Glossary
Engagement rate
What does engagement rate mean?
- Reading the question
- Writing it in plain words
The part worth reading
What it does not tell you.
The trap is that there are two of them and they are not comparable. Engagement rate by followers divides interactions by follower count; engagement rate by reach divides by the accounts that actually saw it. The second is almost always the higher number, so a rate quoted without saying which one it is can be made to look twice as good by choosing the flattering denominator. When a brand asks for your engagement rate, ask which one they mean, and when a tool shows you one, check which it computed.
Worked example
A post with 400 likes, comments, saves and shares, seen by 10,000 accounts, has an engagement rate of 4% by reach.
The usual mistake
Comparing a rate worked out by followers with one worked out by reach. They are different numbers and the reach version is usually higher.
Three to six percent. The audience is answering. For an account this size, that is the range brands like to find.
formula: (likes + comments) ÷ followers × 100, averaged over recent posts
Read next
Words that go with it.
- ReachReach is the number of separate accounts that saw a post at least once.
- Reach rateReach rate is the share of your followers a post reached, written as a percentage.
- Median, and your own baselineYour median is the middle value of your own posts, and it is the only fair thing to judge a new post against.
Now the harder question. What do yours say?
Ask Synclify in the same plain words and it reads your own account. Every dashboard and chart in it is free to use on every plan.
Cancel any time. Every dashboard and report is free to open.