Monday, August 05, 2013

How Many Kinky People Are There?

Never enough

For a long time I have been wondering how many kinky people there are in the world. Just out of curiosity. Google cannot answer my question. I am still wondering though. So here is my theory: if you are kinky and have a Facebook account, you also have a Fetlife account.

addams family in black and white
The embodiment of kinky: The Addams Family

According to their own site Facebook has 1.15 billion monthly active users as of June 2013. I cannot find a good estimate for the number of active Fetlife users but on their site they boast 2,264,946 member (August 2013). If you divide 2.2 million by 1.2 billion you have an upper limit of 0.4 per cent of the global population being kinksters. But as they say in Dutchland: that is comparing apples and pears. Unfortunately I cannot find the numbers right now but there are several statistics claiming the number of active users on Fetlife varies between 250,000 and 500,000. If we assume the correct number is 500,000 about 0.04 per cent of all people in the world is kinky which makes for 2.8 million of us. A rounding error creeps in right away. If that number is correct over three quarters of all kinky people are on Fetlife. That sounds like a lot.

Breaking down the statistics for Dutchland with about 17 million people it would mean there are 17mln * 0.04% = 6800 kinksters living in that beautiful flat country. That does not sound right, does it? The Netherlands must be more into kink than that. If anyone knows of a better estimate, please let me know.


1 comment :

Phil Lane said...

Fetlife is a good place for ‘practicing ‘ kinksters who are out and about in the Kink Community.
However there will be very many people who find the kink-lifestyle fascinating but do not have the opportunity, or self confidence or opportunity or support from their partner, to bring their ambitions into reality.
Remember what a run-away success Fifty Shades of Grey has been.
Yes, its a terrible book but many people bought it and I am going to guess that the sales point to a latent kink-interest in society.
Perhaps Fetlife is like an iceberg and two thirds of Kinksters remain hidden beneath the surface?

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