150]
Open
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Social networking site for human resources professionals.
1999
194,000[151] Open
Global influencers focused on worth creation.
November
20,000[153]
2002
Hyves
General, mostly popular in the Netherlands.
September 10,097,000[
Open
155]
2004
Ibibo
Talent based social networking site that allows to promote one's
self and also discover new talent. Most popular in India.
3,500,000[1
Twitter-like service popular with hackers and software freedom
advocates.
395,695[citati
Name
HR.com
Hub Culture
Identi.ca
Indaba Music
Influenster
Instagram
IRC-Galleria
Description/focus
57]
on needed]
Online collaboration for musicians, remix contests, and
networking.
Registratio
n
Invite-only
GlobalAlex
rankin
79,591[152]
152,756[154]
2,243[156]
Open
1,143[158]
Open
7,290[159]
350,000[160] Open, global
45,039[161]
Online product sampling and review platform.
2010
850,000[162] Open, global
8,612[163]
A photo and video sharing site.
October
2010
Open to
150,000,00
anyone 13 or
0[164]
older
41
Finland
505,000[165] Open to
Finnish
speaking
36,982[166]
Name
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
people 12 and
older
Language learning social network. 100+ languages.
500,000[167] Open, global
Itsmy
Mobile community worldwide, blogging, friends, personal TVshows
2,500,000[1
iWiW
Hungary
14 April
2002
Jaiku
General. Microblogging. Owned by Google
February
2006
Location-based mobile social network. In Chinese language
2010
italki.com
Jiepang
Kaixin001
General. In Simplified Chinese; caters for mainland China users
Kiwibox
General.
Lafango
Talent-focused media sharing site
770,100[170]
69]
1999
4,000,000[1
71]
18,956[168]
Invite-only
3,831[172]
Open to people
62,910[173]
13 and older
3,000,000[1
74]
Open
14,790[175]
Open to the
general public
284[176]
2,400,000[1 Open to people
104,563[178]
77]
13 and older
Open, global
161,778[179]
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
Marathi social networking
2010
250,000
Open
952,782[180]
Music
2002
Open
772[182]
Book lovers
29 August
2005
Name
LaiBhaari
Last.fm
LibraryThing
Description/focus
Lifeknot
Shared interests, hobbies
LinkedIn
Business and professional networking
30,000,000[
181]
GlobalAlex
rankin
1,300,000[1 Open to people
10,800[184]
83]
13 and older
Open to people
1,071,686[185]
18 and older
May 2003
200,000,00 Open to people
12[187]
0[186]
18 and older
LinkExpats
Social networking website for expatriates. 100+ countries.
Open, global
800,451[188]
Listography
Lists. Autobiography
Open
92,525[189]
LiveJournal
Blogging. Popular in Russia and among the Russian-speaking
diaspora abroad.
Livemocha
Online language learning
15 April
1999
17,564,977[
190]
5,000,000[1
92]
Open (OpenID) 115[191]
Open
4,100[193]
Name
Date
launche
d
Description/focus
9 August
1999
Meetup
(website)
General
Open
318,979[195]
General. Used to plan offline meetings for people interested in
various activities
Open to people
481[196]
18 and older
MillatFaceboo
General, created in response to Facebook
k
MocoSpace
MOG
GlobalAlex
rankin
756,300[194]
Meettheboss Business and finance community, worldwide.
mixi
Registratio
n
Open
Makeoutclub General
MEETin
Register
ed user
s
[198]
May 2010
Open
315,513[197]
461,200[199] Open
236,663[200]
Japan
25 October 24,323,160[
Open
201]
2000
Mobile community, worldwide
2005
Music
MouthShut.co
Social network, social media, consumer reviews
m
232[202]
3,000,000[2 Open to people
9,882[204]
03]
14 and older
Open to people
13,955[205]
14 and older
Open
3,340[206]
Name
Mubi
MyHeritage
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Auteur cinema
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
200,000
Open
18,225[207]
Open
3,756[209]
Open
1,765[211]
Closed
NA[n 3]
30,000,000
Family-oriented social network service
[208]
Locating friends and family, keeping in touch
(formerly Reunion.com)
51,000,000[
My Opera
Blogging, mobile blogging, photo sharing, connecting with
friends, Opera Link and Opera Unite. Global
7,300,000[2
Myspace
General
MyLife
Nasza-klasa.pl School, college and friends. Popular in Poland
Netlog
Nexopia
NGO Post
General. Popular in Europe, Turkey, the Arab world and Canada's
Québec province. Formerly known as Facebox and Redbox. [218]
Canada
Non-profit news sharing and networking, mainly in India
210]
12]
August
2003
30,000,000 Open to ages
+[213][214]
13 and older.
11,000,000[
216]
Open
GlobalAlex
rankin
161[215]
75,145[217]
95,000,000[ Open to people
545[220]
219]
13 and older
1,400,000[2
21]
15,000[224]
Open to people
13 and
25,241[223]
[222]
older
Open
42,076[225]
Name
Ning
Odnoklassniki
Open Diary
Orkut
Description/focus
Users create their own social websites and social networks
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
2005 (Net
works
2007)
227]
General. Owned by Google Inc. Popular in India and Brazil.[231]
22 January 100,000,00
Closed
2004
0[232]
Pingsta
Dutch virtual community for people interested in house music
and other electronic dance music.
Collaborative platform for the world's internetwork experts
65[228]
5,000,000[2 Open to people
28,134[230]
29]
13 and older
1998
OUTeverywher
Gay/LGBTQ community
e
Partyflock
Open
First online blogging community, founded in 1998
Open
Online community for patients with life-changing illnesses to find
PatientsLikeM
other patients like them, share their data with others, and learn 2006
e
more about their condition to improve their outcome.
GlobalAlex
rankin
Open to people
378[226]
13 and older
45,000,000[
Connect with old classmates. Popular in Russia and former Soviet
republics
Registratio
n
109,587
10
November 321,125
2001
[235]
319[233]
445,440[234]
Open to people
13 years and
69,514[236]
up
Open to people
18 years and
16,828[237]
up
Invite-only,
only Internet
experts
2,533,640[238]
Name
Pinterest
Plaxo
Playfire
Playlist.com
Plurk
Poolwo
Description/focus
Online pinboard for organizing and sharing things you love
Register
ed user
s
2011
50,000,000[
Aggregator
240]
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
Open
38[239]
Open
5,310[241]
Computer and video games
Open to people
38,259[242]
13 and older
General, music
Open to people
8,026[243]
over 13
Micro-blogging, RSS, updates. Very popular in Taiwan
Open
1,991[244]
Open
764,227[246]
Closed
20,640[247]
Open to those
over 16
82,914[248]
Social networking site from India
Qapacity
A business-oriented social networking site and a business
directory
Quechup
General, friendship, dating
Qzone
Date
launche
d
General. In Simplified Chinese; caters for mainland China users
7 January
2014
2007
12,350[245]
480,000,00 Open to the
0[249][250]
general public
NA[n 3]
Name
Raptr
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Video games
Ravelry
Knitting and crochet
Renren
Significant site in China. Was known as 校内 (Xiaonei) until August
2009.
3,000,000[2
52]
500,000[256]
General, with focus on privacy rights
16 May
2012
ShareTheMusi Music community. Sharing and listening to music for free and
c
legally
Shelfari
Books
11 October
2006
GlobalAlex
rankin
Open
25,664[251]
Open
2,334[253]
95[255]
Open to people
1,806[257]
16 and older
500,000[258] Closed
Business
ScienceStage Science-oriented multimedia platform and network for scientists
Sgrouples
Registratio
n
160,000,00
Open
0[254]
ReverbNation.
Social network for musician and bands
com
Ryze
Register
ed user
s
71,324[259]
Open
61,668[260]
Open
258,091[261]
Open
612,429[262]
Open
18,152[263]
Name
Sina Weibo
Skoob
Skyrock
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Social microblogging site in mainland China.
14 August
2009
300,000,00
Open
0[264]
28[265]
Collaborative social network for Brazilian readers
2009
420,000[266] Open
28,449[267]
Description/focus
22,000,000[
Social network in French-speaking world
SocialVibe
Social network for charity
Sonico.com
General. Popular in Latin America and Spanish and Portuguese
speaking regions.
SoundCloud
Repository of original music pieces and networking.
268]
435,000[citati
on needed]
GlobalAlex
rankin
Open
710[269]
Open
101,364[270]
50,000,000[ Open to people
2,676[273]
271][272]
13 and older
10,000,000[
274]
Spaces
Russian social network targeted to mobile phone users
Spot.IM
A service for webmasters to add social networking functionality
to their websites
2012
Social network for meeting people
September
2013
Spring.me
Registratio
n
Open
299[275]
Open
9,953[276]
250,000[277] Open
68,016[278]
Open to people
4,967[279]
13 and older
Name
Description/focus
Stage 32
US-based social network and educational site for creative
professionals in film, television and theater
Stickam
Live video streaming and chat.
StudiVZ
University students, mostly in the German-speaking countries.
School students and those out of education sign up via its
partner sites schülerVZ and meinVZ.
Students
A social network connecting students, teachers and institutions
Circle Network to course resources, study groups and learning spaces.
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
February
2012
175,000
9,000,000[2
Tagged
General.
35,382[280]
9,201[282]
Open
7,080[284]
Open
345,110[285]
Open
146[287]
100,000,00
Open
0[288]
288[289]
17,000,000[
283]
December
2010
20,000,000[
286]
October
2004
GlobalAlex
rankin
Closed
81]
StumbleUpon Stumble through websites that match users' selected interests
Registratio
n
Business networking
Open
136,346[290]
Taltopia
Online artistic community
Open
281,501[291]
Taringa!
General (primarily Argentina)
Talkbiznow
11,000,000[ Open to people
214[293]
292]
13 and older
Name
TeachStreet
TermWiki
The Sphere
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Education / learning / teaching - more than 400 subjects
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
Open
422,704[294]
Learning / languages / translation - 1.2 million terms in more
than 1300 subjects
May 2010
Open
22,997[295]
A private online social luxury network with exclusive
personalized services
December
1,300[296]
2008
Invite-only
1,115,305[297]
TravBuddy.co
Travel
m
2005
1,588,000[2 Open to people
21,523[299]
98]
18 and older
Travellerspoin
Travel
t
2002
310,000[300] Open
tribe.net
Trombi.com
General
French subsidiary of Classmates.com
Tuenti
Spanish-based university and high school social network.
Tumblr
Microblogging platform and social networking website.
Open
4,400,000[3
305]
8,081[302]
16,227[304]
03]
12,000,000[
15,275[301]
Open
11,221[306]
Open
32[307]
Name
Description/focus
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
GlobalAlex
rankin
Twitter
General. Micro-blogging, RSS, updates
15 July
2006
645,750,00 Open to all
0[308]
ages[309]
Tylted
Mobile social game network[311]
2007
3,000,000[3 Open to people
737,508[313]
12]
14 and older
Uplike
Microblogging platform and social networking website.
2013
Vkontakte
General, including music upload, listening and search. Popular in September 249,409,90
Open
Russia and former Soviet republics.
2006
0[315]
Vampirefreaks
Gothic and industrial subculture
.com
Viadeo
Open
1999
1,931,049[3 Open to users
17]
13 and over
35,000,000[
Global social networking and campus networking available in
English, French, German, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese
319]
8[310]
201,100[314]
38[316]
21,052[318]
Open
435[320]
Open
33,371[321]
Virb
Social network that focuses heavily on artists, including
musicians and photographers
Vox
Blogging
Open
56,558[322]
For readers and authors to interact and e-book sharing
Open
7,036[323]
Wattpad
2007
Name
Description/focus
WAYN
Travel and lifestyle
WeeWorld
Teenagers - 9 to 17
We Heart It
Wellwer
Date
launche
d
Register
ed user
s
May 2003
10,000,000[ Open to people
1,367[325]
324]
18 and older
Registratio
n
30,000,000[ Open to ages
326]
10 and older.
Image-based social network focused on inspiration, expression
and creativity
2008
Community without borders, where sharing is everything.
September
2011
20,000,000[
328]
Open
GlobalAlex
rankin
18,317[327]
899[329]
Open to people
13 years and
370,755[330]
older
WeOurFamily General with emphasis on privacy and security
Open,
subscriptionbased
3,359,241[331]
Wepolls.com
Social polling network
Open
1,204,376[332]
General
General
2,147[333]
Open
305,720[334]
Wer-kenntwen
weRead
Books
June 2007
4,000,000[ci
tation needed]
Name
Wiser.org
Wooxie
Description/focus
Online community space for the social justice and environmental
April 2007
movement[335]
Blogs and "metro" areas
XING
Business (primarily Europe (Germany, Austria, Switzerland))
Xt3
Catholic social networking, created for World Youth Day 2008
Yammer
Yelp, Inc.
Yookos
Register
ed user
s
Registratio
n
71,600[336]
Open to people
239,901[337]
16 and older
Blogging and micro-blogging
WriteAPrisone
Site networking inmates, friends, family
r.com
Xanga
Date
launche
d
Social networking for office colleagues
Open
September
66,000[339]
2000
Unknown
27,000,000[
341]
11,100,000[
343]
2008
GlobalAlex
rankin
111,538[338]
Open to people
18 years and
228,915[340]
older
Open
3,943[342]
Open
270[344]
Open
712,292[345]
Must have
3,622[346]
company email
Local business review and talk
Open
186[347]
General: photos, videos, blogs, games.
Open
53,498[348]
Name
Description/focus
Zoo.gr
Greek web meeting point
Zooppa
Online community for creative talent (host of brand sponsored
advertising contests)