On its Q3 2026 earnings call, Meta said Threads has overtaken X in monthly active users and that time spent per Threads user grew more than 20% year over year. The company also shared engagement data for Instagram and Facebook Reels that says a lot about how fast content now cycles through recommendations. Here is what was said and how it should shape placement and creative decisions.
What Meta said
Mark Zuckerberg opened the call by saying Meta's apps are used by 3.64 billion people each day and that Threads has passed X in monthly actives. Meta did not give a new Threads user figure on the call, and it gave no Threads ad revenue number.
CFO Susan Li added that Instagram's global time spent per user hit an all-time high in Q3 and grew double digits year over year, while Facebook Reels time spent reached all-time highs both globally and in the US.
Reels recommendations are getting fresher
Meta said nearly 45% of recommended Instagram Reels are now less than one day old, up more than 11 percentage points from Q2. On Facebook Reels, doubling the viewing history the ranking model considers drove a 1% lift in US Reels watch time.
For advertisers, fresher organic feeds raise the bar for ad creative. Ads sit between posts that were mostly made in the last day, so dated-looking creative stands out for the wrong reasons.
- Threads time spent per user: up more than 20% year over year
- Instagram Reels under one day old: nearly 45% of recommendations
- Facebook Reels: double-digit time spent growth globally and in the US
Who should pay attention
Buyers who run Advantage+ placements are the most exposed, because delivery follows attention. As Threads and Reels gain time spent, more impressions can shift to those surfaces without any change on your side. Brands in text-friendly categories such as news, finance content, B2B and apps are the likeliest to see Threads matter first.
What to do now
Break down results by placement and platform at least weekly so you can see where spend is going. If Threads is taking budget, check whether it converts at an acceptable cost before scaling it. On Reels, plan for faster creative refreshes and keep a short pipeline of vertical, native-looking variants ready for Q4.
What it means for you
- Meta says Threads has passed X in monthly actives; no Threads ad revenue was disclosed.
- Check your placement breakdown weekly to see how much spend reaches Threads and Reels.
- With 45% of recommended Reels under a day old, refresh Reels creative more often.
- Judge Threads on cost per result, not on audience growth headlines.
Sources
- Meta Q3 2026 Earnings Call Transcript (Meta Investor Relations)
- Meta offers insights on individual platform growth (Social Media Today)
