Cities Where The Most Selfies Are Captured

Selfies, a self-portrait usually taken with a cell phone held at arm's length, have taken the world by storm. People have been taking selfies for years, prior to both the cell phone and digital camera, but this type of picture became particularly popular after the advent of Instagram and other social media websites. In 2012, Time magazine named the term “selfie” one of the top 10 buzzwords of the year. In some places, selfie taking seems to be more popular than in other places. This article takes a closer look at the cities in the world where people capture the most selfies every year, according to findings by Time magazine in 2014. The data was obtained by compiling a database of Instagram photos tagged with the word “selfie” and the geographic location. This database collection means that selfies without geographic coordinates and without the tag “selfie” were left out of the study.

Cities With The Most Selfies

Makati City and Pasig, Philippines

Makati City and Pasig in the Philippines ranks number 1 as the top selfie-taking city in the world. This urban area is considered part of Manila, the capital of the country. It has a population of around 500,000, who take around 258 selfies per 100,000. Residents of this country, and particularly this city, have had a long relationship with technology and social media. In fact, the Philippines was once given the distinction of “Texting Capital” of the world. In 2016, this city’s love affair with the selfie was further proven when it opened its first “Selfie Cafe”, which prints recently taken selfies into coffee foam art. Some sociologists believe that residents here have become dependent on social media due to political instability, which has caused civilians to lose faith in the government while learning to rely on each other as a social safety net. Selfies are one way to strengthen these social relationships.

Manhattan, New York, US

Manhattan, in New York City, has the second highest instance of tagged Instagram selfies in the world. In this city, around 202 people for every 100,000 take and publish selfies to the popular social media site. Part of the reason for this high number could be explained by the high number of tourists, who are sharing vacation pictures with their friends and family on Instagram. This area of the city has a high number of popular tourist spots. It should be noted, that this statistic includes selfies taken and tagged with GPS of other nearby neighborhoods, including: northern Brooklyn, part of Queens, and part of the south Bronx.

Miami, Florida, US

The number 3 spot on the selfie list goes to Miami, located in the US state of Florida. In this city, Time magazine found that 155 out of every 100,000 people post, tag, and provide GPS coordinates for their selfies on Instagram. Miami is another popular tourist location in the US, which explains why so many people want to share their photos on social media. Given the beautiful beaches, popular nightlife, and occasional celebrity sighting in this city, its high number of selfie pictures is not too surprising.

The chart published below offers a more in-depth list of cities with the highest selfie count around the world.