Is your scrolling habit contributing to the global climate crisis?

Chances are, you might stop reading this article, inadvertently return to Instagram, TikTok or your favourite social media platform, and continue scrolling.

This behaviour has created an unseen environmental burden as it comes at a great cost – one we may or may not be aware of.

A recent study by Greenly, a Paris-based carbon accounting firm, says that the short video-sharing site TikTok’s carbon footprint may now exceed the annual emission of an entire country, Greece, prompting a reevaluation of the platform’s effect on the climate crisis.

Launched in 2016, TikTok has skyrocketed in popularity in less than 10 years, particularly among Gen Z, and now has over 1 billion active users globally.

Yet, its popularity may come with a hefty price.

According to Greenly’s analysis, the average TikTok user generates 48.49kg of CO2e annually, the highest among social media platforms.

YouTube follows with 40.17kg of CO2e per user, while Instagram users produce 32.52kg annually.

To put this into perspective, the Environmental Protection Agency notes that these emissions are equivalent to driving a gasoline car for 123 miles (TikTok), 102 miles (YouTube), and 82.8 miles (Instagram).

How reliable are these findings, and what do they imply?

Broader issue

Carbon footprints are typically expressed in carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e), representing the combined effects of various greenhouse gases.

Speaking to TRT World, Associate Professor Ahmet Aygun, explained that accurate calculations rely on both primary and secondary data.

“Primary data from specific measurements, along with secondary data from scientific literature and statistical studies, is crucial,” explains Aygun, who specialises in biofilm processes and industrial pollution control and owns GNA environmental solutions R&D company.

“It is essential to identify and account for all direct emissions and, for indirect emissions, determine and include the significant ones using appropriate analytical methods.”

However, due to the lack of open data sources by ByteDance, Tiktok’s owner company, Greenly’s study primarily used secondary data, which increases uncertainty.

Aygun emphasised that TikTok's emissions data is among the least transparent in the industry, requiring a cautious approach to interpretation.

Unlike companies such as Meta and Google, which release detailed sustainability reports, TikTok provides limited information on its emissions and environmental efforts.

However, Aygun agrees that the report gives us a broader perspective of how social media takes a toll on climate and should be taken seriously by government planners.

But how does social media generate carbon emissions?

CO2 formula

Social media platforms are powered by energy-intensive processes.

Data centres, which store and process vast amounts of information, require significant electricity for servers and cooling systems.

Devices like smartphones, tablets, and laptops further contribute to energy consumption. Additionally, transmitting data through global networks, including Wi-Fi and cellular systems, adds to the carbon footprint.

As Aygun explains, “Social media is an internet-based communication network, and its digital nature leads to an increase in energy demand, resulting in a higher carbon footprint.”

Electricity, still largely sourced from fossil fuels, makes social media usage a significant contributor to CO2 emissions.

For TikTok, every minute spent scrolling generates 2.921 grams of CO2e, slightly less than YouTube’s 2.923 grams but more than Instagram’s 2.912 grams.

There is only a slight difference between Youtube and Tiktok. So what makes TikTok’s emissions stand out compared to other platforms, according to Greenly?

Addictive algorithms

TikTok’s design, particularly its "For You Page," plays a significant role in its higher carbon emissions.

This feature delivers a continuous stream of personalised, short-form videos that keep users scrolling for an average of 45.5 minutes daily—far surpassing Instagram’s 30.6 minutes, according to the Guardian.

Instagram alone highlights the scale of social media emissions.

In 2020, Rabih Bashroush, a professor at the University of East London, estimated that every time Cristiano Ronaldo posts a photo on Instagram, the energy needed to show the image to his 190 million followers—at the time—could power a household for five to six years.

Despite Instagram having 1.5 times TikTok’s user base, TikTok’s total time spent is over 20 percent higher.

According to data.ai, the typical TikTok user spends an average of 34 hours and 15 minutes per month on the platform, significantly more than Instagram’s 16 hours and 49 minutes.

This prolonged engagement results in a higher carbon footprint.

Alexis Normand, CEO of Greenly, noted that TikTok’s addictive nature leads to increased carbon footprints as users engage more with the platform.

The bigger picture

As Aygun points out, TikTok’s environmental challenges reflect a broader issue in the tech industry.

Social media platforms collectively generate around 262 million tonnes of CO2e annually—on par with Malaysia’s total emissions.

While many tech giants pledge to transition to renewable energy, a Guardian report reveals significant underreporting of emissions—up to 662 percent higher than disclosed. From 2020 to 2022, the real emissions of Google, Microsoft, Meta, and Apple’s in-house data centres were likely far higher than reported.

Data centres already consume 1 to 1.5 percent of global electricity, a figure expected to grow with AI’s rise.

Moreover, AI applications like ChatGPT require nearly 10 times the energy of typical cloud services, with global data centre emissions projected to hit 2.5 billion metric tons of CO2e by 2030.