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These are the 10 apps 18-34s can’t live without

Facebook isn't number one

These are the 10 apps 18-34s can’t live without
Tom Victor
10 November 2017

Millennials know what they want, and that’s avocado toast, communism and never owning property.

Apps, too. So many apps.

Business Insider has broken down some figures from ComScore, surveying 18-34-year-olds about the apps they can’t do without.

They were asked which apps they consider the ‘most essential’, and there aren’t too many surprises when it comes to which are there.

The order, however, is not what you might expect: while you might consider email apps to be the most vital, or Facebook to be the most essential, neither of them claimed the number one spot.

Here’s your top 10:

10. Instagram

Who doesn’t love taking photos of food and sticking filters on them? Well, not everyone thinks it’s essential, quite clearly, with just 11% of those polled putting it in their top three most essential apps.

9. WhatsApp

The same percentage put WhatsApp in their top three, and when you consider the importance of our groups on the app it’s easy to see why.

8. Apple App Store

Also on 11%, the App Store seems essential at face value, but maybe people already have all the apps they need and have no need to download any more. Or just have non-Apple phones.

7. Google Search

Rounding off the 11 percenters, more than one in 10 of those polled use the specific Google Search app rather than just searching within their web browser.

6. Google Maps

At least 14% of people get lost all the time, apparently.

5. YouTube

Video consumption has changed a lot in the smartphone era, and that’s reflected by the 16% who consider YouTube among their three most essential apps.

4. Facebook Messenger

Some may be surprised to see this outrank WhatsApp by such a margin, but Facebook’s move to launch a standalone Messenger app seems to have made an impact with 18% viewing it as essential.

3. Facebook

A big jump here, with Facebook in 29% of people’s top threes. We all know plenty of people who use the app every single day.

2. Gmail

The only email app on the list, Gmail is far and away the most ‘essential’ with a 30% hit rate.

1. Amazon

Yup, it’s Amazon, with a huge 35%. It’s the only e-commerce app here, too, so it’s either the only one most people use or the only one they could think of under pressure. Perhaps a little of both.

(Images: iStock/Rex Features)