An investigation conducted by Paris-based carbon accounting consultant Greenly found that TikTok’s annual carbon footprint exceeds Greece’s annual emissions. TikTok’s carbon footprint, as analyzed in the report, surpassed those of Twitter/X and Snapchat in terms of emissions in the US, UK, and France in 2023, with a projected 7.6 million metric tonnes of CO2e. TikTok’s carbon footprint is estimated to be over 50 million metric tonnes of CO2e globally, which is equivalent to Greece’s 51.67 million metric tonnes of emissions in 2023.

Due to its longer user engagement, TikTok has a significantly larger annual carbon footprint despite similar emissions per minute compared to other platforms like Instagram and YouTube. TikTok users use the app for an average of 45.5 minutes per day, which is greater than Instagram users, who use it for 30.6 minutes. Among social media sites, TikTok has the greatest annual emissions per user, averaging 48.49 kg of CO2e per user, which is equal to 123 miles driven in a gas-powered vehicle.

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TikTok’s Carbon Footprint and Emissions Per Minute

With average CO2e emissions of 2.921 grams per minute of use, TikTok comes in second place, only behind YouTube (2.923 grams). In comparison, Instagram uses 2.912 grams per minute on average. Despite slight variations in emissions per minute, TikTok has a larger yearly carbon footprint because of its longer user engagement.

The use of data centers, which make up 99 percent of the footprint, and post-use device charging are the main sources of emissions. TikTok’s environmental effect is more unclear because it does not make its emissions data publicly available, in contrast to other social media platforms that disclose their emissions and pledge to renewable energy projects.

Efforts Toward Sustainability and Uncertainty Under New Ownership

With the launch of its “Project Clover” campaign in 2023, TikTok pledged to become carbon neutral by 2030. This concept calls for the construction of data centers that run entirely on renewable energy, like the €12 billion complex in Norway.

Uncertainty surrounds TikTok’s sustainability and emissions reporting policies, nevertheless. ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of TikTok, is required by a US court to sell the platform by January 2025. TikTok’s Carbon Footprint may see greater transparency under new US ownership if stricter emissions declarations are enforced. However, these requirements could change under new political leadership. Responses to inquiries on TikTok’s environmental pledges have not yet been received.

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