The latest X data published this week — which the company was required to disclose under the European Union’s flagship set of rules for technology, the Digital Services Act — shows a sharp decline in users in Europe, according to POLITICO.
Since August last year, the platform has lost 11 million European users, with the largest exodus seen in France (2.7 million), Poland (1.8 million) and Germany (1.3 million).
Today, the platform has around 95 million users in Europe, compared to around 105 million last year, representing a 10.5% drop in six months. Lithuania and Luxembourg have lost a quarter of their users.
Elon Musk, who was one of US President Donald Trump’s most prominent advisers during the first 100 days of his second term, acquired X, then known as Twitter, in 2022. His changes to the platform’s rules and his promotion of nationally oriented political movements from the US to Europe have drawn criticism of the site for spreading misinformation and hate speech.
In January, the city of Paris left the platform, joining a number of other accounts that left after Musk’s acquisition, from legendary horror writer Stephen King to Leeds University and media outlets including British newspaper The Guardian.
The European Commission has been investigating X’s compliance with EU requirements to combat illegal content and fake news since 2023 and last July accused the platform of breaking the law, although the long-awaited punishment has not yet been handed down.
Musk’s electric car company Tesla has also suffered in Europe in recent months, with sales falling by more than 50% in January and February this year.
