These are the most social media-addicted states in the U.S., and we’re not surprised at all by number one

Everyone is online, but in some states, time spent on social media is bordering on obsession. And a new study by personal injury legal practice Winder Law Firm is revealing exactly which of our nation's 50 are the most glued to TikTok, Instagram and the like. 

The firm dug into Google Keyword Planner to tally up search volume for major platforms—tracking queries like "Facebook login" and "TikTok desktop"—and adjusted the data per capita. Not surprisingly, New York State blew past the national average of 135,356 monthly searches per 100,000 residents, racking up an eye-popping 157,537. That is roughly 30.8 million total monthly platform-related searches coming out of a single state.

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Let’s be honest, though: this isn't about folks in upstate hamlets quietly checking Reddit in their Adirondack chairs. This massive digital thirst is almost certainly driven by the sheer, unhinged energy of New York City.

In a city where no one looks you in the eye on the subway, everyone needs somewhere else to look—and that somewhere is a smartphone screen. NYC is the global capital of "if you didn't post your $19 matcha latte, did you even drink it?" Between the army of micro-influencers filming content on the Brooklyn Bridge, fashion-week creators frantically refreshing Instagram and commuters doomscrolling on the L train, the Five Boroughs are likely doing the heavy lifting here.

But New York isn't the only social media-obsessed state. Virginia took second place with 156,340 monthly searches per 100k, followed closely by Washington (153,725), North Carolina (153,583) and Georgia (153,418). Texas and California generated higher overall search volume simply because they’re massive, but New York took the crown for raw, per-person digital obsession. YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, X and Reddit dominate search interest nationwide, though New Yorkers tend to prioritize Instagram and X slightly higher than the rest of the country.

And the those that aren't so focused on FOMO? That would be states like Vermont, Wyoming and Alaska, not surprising as they have plenty of natural beauty to obsess over instead.

The 10 most social media addicted states in the U.S., according to Widner Law Firm

1. New York
2. Virginia
3. Washington
4. North Carolina
5. Georgia
6. Massachusetts
7. Texas
8. Oregon
9. Illinois
10. Pennsylvania