How To Limit Social Media Use In 2025: Which Apps Should You Delete ASAP?

After 15 years of exposure to increasingly hyper-stimulating apps and platforms, social media has become a paradox.

The paradox is this:

It’s now easier than ever to connect with people. Yet it’s become harder than ever to truly connect on a deeper level.

People are addicted, overwhelmed, and trapped by modern “social” inventions.

An abundance of new information floods our brains every day.

We’ve evolved from Myspace and MSN to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Reddit, and TikTok.

All have their pros and cons. But which are the most harmful to consume content through?

To answer that, we first need to consider:

What Are We Really Using Social Media For?

What we want from social media and what we get often do not align. Not anymore.

A recent MDU survey found that the most popular reason for using social media was to keep in touch with friends and family. Makes sense, right?

But is this what we’re doing most of the time?

We may crave connection, yet end up feeling lonelier than ever after seeing people living their “best life” while you’re in bed on your phone… again!

We may need some positivity, yet end up doom-scrolling politics and negative news.

We may be looking for an energy boost, yet end up more exhausted after being lost in the social media vortex for a couple of hours.

My point is that many people don’t have a clear vision of what they want from social media, nor how they plan to use it to fulfil that vision.

So what ends up happening?

We passively consume, taking the role of prey, eaten alive by the almighty algorithm predator.

While it has become trendy to demonise and dismiss all social media as harmful, from personal experience, I don’t believe this is true 100% of the time.

80% of the time?

Okay, that’s hard to argue with. Just think:

Have you ever felt more hopeful, motivated, or validated after using a social media platform?

Of course you have. If it were a constant barrage of negativity, you would have stopped long ago (I hope).

I’ve met people through YouTube, LinkedIn, and forums that have evolved into rewarding, multi-year friendships.

I’ve also developed my career through social media.

Here’s what I suggest as a good place to start:

List all of the social media platforms you use.

Using your intuition, rank them by what you feel is the most helpful to the most harmful for your mental health and attention span.

For example, I went through periods of using Instagram and TikTok, but not anymore. I deleted them because I felt they had a net negative impact on my life. This may not be true for you.

I encourage you to pause here for a minute to make your ranking list, then continue.

Done?

Great, let’s move on.

Caught In A Riptide — Why The “Drag Factor” Is A Crucial Part Of Your Social Media Use

Now you’ve got your list at hand, it’s a good time to talk about the “drag factor.”

This is a term I’ve coined myself (as far as I’m aware, anyway!) to assess my own social media consumption.

You may have heard of a natural phenomenon called riptides. They’re sneaky, dangerous, and difficult to escape from.

Someone can intend to go for a swim or paddle close to shore, yet find themselves dragged away from the beach and out to sea.

The current is too intense to fight against.

I kind of think of social media in the same way. Maybe you open an app intending to watch, read, or do a specific action for a few minutes. But, before you know it, you’re sucked into the vortex and spend an hour on the darn thing.

I believe certain social media apps and platforms have a stronger drag factor than others due to how they’re structured.

Autoplays, news feeds, and sidebars are notorious for this.

Once you are caught in one of these currents of information, you’re in a real fight to wrestle back your time and attention.

So, again, I suggest you pause for a minute to rank the social media you use by how strong you feel its drag factor is.

I’ll also add the free spreadsheet you can use to help with this exercise.

Once you’ve finished that little task, review your list of social media ranked by mental health and attention span impact, and your list of social media ranked by drag factor.

Do they align quite closely?

Don’t be surprised if they do.

Action Time: How To Use Social Media On Your Terms (Without Living In The Dark Ages)

A minority of people choose to opt out of social media altogether. I understand and respect this decision, but it’s not my intention.

Social media offers me too many benefits to scrap them all.

If used in the right way, they can be a net positive for your personal life and work life.

Nevertheless, it’s about finding the right balance. And you have the agency to decide which social media to reduce or stop, and which to keep.

For those that you decide to keep, you also have the agency to use them in a way that suits your needs.

Now, here’s a big ask:

If you use more than three social media apps or platforms, I suggest choosing one that you will delete, deactivate, or block today.

This initial action will give you a feeling of empowerment. It’s a vote for yourself and your long-term wellbeing. See how you manage this change over the following days.

Do you feel tempted to return to it or not?

What happened to me is that I ended up using one of the remaining social media platforms more to compensate. This was expected. However, it did highlight the next phase for me to focus on.

For the remaining social media platforms you keep — whether that’s two, four, or six — aim to reduce your total use of these platforms by 5-10% every couple of weeks.

Maybe you delete or deactivate them one at a time, or you set time limits on your usage.

Don’t criticise yourself too much when you hit roadblocks. It’s normal. But do spend time reflecting on what’s tripped you up and the logical options to navigate this roadblock.

For example, can you take gradual steps toward removing 80% of the social media apps from your phone?

That way, you’re only able to use them on your laptop or desktop. This will significantly reduce your usage, at least when you’re away from home.

There are plenty of free app and website-blocking extensions and software, as well as screen time trackers. Here are a few I’ve benefitted from:

• LeechBlock

• StayFree

• StayFocused

• UnDistracted

How I Reduced My Social Media Consumption By Over 50% (And Reclaimed My Time and Attention)

This hasn’t been an easy journey for me, to be honest.

I’d love to say I clicked my fingers and, hey, I’m no longer addicted to social media.

That wasn’t the reality for me. Neither is this the case for 99.9% of other people either.

Comparing my social media consumption now to how it was at its peak, though, does make me feel a sense of reward.

My consumption ranges from 50-80% less than before.

Let me go through the list of popular platforms one by one, in alphabetical order.

• Facebook: 95% less

• Instagram: 95% less (no longer have an active account)

• LinkedIn: 80% less

• Medium: 10% more

• Pinterest: 100% less (no longer have an active account)

• Reddit: 80% less (a recent development, was addicted before)

• Snapchat: Never used

• Substack: Never used (may use it more, but I have Beehiiv for my newsletter)

• TikTok: 100% less (no longer have an active account)

• Tumblr: Never used

• Twitter/X: 95% less (no longer have an active account)

• YouTube: Working on it!

One of the most harmful aspects of social media I’ve become more aware of over time is how it affects your patience and levels of emotional impulsivity.

So, I’m making an effort to take back control but cutting back content that:

I often underestimate how far I’ve come but, looking at the list above, I’ve managed to reduce my usage of many platforms drastically.

Much of the hyper-stimulating content we’re blasted with is highly unnatural and toxic.

In my opinion, content such as newsletters, podcasts, and slower, longer YouTube videos without intense editing are a lot healthier for our brains.

This is both a reclaiming and retraining process. It’s hard, and it takes time.

Once again, here is a link to a free spreadsheet I put together to help you assess which social media apps you’re most reliant on for stimulation, and which you may want to reduce or cut out first.

I promise it’s a worthwhile journey.

Good luck,

Declan Davey