TikTok ousts Google as most popular domain of the year

The list was put together by tech-security company Cloudflare, who explained that TikTok really took the online traffic charge in the last quarter of the year.

In a blog post, the company wrote that ‘October and November were mostly TikTok’s days, including on Thanksgiving and Black Friday’. It turns out most US citizens were spending their downtime watching memes and dance videos. Given that current lockdown climate, you can hardly blame them.

Wondering who else made the top ten list of domains? Facebook took third place, Microsoft a surprising fourth, with Apple fifth and Amazon sixth. Interestingly, YouTube was just behind Netflix at number eight and Twitter took the ninth spot.

Streaming continues to be as popular as ever, though no mention of Spotify.

So, where did the sudden flock to TikTok come from? Commentators note that the last two years of lockdowns and social distancing have forced many of us inside, with more time on our screens than ever. TikTok provides quick, easy, and immediate entertainment without too much commitment.

Plus, it leans heavily into meme culture and social media trends, utilising viral sounds and songs to create dance crazes, chart music, and even its own homegrown celebrities such as Addison Rae and Charli D’Amelio.

It’ll be interesting to see if TikTok can keep up this dominance over the virtual marketplace next year, especially as lockdowns ease up and slow down. With more of us outside, could we see a slow down in uptake?

We’ll have to see – though I doubt TikTok will be the next Vine anytime soon.