Food content is now part of how many Americans find recipes, choose ingredients, discover restaurants, and encounter unfamiliar cuisines. In the March 8–24, 2024, 2024 IFIC Food & Health Survey, 54% of U.S. adults ages 18–80 said they had seen food or nutrition content on social media in the past year. A separate July 16, 2024, survey found that 91% of American consumers use online recipes across food blogs, lifestyle sites, brand sites, or social and video platforms.
These food social media statistics describe different behaviors and study populations, so the percentages should not be combined into one audience estimate. Together, they show how social feeds and recipe pages connect inspiration with practical decisions in the kitchen and grocery store.
Contents
- How many people see food content
- Which platforms carry food content
- How people discover recipes
- How online recipes change cooking and shopping
- How much people trust food information
- Restaurants and unfamiliar foods
How many people see food content
The 2024 IFIC Food & Health Survey reported that 54% of U.S. adults ages 18–80 had seen food or nutrition content on social media during the past year. That was higher than the 42% reported in the 2023 IFIC survey. The two figures describe separate survey periods, so the change should be read as a comparison between reported survey results rather than a measure of every person’s individual behavior. 2024 IFIC Food & Health Survey
Exposure varied substantially by generation in the March 8–24, 2024, results:
| Respondent group | Saw food or nutrition content in the past year |
|---|---|
| Gen Z | 79% |
| Millennials | 69% |
| Gen X | 52% |
| Baby Boomers | 31% |
The survey also reported that 56% of women and 51% of men had seen food or nutrition content. By race and ethnicity, 60% of Hispanic respondents and 60% of Black or African American respondents reported seeing this content. These figures are percentages within each reported respondent group, not shares of the total U.S. population.
For a creative home-cooking audience, the age pattern is especially notable: exposure was reported by 79% of Gen Z respondents and 69% of Millennials, compared with 52% of Gen X respondents and 31% of Baby Boomer respondents. Food inspiration is present across generations, but it was more commonly reported by younger adults in this survey.
Which platforms carry food content
Among U.S. adults who had seen food or nutrition content on social media, Facebook was the most commonly reported platform in the March 8–24, 2024, IFIC results. YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok followed. Respondents could report more than one platform, so these percentages are not intended to add to 100%.
| Platform | Share who had seen food or nutrition content there |
|---|---|
| 63% | |
| YouTube | 58% |
| 52% | |
| TikTok | 42% |
| 22% | |
| Twitter/X | 20% |
| Snapchat | 14% |
| 11% | |
| 6% |
The platform mix spans long-form video, short-form clips, visual collections, discussion communities, and general social feeds. Facebook’s 63% and YouTube’s 58% were the highest reported platform figures among people who had encountered food or nutrition content. Instagram reached 52%, while TikTok reached 42%. Pinterest, at 22%, was lower in this measure, but its presence still indicates that recipe and food inspiration is not limited to video-first networks.
These are exposure figures, not measures of time spent, engagement, recipe saves, purchases, or content quality. They also describe adults who had already seen food or nutrition content, rather than all U.S. adults. 2024 IFIC Food & Health Survey
How people discover recipes
Social media is one part of a broader online recipe ecosystem. In The State of Online Recipes, 91% of surveyed American consumers said they use online recipes on food blogs, lifestyle sites, brand sites, or social and video platforms. The survey was conducted on July 16, 2024. It also found that 60% said they were using online recipes more than a year earlier, while 56% specifically used recipe websites and food blogs.
Organic search was a method used to discover online recipes by 66% of surveyed consumers. Social media was reported by 44%. A further 10% said they use ChatGPT or other generative-AI tools to discover recipes online. Because respondents could identify multiple methods, these figures describe overlapping discovery habits rather than competing shares.
Online recipe use varied by generation:
- 96% of Millennials said they use online recipes.
- 92% of Gen X respondents said they use online recipes.
- 87% of Gen Z respondents said they use online recipes.
- 83% of Boomer respondents said they use online recipes.
The result is a useful distinction between social exposure and recipe use. The IFIC survey measured whether people had seen food or nutrition content on social media. The State of Online Recipes measured use of online recipes across several kinds of sites and platforms. A person may encounter a dish in a social feed, search for a full recipe, and then use a food blog or brand site to cook it.
The State of Online Recipes provides the recipe-discovery and recipe-use figures.
How online recipes change cooking and shopping
Online recipes often move beyond inspiration. In the July 16, 2024, survey of American consumers, 86.6% said an online recipe had inspired them to cook a new meal or dish. Another 80.4% said an online recipe had inspired them to purchase a new ingredient or product. Recipe content can therefore introduce both an idea and the shopping list needed to make it.
Brand and product behavior also appeared in the results. Some 68.8% said an online recipe had inspired them to purchase a new or different brand of a product they usually buy. This does not show that a particular recipe caused a purchase, but it does show how recipe pages can sit close to product consideration.
Online recipes were also connected with grocery preparation:
- 43.9% said they sometimes use online recipes to prepare for grocery shopping.
- 25.3% said they often use online recipes for that purpose.
- 21.4% said they always use online recipes to prepare for grocery shopping.
Mobile access makes the connection especially immediate. Seventy-five percent of surveyed consumers said they had looked at an online recipe on a mobile device while in a grocery store. In addition, 65.2% said they had added grocery products to an online cart after seeing them listed in an online recipe. These are reported survey behaviors, not a forecast of total grocery transactions.
The same survey found that 55% would be likely or very likely to make a grocery purchase directly from an online recipe if given the option. Another 55% said they were receptive to advertisements from relevant food and cooking brands while viewing online recipes. The State of Online Recipes
How much people trust food information
Exposure does not mean complete confidence. Among U.S. adults who had seen food or nutrition content on social media, 15% said they trust it a lot, 53% said they trust it a little, 11% said they do not trust it, and 19% said trust depends on the platform. In total, 68% said they trust this content a lot or a little in the March 8–24, 2024, IFIC results.
Trust also varied by generation among people who had seen food or nutrition content:
- 76% of Gen Z respondents said they trust it a lot or a little.
- 70% of Millennials said they trust it a lot or a little.
- 70% of Gen X respondents said they trust it a lot or a little.
- 59% of Baby Boomer respondents said they trust it a lot or a little.
The figures show a broad middle position rather than uniform acceptance. “Trust a little” is included in the combined 68% figure, while only 15% selected “trust a lot.” The 19% who said trust depends on the platform also point to the importance of context, source, and presentation when people evaluate food and nutrition claims.
These results should not be treated as a scientific review of the accuracy of social media content. They report what respondents said about their own level of trust in the content they had seen. 2024 IFIC Food & Health Survey
Restaurants and unfamiliar foods
Social media also functions as a discovery channel beyond the home kitchen. The STATE OF THE RESTAURANT INDUSTRY 2025 - Food & Menu Trends report found that 76% of U.S. adults said social media is a good way to learn about restaurants in their area. The figure was 84% among Gen Z adults ages 18–28, 85% among Millennials ages 29–44, and 65% among Baby Boomers ages 61–79.
The same 2025 report found that 74% of U.S. adults said social media is a good way to learn about food they had not tried before. That included 86% of Gen Z adults, 84% of Millennials, and 59% of Baby Boomers. The report also stated that 58% of U.S. adults eat a wider variety of global cuisines now than they used to.
| Discovery question | U.S. adults | Gen Z | Millennials | Baby Boomers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good way to learn about local restaurants | 76% | 84% | 85% | 65% |
| Good way to learn about unfamiliar food | 74% | 86% | 84% | 59% |
The restaurant and unfamiliar-food figures were reported for 2025, while the exposure and trust figures above came from March 8–24, 2024. Keeping those measurement periods separate matters: the reports describe different moments, questions, and respondent groups. Still, the pattern is clear within each report. Social media is widely viewed as a way to find nearby restaurants and learn about foods outside one’s usual experience, with especially high reported agreement among Gen Z and Millennial adults.