Best Social Media Apps for Seniors

Social Media Apps for Seniors

Facebook

Facebook reigns supreme among older adults, with 71 percent of people over 50 using it in 2022, according to 2023 AARP research.1 If you haven’t used Facebook before, it’s a free app and website that lets users register and build a personal network by adding friends.

On Facebook you can post your thoughts, photos, videos, and use its messenger app to text or video chat. On messenger, you can also send your own videos or animated images, stickers, and emojis. You can find Facebook Groups devoted to pretty much any interest you can think of and chat with like-minded folks. There’s also Facebook Marketplace, which connects buyers and sellers.

Instagram

People of all ages use Instagram, which, like Facebook, is free to join and owned by parent company Meta (which owns WhatsApp as well). Although less popular with older adults than Facebook, almost 30 percent of people over 50 use Instagram — a popular app that lets you browse photos and videos of people you follow. Also like Facebook, Instagram has a messenger function where you can send “DMs” (direct messages). You can follow friends, family, celebrities, artists, politicians, businesses, and nonprofits. Instagram lets you comment on posts and interact with other followers, which can be fun!

>> Further Reading: A [Year] Buyers’ Guide to Cell Phones and Plans for Seniors

YouTube

YouTube is a place where anyone can post videos. You can search YouTube for specific videos — such as travelogues, cooking demonstrations, historical documentaries, workouts specifically for seniors, or pretty much anything!

You can also subscribe to particular channels and receive notifications when your favorite YouTube creators post new content. Subscribers to channels often create communities of sorts, as creators encourage engagement and discussion in the comments section of their videos. YouTube is a great free resource with a host of entertaining and educational content; plus, you can start a channel of your own! In addition to original content, you can sometimes find entire hard-to-find movies for free or a few dollars.

Reddit

Reddit isn’t currently popular among older adults, but it can be a fun online community for people of any age. Sign up for free and check out groups on Reddit, which are called “subreddits”; these are devoted to virtually any topic, including popular TV shows, people who grew up in the 1960s, and residents of your town or city. There are subreddits geared toward specific interests, such as sports teams, lovers of science, nature photography, or cute animals — seriously, anything! A good place to start to find Redditors close to your age is the /retirement subreddit: A community of older adults that shares resources and advice.

>> FYI: The Best Apps for Older Adults in 2024

Nextdoor

Nextdoor is a useful app for keeping up on what’s happening in your neighborhood and city — and even for making new friends. Many people use it to find specific local services, such as a handyman or plumber, for example. You can also search Nextdoor for local restaurant recommendations or ask a question. Posts on Nextdoor can — and often do — get contentious, however. But if you skim over posts that devolve into arguments, it’s a great way to connect with other people in your community.

TikTok

Beloved by teenagers, TikTok is a free video sharing app that’s easy to use; plus, it can be just as engaging for older adults as it is for young people. Once you download it, you train its algorithm to show you content you’re interested in by clicking on the hearts when you see a video you like. You can also search for specific types of content — such as fishing or healthy cooking — and follow creators who make that type of content. As TikTok learns to curate content that’s relevant and interesting to you, it can be a fun and engaging experience.

Goodreads

Older adults who love to read will enjoy the free Goodreads app. Choose genres you’re interested in, and Goodreads will give you book recommendations. You can also review books you’ve read and connect with friends to see what they’re reading; also, you can read other members’ lists, such as “best crime and mystery books.” A nice feature of the Goodreads app is that you can scan a book cover to get instant information and reviews about the book. It’s also fun having a record of the books you’ve read each year and what you thought about them. And it’s very handy having a list of books you want to read so you don’t forget!

AARP Now

Free for members and nonmembers of AARP, the AARP Now app provides a digital membership card for members to use when they’re out and about; it also offers a news feed of articles relevant to older adults, community event listings, and links to workshops. Some users have complained in reviews of the app, however, that there’s no way to bookmark articles; another gripe is that it can’t be used in Landscape mode. Landscape mode refers to changing the orientation on your phone’s screen so it can be read horizontally; this makes things bigger and easier to read.

>> You Might Like: Guide to AARP Memberships in 2024

iNaturalist

A free social network app developed by a nonprofit organization, iNaturalist is a fun and educational app for sharing information about the wild plants and animals in your community. In addition to learning about your natural surroundings and socializing with other nature lovers, the data users submit helps biodiversity researchers gather quality data to aid in nature preservation. Another plus: No ads! And the developers do not share your personal information.

>> Related Reading: Best Cell Phones for Seniors

Quora

You might have come across Quora web pages if you’ve searched the internet for advice or answers to a particular question. But Quora has an app and groups you can join devoted to different interests, called “spaces.” There are spaces that address tons of topics, such as music, web design, healthy aging, mental health, philosophy, science fiction, you name it.

Online Social Media Communities for Seniors

The following online communities don’t have apps you can download; however, they are engaging, free social media options popular with older adults. You can participate online in your phone’s browser or on a tablet or computer.

Senior Planet

Older adults can find people their own ages who enjoy the same interests and activities on Senior Planet. Join for free to share art, gardening tips, pet photos, fitness, books, travel, and much more. Senior Planet is an organization working toward “digital equity” for people 60 and older; this means increasing older adults’ comfort with technology and helping to connect them with low-cost internet options. It’s an active community with a simple layout that can be easier to navigate than Reddit.

>> Related Reading: Best Cheap Internet for Seniors

Rick Steves Travel Forum

Older adults who are passionate about international travel might enjoy the Rick Steves Travel Forum. Join for free to share tips, photos, and experiences with other travelers. Much of the forum’s content is about European travel, but there is a “Beyond Europe” section where you can find information about lots of other destinations.

Staying Safe on Social Media

Social media offers scammers and crooks easy access to unsuspecting users. Hackers commonly prowl for victims on social media apps such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. You can keep yourself safe from theft — monetary and personal data — by following these important tips:

Create strong passwords

Don’t use the same password for every website and don’t use common and easy-to-guess passwords, such as your birthday. Strong passwords are long, with 12 or more characters, and include a mix of capital and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Write down passwords somewhere you’ll remember and don’t share them with anyone unless absolutely necessary — including family members or caregivers.

Be wary of phishing scams

Scammers cast a wide net in their efforts to steal personal information, such as emails, phone calls, and social media messages and links. Be careful about clicking on any links you’re sent that ask you to verify your contact, log-in, or payment information. Hackers use the information to scam you and even sell your information to other hackers.

>> From the Pros: Our [Year] Guide to Senior Safety

If you receive a message or email insisting that, for example, a payment is due immediately or a supposed family member needs you to wire money ASAP, contact the source directly to verify. In other words, contact the utility company or family member yourself to confirm it was really them. As mentioned above, thieves and hackers commonly use WhatsApp or Facebook, for example, to try to steal your money or personal information — just like they do with email scams.

Increase your security and privacy settings on social media

It’s helpful to set your profiles to private, which you can do in your account settings by clicking on the “Privacy” page. You can also control who can see your social media posts. In your privacy settings, you’ll see options for “everyone,” “friends,” “friends of friends,” or “only people I select;” these choices affect who can read what you post in the app. Controlling who sees what you share on social media helps keep your location private; it also lessens the chances that scammers can glean information about your life that they can exploit in a future scam.

>> Related Reading: How to Stay Safe on Social Media

Carefully curate your friends and followers

Also be careful about who you accept as a friend on Facebook, especially if it’s someone you’re pretty sure you’re already friends with! Pretending to be someone you know is a common phishing ploy. Scammers try to get people to accept fake profiles, such as a handsome widow or widower; this way, they can hoodwink single social media users into sharing their personal information or sending money. Fake profiles typically have just a few friends and a few photos, or sometimes the profile photos over several months will depict clearly different people.

Set-up two-factor authentication when possible

Banks already use two-factor authentication; this means they add a step, such as texting or emailing you a code you’re required to enter, to verify that it’s you. Consider opting for two- or even multi-factor authentication in an app or on a website if it’s offered; it will increase your security.