Social media's impact is hotly debated — I'll pull recent research on where it helps and where it harms.
Social media is neither universally harmful nor universally helpful - its effects depend on how, how much, and by whom it is used.
The major scientific and medical bodies currently take this nuanced position. The American Psychological Association's 2023 health advisory stated that online social networks are "not inherently beneficial or harmful to young people," but should be used thoughtfully, and that "Social media is neither inherently harmful nor beneficial to our youth". The report noted platforms "can promote healthy socialization" but also requires training and safeguards.
When Social Media Is Helpful
Research identifies several consistent benefits:
•Social connection and support: Research indicates that adolescents and young adults frequently use social media as a way to build and maintain friendships and greater use has been linked with higher social support. Social media offers numerous potential benefits to users, including exposure to current events, interpersonal connection, and enhancement of social support networks.
•Reducing isolation: Social media use can help combat social isolation, particularly for kids who may go through "adversity or isolation in offline environments".
•Routine, active use linked to well-being: Using a nationally representative sample, researchers found that routine social media use—for example, using social media as part of everyday routine and responding to content that others share—is positively associated with all three health outcomes [social well-being, positive mental health, and self-rated health]. The authors noted routine use may compensate for diminishing face-to-face social interactions in people's busy lives and may provide individuals with a platform that overcomes barriers of distance and time, allowing them to connect and reconnect with others.
•Community and help-seeking: For many, social media appears to have a range of benefits. It provides a way for many of us to connect with others. We can support other people and feel supported by them. It may even be a useful way for those with social anxiety and those who have a hard time with face-to-face interactions to connect with others. Oxford research found time spent on social media can have a positive effect on your psychological well-being, but that is only the case when the platforms are used to facilitate genuine social interactions, such as engaging with close friends and family.
A review of 43 studies in young people cited many benefits including increased self-esteem, and opportunities for self-disclosure.
When Social Media Is Harmful
Research also documents significant harms, especially with problematic use:
•Mental health risks: Some studies have indicated that social media use may be tied to negative mental health outcomes, including suicidality, loneliness and decreased empathy. In a systematic review synthesizing findings from 13 studies, more time spent on social media, social media engagement and interaction, investment of effort, and social media addiction were all associated with greater depression, anxiety, and psychological distress.
•Perceived negative influence: Concerns are increasingly raised about potential harms. One-quarter of adolescents think social media has a mostly negative influence on people their age, pointing to reasons like rumor spreading, lack of in-person contact, unrealistic views of others' lives, peer pressure, and mental health issues.
•Sleep, productivity and confidence: Teens are more likely to say social media hurts than helps their sleep, productivity and mental health, but see a more positive impact on their friendships. Teen girls are more likely than boys to say social media hurts their mental health, sleep, confidence.
•Emotional dependency: By contrast to routine use, emotional connection to social media—for example, checking apps excessively out of fear of missing out, being disappointed about or feeling disconnected from friends when not logged into social media—is negatively associated with all three outcomes [well-being].
•Other reported harms: In that review of 43 studies, reported negative effects were an increased exposure to harm, social isolation, depressive symptoms and bullying.
Pew Research in 2025 found 48% of teens say social media harms people their age, up from 32% in 2022, though teens are more likely to think it is bad for their peers than for themselves.
What Determines Whether It Helps or Harms?
The consensus is that how you use it matters more than how much:
1.Active vs. Passive use: The association between social media use and well-being appears to vary with the pattern or type. Some studies suggested that passive patterns of using social media (such as browsing others' profiles or scrolling through feeds) were associated more consistently with harmful outcomes, whereas active patterns (such as self-disclosing online, engaging with others, and sharing links) were more consistently related to beneficial outcomes. Other findings illustrate that social network sites are not "good" or "bad". Their mental health consequences critically depend on how these sites are used.
2.Individual patterns: A review of 70 studies found results were mixed. Some studies found social media users were happier and more connected while other studies found that social media users had more signs of depression or anxiety. Across the studies, it appears that it's not so much that social media causes anxiety and depression, but that people have different ways of using social media, which may be more or less helpful. For those who often compared themselves to friends, ruminated, or had negative interactions, risk was greater.
3.Demographics and context: Harvard researchers found benefits were generally associated with younger age, better education, and being white, the harms were associated with older age, less education, and being a racial minority, suggesting existing inequalities influence who benefits.
Bottom Line
For most people, social media is both helpful and harmful at the same time. It is most helpful when used actively and intentionally to maintain real relationships, seek support, and exchange information, and most harmful when used passively, compulsively, or comparatively - scrolling, social comparison, fear of missing out, and negative interactions.
If you are evaluating your own use, researchers suggest asking: Are you using it to connect and respond to others (routine/active use), or are you checking excessively, feeling disconnected when offline, and comparing yourself to others (emotional/passive use)? The latter pattern is more consistently linked to poorer well-being.