2023 Influencer Marketing Report: Influencer Marketing Statistics, Trends, and Predictions

Every year the team at Collabstr analyzes thousands of data points collected through our influencer marketplace. In the 2023 influencer marketing report, we list detailed breakdowns of our data and influencer marketing statistics, trends, and predictions heading into 2023.

Despite widespread concerns of a looming recession as we head into 2023, our team has observed an increase in influencer marketing spend by B2B and B2C companies which we attribute to a growing reliance on influencers and content creators amongst brands. 

In last year’s report, we predicted that influencer marketing budgets would increase due to the iOS 14 update which significantly impacted advertisers on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and more. As a result, we’re seeing more advertisers put an emphasis on the quality of their ad creatives, user-generated content (UGC), and community building in order to offset their customer acquisition cost (CAC).

This report was put together using data sourced from 50,000 influencers and 20,000 brands and advertisers which makes it our most data-intensive report so far, and also one of the largest influencer marketing reports in the industry. The data was collected between the dates of January 1, 2022 and November 20, 2022.

Influencer Marketing Market Size 2023

The influencer marketing market size is expected to grow to $17.4 Billion in 2023. This is a 14.47% increase from 2022 when the influencer marketing market size was $15.2 Billion.

The influencer marketing market shows no sign of slowing down any time soon either. It’s expected that the market will reach a size of $22.2 Billion in 2025, which is a 46.05% increase from 2022. 

It’s also possible that the influencer marketing market grows at a quicker rate than forecasted if external forces push advertisers into spending more on influencer marketing over the next few years. Some examples of this can already be seen, such as Apple waging war on social media giants like Meta that rely heavily on data collection to keep their advertising business afloat. We also see an influx of influencers hitting the market as platforms like YouTube shorts, Instagram Reels, and TikTok make it easier than ever for anyone to create content and build an audience.

 

 

Influencer Marketing Trends for 2023

With the influencer marketing market size expected to grow 14.47% in 2023, it’s important to stay in the loop on potential trends for 2023 in order to understand why this growth potential exists.

The Rise of User-Generated Content

The User-Generated Content (UGC) market has been on the rise over the past few years, and short-video apps like TikTok have only accelerated this. While user-generated content may not fit into the traditional mold of influencer marketing, it still requires that advertisers hire UGC creators and influencers to create the content for them, which ultimately boosts the spending flowing into the influencer marketing market.

Platforms like Instagram and TikTok have also put in a lot of effort to accommodate advertisers that prefer to leverage their UGC and they’ve done this by implementing features for whitelisting and dark posting.

In a world of branded content, UGC is refreshing as it allows brands to create personalized advertisements and content that don’t feel like they’ve come directly from a corporation. This helps the content fit seamlessly into the feeds of consumers.

Influencer Marketing after iOS 14

In the spring of 2021, Apple released an update that allows consumers to opt-out of data tracking when using apps like Instagram or TikTok. This was a huge hit to social media companies that rely on this data for their advertising businesses. Apple has continued to show that they are only going to continue moving in this direction, which is a big threat to brands that rely solely on advertising to acquire new customers.

As mentioned in our 2022 influencer marketing report, one of the trends we see as a result of these moves by Apple is advertisers, such as those in the D2C and CPG spaces, allocating more of their budgets towards influencer marketing in order to diversify advertising channels and create more of a relationship with their audience.

Influx of Micro-Influencers

As short-video apps continue to dominate the social media landscape there has been an influx of micro-influencers in every niche imaginable.

Short-video platforms like TikTok are known for their viral aspect. A big part of the reason these platforms are able to attract so many content creators is the fact that they offer more organic exposure to content creators than traditional methods, such as posting photos on Instagram.

As a result of this, everybody is becoming a content creator, and with this, you get more people that become influential in their associated niche. Micro-influencers can loosely be defined as anyone with a following of less than 50,000. 

With more micro-influencers on the market than ever before, there is more selection for advertisers and brands that are looking for someone to be the face of their product. 

Most Popular Social Media Platforms for Influencer Marketing in 2023

In 2022, TikTok was the most popular social media platform for influencer marketing, with 45% of paid collaborations taking place on the platform. Instagram comes second, with 39% of paid influencer collaborations in 2022 taking place on the platform. 

In last year’s report, we observed that Instagram was still king when it came to influencer marketing, but TikTok was quickly gaining momentum, and it was expected that it would soon overtake Instagram as the go-to platform for influencer marketing.

We also included user-generated content (UGC) in this year’s breakdown due to its incredible rate of growth, and that brands are allocating budgets specifically for UGC, just as they would for a platform like TikTok or Instagram. We observed that 14% of all paid collaborations were not specific to any particular platform, but instead they were UGC collaborations where the influencer delivered some content in exchange for a payment. The number of UGC collaborations in 2022 is higher than we’ve ever observed in the past.

We observed that 2% of paid collaborations took place on YouTube in 2022. While this may seem low, it’s also important to note that YouTube differs dramatically from platforms like TikTok and Instagram, where there are much more creators and content is not as evergreen. YouTube influencers tend to invest more time into the production of their content, and the content typically stays relevant for much longer, which leads to higher prices for collaborations.

This data was extrapolated from 7,000 paid collaborations between influencers and advertisers. In order to qualify as a valid data point, we only analyzed real orders where we could confirm that there was a monetary exchange between the influencer and the brand. We discarded gifted collaborations, survey data, and any other collaborations where there was no exchange of money for the service. We believe that analyzing where the budget is being spent, rather than where people talk about spending their budget, is the best way to get an accurate look at the landscape.

 

Most Popular Services Offered by Influencers

We analyzed 50,000 influencers and broke down the most popular influencer marketing services offered by them. It’s important to note that each influencer can offer multiple services across multiple platforms, hence the overlap in percentages.

 

 

82% of all influencers that offer marketing or content creation services have an Instagram and actively offer paid services on their Instagram account. With Instagram arguably being the original platform for modern-day influencer marketing, it makes sense that a majority of influencers offer services on this platform.

61% of all influencers offer paid services on TikTok. Last year, we observed that 38% more influencers were offering services on Instagram over TikTok. This year, that gap has shrunk to 29% as more influencers make TikTok their primary platform.

User-generated content (UGC) services have exploded in popularity amongst influencers offering these services. 26% of influencers offer paid UGC services, and due to the fact that this is not reliant on a social media presence, many of these content creators don’t offer services on other social media platforms.

YouTube comes last, with 9% of influencers offering paid services to brands on YouTube. It’s much more time-consuming to create content on YouTube than it is for other platforms. As a result of this, there is a much smaller pool of influencers on YouTube.

Top 10 Most Popular Countries for Influencer Marketing

While influencer marketing takes place in many forms across the world, whether it be through public appearances or TV advertisements, we analyzed the top 10 countries that are most popular for influencer marketing specifically on social media.

 

The top 10 countries for influencer marketing on social media are:

1. USA

2. Canada

3. UK

4. Australia

5. Germany

6. Mexico

7. France

8. Spain

9. Netherlands

10. Italy

For the most part, this list has stayed the same for the past few years. The USA is the largest consumer market in the world, so it’s no question why brands continue to dump influencer marketing budgets into US-based influencers.

Canada comes second in the list, and while the country does not have a consumer market nearly as large as the USA, its close proximity to the US means that influencers in Canada typically share a very similar demographic to those based in the US and for that reason they can be used interchangeably.

The United Kingdom is the third most popular country for influencer marketing, after all, it is home to some of the modern-day pioneers of influencer marketing like Gymshark.

Mexico is a notable mention when it comes to the most popular countries for influencer marketing. This year it sits at sixth position on our list, but we’ve observed it steadily climbing over the years as a Latin-American hub for influencer marketing. The country has the fifteenth-largest economy in the world and the second-largest economy in Latin America.

Top 10 Cities With the Most Influencers in North America

With North America remaining the most popular region for influencer marketing, we wanted to break down the distribution of influencers across cities in North America.

The top 10 cities with influencers in North America:

1. Los Angeles, USA

2. New York City, USA

3. Toronto, Canada

4. Vancouver, Canada

5. Atlanta, USA

6. Miami, USA

7. Chicago, USA

8. Houston, USA

9. Dallas, USA

10. Orlando, USA

Los Angeles and New York City still remain the top two cities for influencers in North America. Toronto, which is the most populated city in Canada comes third on the list.

Top 10 Most Popular Influencer Niches

The lifestyle niche is the most popular niche amongst influencers, followed by the fashion, beauty, and travel niches. This remains consistent with the data from last year’s report, where the same three niches sat in the top 3 positions.

Niches like lifestyle, beauty, and fashion remain popular niches because they tend to be broad that allow for a wide range of influencers to identify with them. This also makes these niches extremely saturated and competitive, which means a small minority of influencers within these niches make the majority of the money.

Influencer Marketing Spend Per Country

We analyzed the distribution of influencer marketing budgets for the top 4 countries where the most funds were spent on influencers in 2022. 

82% of influencer marketing budgets were spent on influencers in the United States. 8% of influencer marketing budgets were spent on influencers in Canada, leaving the United Kingdom and Australia each with 5% of influencer marketing budget allocation.

 

 

How Much do Brands Spend on Influencers?

We analyzed 10,000 paid collaborations and found that on average brands spend $257 per collaboration with an influencer. 

How Much Do Influencers Charge on Each Platform?

We analyzed the pricing packages of 50,000 influencers with the help of our influencer price calculator to find the average price being charged by influencers on each platform. It’s important to note that this is the average price being asked of influencers, but the actual price that is paid by advertisers may vary.

 

 

Instagram Influencer Cost: $363

Instagram influencers charge $363 on average for a collaboration. This rate includes content packages where influencers offer static feed posts, reels, and stories. Prices also fluctuate based on add-ons, such as the utilization of the new Instagram collab post feature. The average price per content package is lower on Instagram than it is on TikTok, this could be for a few reasons.

First off, there are more influencers on Instagram than on any other platform, and when there is a surplus of supply, the prices naturally decline.

Next, Instagram content takes less time to create than TikTok or YouTube content. Influencer marketing on Instagram is still heavily reliant on static photo posts and Instagram stories. On the other hand, TikTok and YouTube are video apps that do not support photo content, and video can require more time and effort to film and edit hence the higher price tag.

Lastly, Instagram does not offer the organic exposure that other platforms do. TikTok is known for rewarding creators with millions of views, and YouTube is an evergreen platform in the sense that it will continue to push your content years after it has been posted. On the other hand, Instagram has a weak discovery algorithm which has only recently improved due to the introduction of Reels.

User-Generated Content Influencer Cost: $396

User-generated content (UGC) creators charge $396 on average for a collaboration. We analyzed thousands of UGC packages from our creators to figure out the average amount that is charged by them. Some packages may include multiple pieces of content, while other packages may only include a single piece of content. 

UGC can mean a variety of things such as product photos, ads, testimonials, unboxing videos, and more. Creators have become increasingly interested in charging brands for this service as more and more brands are looking for high-quality custom content for their products.

Typically with UGC, usage rights are sold alongside the content package so that the buyer is granted permission to use the content exclusively, whether that be on their website, in their ads, or on their own social media channels. This can contribute to a higher average price per UGC package.

TikTok Influencer Cost: $460

TikTok influencers charge $460 on average for a collaboration. Despite TikTok being a relatively new platform, influencers seem to be pricing themselves on the higher end. 

Higher pricing could be due to the fact that TikTok is new, so there aren’t as many influencers as on Instagram. TikTok statistics show that TikTok was the most downloaded social media app in the first quarter of 2022, so this could change soon.

TikTok content can also be time-consuming to film and edit since a collaboration on TikTok almost always means you’ll be filming a 60-second video. Increased labor means an increased cost.

YouTube Influencer Cost: $791

YouTube influencers charge $791 on average for a collaboration. It comes as no surprise that influencer prices are the highest on YouTube as it’s the most time-consuming and labor-intensive platform for creating content as an influencer.

How Much do Brands Pay Influencers on Each Platform?

The previous statistic showed how much influencers are charging on each platform, here we will break down how much money brands are actually paying influencers on each platform.

On average, we find that brands will end up paying about 50% of the asking price for user-generated content or influencer marketing services on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube. Negotiations are a big part of influencer marketing, and package prices are often changed depending on a number of factors such as deliverables, engagement rate, and volume of content.

 

Instagram Influencers Make $183 Per Collaboration 

On average, Instagram influencers get paid $183 per collaboration on Instagram. This includes the blended pricing of Instagram story posts, static feed posts, and Instagram Reel posts.

TikTok Influencers Make $203 Per Collaboration 

On average, TikTok influencers make $203 per collaboration. This is slightly higher than the average rate of $183 paid to Instagram influencers.

UGC Creators Make $227 Per Collaboration

On average, UGC creators make $227 per collaboration. While most UGC creators are not required to post the content to their social channels, they end up making money in addition to the content they deliver by offering usage rights.

Brands will pay UGC creators extra in order to purchase exclusive rights to their content, and some creators can charge more depending on how long the brand would like the rights for.

YouTube Influencers Make $418 Per Collaboration

On average, YouTube influencers make $418 per collaboration. YouTube is the highest-paying social media platform per brand deal. This is due to the fact that YouTube content is labor-intensive to produce, and it also stays relevant for a much longer time than content on platforms like TikTok or Instagram.

Top 3 Highest-Priced Influencer Niches

1. Celebrity & Public Figure

The celebrity and public figure niche is the highest-priced influencer niche as it is predominantly filled with influencers that also identify as celebrities of some sort. When an influencer stars in a movie or becomes a popular music artist, it becomes more expensive to pay them for their personal brand.

2. Entrepreneur & Business

The second most expensive influencer niche is the entrepreneur and business niche. Many advertisers in this niche are selling high-priced products and as a result, they can afford more to acquire a customer. This is the same reason that one of the most profitable niches for Adsense income on YouTube is the investment and personal finance niche, which is a subset of the entrepreneur and business niche.

3. Lifestyle

The lifestyle niche is the third highest-priced influencer niche. This niche is heavily saturated, and the niche itself is very general, so prices can vary from influencer to influencer based on a variety of factors. 

Average Price for Influencers in Each Niche

In order to get an overall look at which niches are priced the highest, we analyzed the pricing information of 50,000 creators to see what they are charging for content packages. These prices are a blend of all their content packages and are not particular to any single platform. 

 

Gender Breakdown of Influencers

After analyzing 50,000 influencer profiles we found that 77% of influencers are female, and 23% of influencers are male.

Influencer marketing is still heavily dominated by females, and this data is consistent with our findings in last year's report as well. If we look at the previous statistic of the top 10 most popular influencer niches, the top three niches (lifestyle, beauty, fashion) are female-dominated niches. 

It is important to note that this only includes social media users that are actively monetizing their services in one way or another. These numbers do not represent the gender breakdown of social media users as a whole.

 

 

Gender Breakdown of Influencers by Platform

When breaking down the gender distribution of influencers by platform, we can see that not every platform has the same imbalance of females and males.

The platform with the largest gap between male and female influencers is Instagram, where 79% of influencers are female and 21% of influencers are male. 

TikTok comes next on the list where 76% of influencers are female, and 24% of influencers are male. While still a large gap, genders are more balanced than on Instagram, presumably because video content opens up the doors to different content styles that may not exist on Instagram. For example, the comedy and entertainment niche is one of the most popular niches on TikTok, and 48% of influencers in this niche are male, while the other 52% are female. This is a prime example of how the birth of new platforms and content mediums can offset imbalances and encourage more people to create content.

YouTube is the platform with the smallest gap between the number of female and male influencers. 69% of influencers on YouTube are female, while 31% are male. YouTube is a high barrier-to-entry platform that ultimately weeds out people that might be looking for quick success.

We also wanted to include the gender breakdown of user-generated content influencers and content creators. We found that 82% of creators offering user-generated content services are female, and only 18% are male. Typically these creators are hired for the creation of UGC ads, video testimonials, product photos, and more. Based on our data, it seems that female UGC creators are favored by the market and typically win most of the opportunities, but this could also be due to a lack of male supply.

Gender Breakdown of Influencers by Follower Range

In order to understand where the gender gap lies, we broke down the gender distribution on each platform by follower count. 

Overall, you’ll notice that as the follower count on a social media platform increases, the gender gap between male and female influencers begins to shrink.

Gender Breakdown of Instagram Influencers by Follower Range

The gender gap between male and female influencers on Instagram is most noticeable for influencers with less than 100,000 followers. As we get above 100,000 followers and into the territory of mega-influencers and celebrities, you can begin to see the gap close.

 

Gender Breakdown of TikTok Influencers by Follower Range

The gender breakdown of influencers on TikTok is very similar to that of Instagram. Just like Instagram, influencers with less than 100,000 followers tend to be majority female. But as the follower count increases, we can see that gap closing a considerable amount.

Gender Breakdown of YouTube Influencers by Follower Range

YouTube is the most balanced platform when it comes to the gender breakdown of influencers. While the gap between male and female influencers is still largest at subscriber counts below 100,000, we see a nearly even distribution of males and females when we get to influencers with over 100,000 subscribers. 

Average Number of Social Media Accounts Per Influencer

On average, influencers are monetizing 1.9 social media platforms at a time. This means that most influencers are making money on roughly 2 social media platforms in total by offering influencer marketing or UGC services.

How many Creators Offer User-Generated Content Services?

26% of content creators offer user-generated content (UGC) services. This is up from just 13.6% in 2021. 

By offering UGC services, creators and influencers can monetize their content creation skills without having to over-expose their audience to sponsored posts.

Some common examples of UGC include:

• Testimonials

• Unboxings

• Ads

• Reviews

Average Time to Complete an Influencer Collaboration

On average, it takes 16 days for an influencer collaboration to go from start to finish. Some collaborations can be longer or shorter than 16 days depending on the logistics involved. 

We typically see collaborations involving digital products, such as software or mobile apps finished faster than the 16-day average. On the other hand, collaborations that require influencers to visit a physical location, or wait for product shipment can take more than 16 days.

How Long Do Influencers Take To Respond?

We found that influencers who respond to collaboration requests within 14 hours are most likely to follow through with the collaboration and ultimately get paid for doing the work. This number has been shrinking year over year, as influencers begin to treat brand collaborations as legitimate business opportunities.

After 14 hours, the chance of an influencer finalizing the collaboration with the advertiser begins to decline. One of the main reasons for this is that brands are typically on tight deadlines and as a result, they initiate communication with multiple influencers at once in the hopes of getting the influencer campaign completely in a timely fashion.

Speed of communication plays a critical role in the success of an influencer collaboration.