Young Users Ditching Facebook for Instagram and Snapchat

Facebook, along with Twitter is experiencing a significant decline in its demographic of 18 to 34-years-olds, according to a new survey. Other social networking services, like Snapchat and Instagram are experiencing "explosive growth."

Facebook's 93 percent usage among all social network users drop to 90 percent in 2014. Twitter saw a 2 percent drop from 2013 to 2014, bringing its usage to about 39 percent and Google Plus' usage surged to 37 percent after plateauing a few years at 30 percent, according to Frank N. Magid Associates, Magid's 2014 Social Media Study. The survey considered 1,934 social media users between the ages 13 through 64.

Snapchat and Instagram, on the other side, are experiencing massive leaps in usage over the last three years. Instagram gained from 15 percent to 32 percent while Snapchat gained 2 percent to 18 percent.

The survey noted that Facebook was the only social network that users considered an essential utility.

"Social network use looks to be peaking, but the way people are engaging with social networks is still changing rapidly," Magid said. "Smartphones are now the primary device used to access most major social networks, fundamentally altering the social media status quo."

Around 40 percent of social networking use Facebook Messenger, while 18 percent use Snapchat messaging.

"Most of the major social networks began as platforms to facilitate connections with friends, family, celebrities, and brands," Magid added. "Now they have become comprehensive mobile ecosystems, driven by increasing consumer adoption of social commerce, media content, and user-generated photos and videos."