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Pew Internet & American Life Project
Online Classifieds Climb
The number of online adults who have used online classified ads has more than doubled in the past four years. Almost half (49%) of internet users say they have ever used online classified sites, compared with 22% of online adults who had done so in 2005.
On any given day about a tenth of internet users (9%) visit online classified sites, up from 4% in 2005.
These are the main findings of an April 2009 survey by the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project. They highlight the growing importance of such sites to internet users and reflect the changes in the audience for classified ads -- both those who place them and those who make purchases -- that have devastated a key revenue source for traditional newspapers.
The figures also underscore the growing social role of online classified ads. On May 13, Craigslist eliminated the controversial "erotic services" section of its site and said it would manually review every ad posted in a new "adult services" section it had created. The move came after a Boston medical student was charged with killing a masseuse he had found on the erotic services section of Craigslist.
In the world of online classified advertising, Craigslist is by far the most used website in the United States. In March 2009, classified sites averaged 53.8 million unique visitors, up 7% from February.1 Craigslist had 42.2 million unique visitors in the month of March.2 The free, no-frills, user-generated and self-policing classified ads site has grown tremendously since its start in 1996 in San Francisco. As of April 2009, Craigslist had established itself in over 500 cities across 50 different countries.3 Other online classified sites include Gumtree (primarily UK) and Kijiji (worldwide).
Classified ads sites are a one-stop-"shop" for everything from jobs to apartments to furniture to movers to puppies. However, users don't buy anything directly on classified websites -- they use the sites to set up meetings, and transactions are conducted in person or by mail -- a characteristic that separates online classifieds from auction or shopping websites like eBay and Amazon.
Demographics
Age is a significant factor in online classifieds use.
Free online classifieds sites like Craigslist are tremendously popular with young adults moving to new cities, looking for jobs, or trying to find inexpensive goods or roommates. Internet users ages 25-44 are significantly more likely than any other age group -- including 18-24 year-olds -- to use online classified ads. Fully 62% of online 25-34 year olds and 57% of 35-44 year-olds use online classified ads, compared with 49% of online 18-24 year olds and 48% of online 45-54 year olds.
Internet users age 55 and older are significantly less likely than younger age groups to use online classifieds. Just over a third (35%) of online 55-64 year olds use classified websites, while about a quarter (26%) of internet users age 65 and older do so.
On a typical day, internet users ages 18-44 are also slightly more likely than online adults 55 and older to use classified sites.
Browse the full report, including the entire set of infographics related to this project and a description of the methodology, at pewinternet.org.
1. "comScore Media Metrix Ranks Top 50 U.S. Web Properties for March 2009" (Reston, VA, April 22, 2009). Available at: http://ir.comscore.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=379203.
2. See above.
3. Craigslist fact sheet, http://www.craigslist.org/about/factsheet.