Hamilton has a combined following across Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) approaching 45 million.
Of those, 36.6 million fans follow him on Instagram, more than double Charles Leclerc, Formula 1’s next-most-popular driver.
The Ferrari driver has a combined audience of 17.4 million, most of whom follow him on Instagram; the Monegasque is not among the top five drivers in X.
Daniel Ricciardo remains a prominent figure. His smiley demeanour and cheeky personality have seen him win fans globally, but his stock Stateside is arguably strongest.
The 34-year-old RB driver is the fourth most followed driver, with 12.5 million followers across the two leading platforms.
Such is Ricciardo’s popularity that he’s one of the 10 most influential figures in the championship on social media even when one includes the teams, drivers, and F1 itself.
Red Bull Racing has an audience of 16.7 million, while Ricciardo’s own team, RB, has fewer than 5 million followers across its two major platforms.
Yuki Tsunoda has fewer still, with 2 million followers on Instagram and just 600,000 on X – the Japanese driver is only the 15th most popular on the grid.
Countryman Oscar Piastri has a much smaller following – a result of his comparative freshness to the grid.
The 22-year-old is only the 15th most followed driver on Instagram with an audience of 1.8 million, and 16th most popular on X with a follower count of 620,000.
His McLaren team-mate Lando Norris meanwhile has 7.7 million followers on Instagram and 2.7 million on X.
Unsurprisingly, Ferrari leads the way as far as teams go, with a combined audience approaching 20 million on Instagram and X, about 1.5 million clear of Mercedes.
McLaren’s social media supporter base is nearly identical to the all-conquering Red Bull Racing, with the papaya operation boasting 16.682 million followers to 16.699 million for last year’s constructors’ champions.
According to social media, Sauber is the least popular, while Ricciardo’s RB is seventh on the list – one spot higher than Williams.
A strong social media following is an asset as, along with building the driver or team profile, it can also be a revenue source.
Valtteri Bottas recently collaborated with Uber Carshare, filming a video posted on his channels alongside two images.
According to InBeat.co, which calculates the potential cost of engaging with social media influences, that Instagram collaboration could be worth as much as AUD $225,000 given his 4.2 million followers.
A similar relationship with Ricciardo could potentially run as high as $500,000.
Most popular F1 drivers on social media
| Pos | Driver | Followers |
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | 44,963,134 |
| 2 | Charles Leclerc | 17,446,769 |
| 3 | Max Verstappen | 15,244,136 |
| 4 | Daniel Ricciardo | 12,498,801 |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | 11,808,962 |
| 6 | Sergio Perez | 10,724,012 |
| 7 | Fernando Alonso | 10,608,854 |
| 8 | Lando Norris | 10,443,811 |
| 9 | George Russell | 7,451,888 |
| 10 | Pierre Gasly | 6,393,285 |
Most popular F1 teams on social media
| Pos | Team | Followers |
| 1 | Ferrari | 19,450,409 |
| 2 | Mercedes | 17,868,258 |
| 3 | Red Bull Racing | 16,698,995 |
| 4 | McLaren | 16,682,844 |
| 5 | Aston Martin | 6,541,704 |
| 6 | Alpine | 5,497,084 |
| 7 | RB | 4,898,546 |
| 8 | Williams | 4,831,603 |
| 9 | Haas | 4,552,301 |
| 10 | Sauber | 3,992,456 |
Most popular F1 social media accounts
| Pos | Account | Followers |
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | 44,963,134 |
| 2 | F1 | 37,789,718 |
| 3 | Ferrari | 19,450,409 |
| 4 | Mercedes | 17,868,258 |
| 5 | Charles Leclerc | 17,446,769 |
| 6 | Red Bull Racing | 16,698,995 |
| 7 | McLaren | 16,682,844 |
| 8 | Max Verstappen | 15,244,136 |
| 9 | Daniel Ricciardo | 12,498,801 |
| 10 | Carlos Sainz | 11,808,962 |
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