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Meta has released findings from new IPSOS studies highlighting how Reels is becoming a central part of India’s video-first digital economy, with engagement spanning across metros, smaller cities, and rural markets. The company says video consumption on its platforms has reached near-universal levels, while Reels is increasingly serving as a destination for content discovery, creator engagement, trend adoption, and commerce.
According to the Meta-commissioned research, 97% of surveyed users in India watch video on Meta platforms daily, reflecting the country’s rapid shift toward mobile-first and video-first behavior. The study also indicates that the traditional urban-rural divide in digital engagement is narrowing significantly, with 98% daily video engagement in urban India and 94% in rural India.
The research surveyed more than 4,000 respondents across 23 cities, including metro regions, Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, as well as rural India. The findings suggest that Meta has become a leading daily video platform across multiple audience segments, recording 97% daily usage among Gen Z users, 97% among women, and 98% among NCCS A audiences.
At the center of this shift is Reels, which Meta describes as the defining short-form video platform for the next generation of consumers. The company says Reels is increasingly becoming a personal discovery screen where users engage with creators, communities, trends, entertainment, and brands throughout the day.
Among younger audiences, 89% of Gen Z users engage with Reels daily, while daily engagement reaches 85% among women and 88% among NCCS A audiences, highlighting the platform’s broad reach across demographic groups.
Commenting on the findings, Saugato Bhowmik, Director, CPG, D2C, Automotive (India) at Meta, “India’s video boom isn’t urban-led anymore – it’s nationwide, cutting across GenZ, women and premium audiences. Creators, culture and commerce are converging on Reels in ways we haven’t seen before. For brands, this isn’t just a content play – it’s a always on Content-to-Commerce play. Reels are where discovery starts, trust is built, and purchase decisions are made.”
The study also points to the growing influence of Gen Z and Bharat audiences in shaping India’s digital landscape. Meta reports that 84% of Gen Z consumers discover new products and brands through Meta platforms, while 73% of rural users also use Meta platforms for product and brand discovery.
The findings suggest that creator-led content is playing an increasingly important role beyond major cities, helping brands reach consumers across smaller towns and rural regions through culturally relevant and localized storytelling.
In terms of content preferences, the research highlights several categories that are generating the strongest engagement on Reels. Beauty and Makeup and Fashion and Trends emerged as the most engaging categories at 52% each, followed by Lifestyle (42%), Fitness and Wellness (42%), Comedy and Humour (39%), Sports (38%), and Travel (37%).
Creators continue to play a major role in driving engagement across these categories. According to Meta, Reels delivers nearly 60% higher creator engagement compared to other surveyed short-form video platforms, reinforcing the growing influence of creator-led storytelling in shaping trends, conversations, and consumer decisions.
Beyond entertainment, Meta says Reels is becoming an increasingly important part of the consumer purchase journey. The study reports that Reels contributes to 81% product discovery, 66% consideration, and 47% purchase influence, positioning short-form video as a major driver of modern commerce behavior.
The influence extends across multiple industries, including e-commerce, automotive, and financial services. In the automotive sector, Meta says its platforms influence 82% of discovery, 68% of consideration, and 50% of purchase decisions, while in financial services, 76% of rural financial-services users engage with Meta platforms daily.
Women are also emerging as a significant audience in financial services content, with 54% of women financial product owners engaging with creators on Meta platforms daily, one of the highest engagement levels recorded across audience groups in the study.
The findings reflect how video consumption, creator ecosystems, and commerce are increasingly converging across India’s digital economy. As mobile-first users continue to drive content consumption across both urban and rural markets, Reels is positioning itself as a key platform for entertainment, discovery, creator engagement, and purchasing decisions.
Key Highlights
- 97% of surveyed Indian users watch videos on Meta platforms daily
- Daily video engagement stands at 98% in urban India and 94% in rural India
- 89% of Gen Z users engage with Reels daily
- 85% of women and 88% of NCCS A audiences use Reels daily
- Beauty & Makeup (52%) and Fashion & Trends (52%) are the most engaged Reels categories
- Reels delivers nearly 60% higher creator engagement than other surveyed short-form video platforms
- Reels drives 81% product discovery, 66% consideration, and 47% purchase influence
- 84% of Gen Z consumers discover new products and brands through Meta platforms
- 73% of rural users use Meta platforms for product and brand discovery
- Meta reports strong influence across e-commerce, automotive, and financial services categories
