As we all know, a new craze can have an impact on users’ online activity but for the most part our modern day Internet users spend a good portion of their time accessing their email, using search engines, and browsing social media. Russian users spend their time online like most others on the web.
Russia’s top 10 websites 2016 ranked by SimilarWeb tell us how Russians are spending their time online. Russia’s top 10 websites of 2016 consist of four social networking sites, three search engines, email, video entertainment, and classifieds. As opposed to some other markets, domestic sites dominate Russia but international websites still play a major role in the RuNet ecosystem. This blog walks through the top sites, defining the domestic sites and elaborating on some of the Russian uses of internationally well known sites.
- Vkontakte (VK), Russia’s local social media site, is at the top of the list, making it the most popular website in Russia. This is no surprise with the increasing popularity of social media, not only in Russia but all over the world. Beyond staying connected with friends and family, VK offers entertainment services as well. Users are able to create playlists of videos and music.
- Yandex, Russia’s leading search engine offering users lots of other services, is also at the top of the list as the second most popular website in Russia. Yandex is constantly a Russian favorite because it is built on Russian language and algorithms, giving Russians extremely relevant search results. Yandex.ru is a definite go-to for any Russian Internet user because if they aren’t entering a search query, they are checking their email, ordering tickets, shopping on Yandex.Market, among many other activities.
- Odnoklassniki (OK) is the third most popular website in Russia. Similar to Vkontakte, it is a local social media site. Odnoklassniki offers the same social networking functions as VK and Facebook, allowing you to connect and share with friends. While the site is very popular in Russia, it has a reputation for attracting an older crowd, compared to its Russian social media rival, Vkontakte, which reaches a younger audience. According to eMarketer, the majority of Odnoklassniki users are over the age of 35. While the majority of VK users are between the ages of 18 to 24.
- Mail.ru, which is very similar to Yahoo or AOL, ranks fourth on the list of Russia’s top 10 websites 2016. Mail.ru provides a mailing service, as well as providing search, news, and weather for its users. It is part of the Mail.ru Group, a key player on the Russian Internet scene.
- YouTube is high on the list, coming in 5th place. There is a local version of Youtube called RuTube that is also used to share videos on other social media platforms.
- Avito.ru, which in many ways is basically a Russian equivalent to Craigslist, is next on the list. Avito splits the country by the European and Eastern divisions. There are listings on anything from cars, property, jobs, to services. Last year, Naspers spent no less than $1.2 billion to buy a controlling stake in the company.
- Google lands at 8th place for Russia’s top websites. The American search engine lags behind local search provider Yandex, but is ahead of its competitor for mobile searches.
- Instagram comes in 9th place on the list, as a popular website to visit in addition to the mobile application.
- Facebook caps off the list of top websites in Russia. In contrast with most other countries, Facebook does not have a strong presence in Russia, lagging far behind local social networks Vkontakte and Odnoklassniki. Russia has the lowest percentage of Internet users using Facebook among all the countries tracked by SimilarWeb. Just 13.7% ar using Facebook on their phone this year.
The ranking has not seen a large shift since last year. Russian websites are still at the top of the list, while popular western sites such as YouTube, Facebook, and Google are less popular in Russia in comparison with other countries.
This analysis first appeared in Russian Search Marketing. The present version includes additional elements from East-West Digital News.
