Meta has positioned Instagram as a driver of Thai digital economic growth, highlighting the platform's growing influence in commerce, creator monetisation and cultural engagement as businesses increasingly seek new avenues for expansion.
Instagram reaches 80% of Thailand's Gen Z population, while also attracting more than half of users across the Millennial, Gen X and Baby Boomer demographics, creating a broad, high-value audience for advertisers and content creators.
According to Prae Dumrongmongcolgul, country director of Facebook Thailand, Instagram has evolved from an emerging social platform into a mainstream convergence of new content, consumer purchases and creator-led businesses.
As consumer behaviour shifts from passive social media consumption to active product discovery, Instagram has become Thailand's leading platform for brand and product exploration, she said.
According to Meta, Thai Instagram users utilise the platform to search for products and follow brands, underscoring its growing role in the purchase journey.
The trend is also accelerating conversational commerce. In Thailand's messaging-centric digital landscape, 70% of consumers use Instagram direct messages to support purchasing decisions, creating new opportunities for brands to engage the public through personalised interactions.
Ms Prae said creator-led advertising is delivering stronger commercial outcomes for businesses.
Campaigns combining Partnership Ads with traditional advertising generated a 19% reduction in cost per acquisition, a 13% increase in click-through rates, and a 71% uplift in brand awareness compared with conventional campaigns.
Thai internet users are 79% more likely to use multiple social media platforms than the average user across the Asia-Pacific region.
Meta said 94% of Instagram's monthly users in Thailand also use Facebook either daily or monthly, reinforcing the value of integrated advertising strategies across Meta's platforms.
Globally, Instagram now serves more than 3 billion monthly users, offering creators unprecedented opportunities to reach international audiences.
However, the creator economy is entering a new phase in which expertise and credibility are becoming more important than follower counts.
According to Meta's Generation Zeitgeist 2026 research, 81% of consumers regard expert knowledge as the most important characteristic of a creator, surpassing humour, relatability and celebrity status.
The shift is encouraging growth among niche creators specialising in areas such as beauty, food, finance and education, while Instagram's recommendation systems increasingly reward content quality and audience engagement regardless of account size.
"Creators today are building communities, businesses and cultural influence, not just audiences," said Revie Sylviana, director of global partnerships for Southeast Asia and emerging markets at Meta.
To support creator monetisation, Meta highlighted its growing portfolio of revenue-generating tools, including Partnership Ads, Creator Marketplace, subscriptions and affiliate commerce programmes.
The company said Instagram will soon launch an affiliate commerce partnership with Shopee in Thailand, following the success of a similar programme on Facebook which was introduced last year.
Meta said its global affiliate ecosystem has already connected more than 5 million creators with affiliate accounts, enabling them to earn commissions through authentic product recommendations.
Meta identified Instagram Reels as the platform's fastest-growing content format in Thailand since 2023.
Globally, more than half of all time spent on Instagram is now dedicated to Reels consumption.
GLOBAL REACH
Meta highlighted the international success of Thai content creators, particularly in sectors such as beauty, lifestyle and finance, as well as culturally distinctive entertainment categories including T-Pop and Boy Love productions.
These genres have attracted growing audiences across Japan, South Korea, the Philippines and Latin America, demonstrating the global appeal of Thai digital content.
The company said new artificial intelligence-powered tools, including AI Reels Translation with automatic voice translation and lip-sync technology, are helping creators overcome language barriers while maintaining cultural authenticity.
Meta said its long-term strategy focuses on helping creators establish sustainable businesses rather than relying solely on brand sponsorships.
The company also promoted the growth of Edits, its video editing application, which recorded 7 million downloads during its first week after launch.
"Thailand is one of Instagram's most vibrant communities in Southeast Asia," said Ms Sylviana.
