Facebook is one of the most widely used social media services in the world. How much data Facebook uses depends on what you do on the platform. Simple text browsing uses very little data, while scrolling through photos, autoplay clips, and HD videos increases usage quickly. On average, Facebook consumes about 50 MB to over 1 GB per hour depending on your activity. If you plan to use Facebook while traveling abroad, using a global eSIM like Roamless can help you monitor and manage your mobile data more effectively.
How Much Data Does Facebook Use?
Facebook’s data usage generally ranges between 1 MB and 15 MB per minute, 50 MB and 1 GB per hour, and 350 MB and 7 GB per week (when used one hour per day). Simple browsing uses much less data, while watching lots of videos can increase your data usage significantly. The table below shows estimated Facebook data usage per minute, per hour, and per week:
Activity | Data Usage per Minute | Data Usage per Hour | Data Usage per Week (1 hour per day) |
Light usage with mostly text | About 1–2 MB | About 50–100 MB | About 350–700 MB |
Moderate usage with images and short videos | About 3–5 MB | About 150–300 MB | About 1–2 GB |
Heavy usage with non-HD videos | About 5–10 MB | About 300–600 MB | About 2–4 GB |
Heavy usage with HD videos | About 10–15 MB | About 500 MB to 1 GB | About 3–7 GB |
Table 1: Estimated Overall Facebook Data Usage by Activity
Note: Video autoplay and high-resolution content increase data consumption. Facebook also preloads certain images and videos in your feed, which adds to data usage. You can reduce this by adjusting your settings to limit video autoplay or lower video quality.
Disclaimer: Data usage values are estimates and can vary depending on device, network conditions, app settings, and user behavior. Please verify the most current Facebook usage information within your app or device settings.
How to Check Facebook Data Usage on Your Device
Knowing how much data Facebook uses on your smartphone can help you control your mobile data consumption, especially when traveling or using Facebook often during the day. Both iPhone and Android devices allow you to check how much mobile data the app has used.
For iPhone Devices:
Open Settings.
Tap Cellular or Mobile Data.
Scroll down to the list of apps.
Find Facebook to see how much mobile data it has used.
You can optionally tap Reset Statistics at the bottom to start tracking Facebook’s data usage from zero.
For Android Devices:
Open Settings.
Tap Network & Internet or Connections, depending on your device.
Select Data Usage.
Tap Mobile Data Usage or App Data Usage.
Choose Facebook to view its data consumption over a selected time period.
Disclaimer: Menu names may vary slightly depending on your device model and operating system version. Please verify the steps using your device manufacturer’s current guidance.
How to Reduce Facebook Data Usage
You can reduce Facebook’s mobile data usage by adjusting a few settings on your smartphone:
Use Data Saver and Lower Media Quality: Facebook’s Media settings allow you to reduce photo and video quality to help lower mobile data usage. You can turn on the Data Saver option and choose Low, Medium, or High photo quality to minimize the amount of data consumed while browsing your feed [1].
Turn Off Video Autoplay: Videos that start playing automatically use more data. You can turn off video autoplay to prevent videos from loading automatically on mobile data.
Disable HD Photo and Video Uploads: Uploading HD photos or videos requires significantly more data. Turning off HD uploads reduces the amount of data used when posting content on Facebook.
Limit Background Data Usage: You can restrict Facebook’s background data in your device settings, preventing the app from preloading content or refreshing your feed when you're not actively using it.
Use a Global eSIM: A global eSIM like Roamless provides a real-time data tracking feature in the app, helping you manage Facebook’s data usage more effectively while traveling internationally.
Comparing Facebook’s Data Usage with Other Social Media Platforms
Facebook's data usage is moderate compared to other social media apps, since it relies heavily on images and short videos, using more data than Twitter but less than Instagram and TikTok.
Platform | Approximate Data Usage per Hour (Standard Use) |
200-400 MB | |
300-600 MB | |
TikTok | 500-900 MB |
Snapchat | 350-700 MB |
150-300 MB |
Table 2: Estimated Hourly Data Usage by Popular Social Media Platforms
For more information, you can also read our posts on How Much Data Does Instagram Use, How Much Data Does TikTok Use, and How Much Data Does Snapchat Use.
Note: Data usage figures are approximate and individual experiences may vary due to device capabilities, network quality, app versions, and personal usage habits.
Using Facebook with Roamless eSIM Abroad
Using Facebook while traveling can increase your mobile data consumption, especially when viewing photos, scrolling through image-heavy feeds, or watching HD videos. A global eSIM like Roamless can help you manage your data more effectively and reduce the risk of unexpected roaming charges when you are abroad:
Wide global coverage: Roamless provides mobile data service in over 200 destinations, which makes it easier to use Facebook without interruptions during international travel.
High-speed mobile connectivity: Roamless supports fast mobile data connections, including speeds up to 5G, without applying speed limits that could affect video playback quality on Facebook.
Unlimited Hotspot Support: Roamless provides unlimited hotspot sharing allowing you to use Facebook quickly across multiple devices.
Multiple device compatibility: Roamless works on both iOS and Android devices and does not require swapping a physical SIM card when traveling.
In-app data tracking feature: Roamless allows you to monitor your mobile data usage directly within the app, which can help you understand how much data Facebook uses while abroad.
For more information, you can also check out our post on How Much Data Does Streaming Use.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Facebook use a lot of data?
Facebook uses a moderate amount of data. In most cases, people use between 150 MB and 300 MB per hour, but data usage can be much lower with simple text browsing or much higher when watching videos.
How much data does Facebook use per hour?
Facebook uses about 50–100 MB per hour when viewing mostly text posts, about 150–300 MB per hour when viewing photos and short videos, about 300–600 MB per hour when watching non-HD videos, and about 500 MB to 1 GB per hour when watching HD videos.
How much data does Facebook Messenger use?
Messenger uses about 350 KB per minute for text messages, while voice calls can use around 6–15 MB per minute and video calls can use around 30–50 MB per minute.
How long will 1GB of data last on Facebook?
With basic browsing, 1 GB can last about 10–20 hours. With regular use that includes photos and short videos, it lasts about 3–6 hours, and with frequent video watching, it lasts about 1–3 hours.
Does Facebook use data in the background?
Yes, Facebook can use data in the background for notifications, refreshing your feed, and loading images or videos unless background data is turned off.
Which app uses the least data: Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok?
Facebook uses the least data among these three social media platforms. Facebook typically uses about 200–400 MB per hour during standard use, Instagram uses around 300–600 MB per hour, and TikTok uses the most at about 500–900 MB per hour because it focuses heavily on continuous video content.
Sources:
[1] Facebook Help Center. ''Control how much data Facebook uses on your phone''. Accessed December, 2025. - https://www.facebook.com/help/656932384361200?locale=en_GB
