I was already on my way home inside an elevator when I began to think, what are the most visited websites or sites in the Philippines? What do most of the Filipinos do online nowadays? For what reason do we Filipinos go online? Which websites experience receive high Filipino traffic?
In this post, I will talk about the most popular websites in the Philippines as of September 2015. My source here is Alexa which is a commercial web traffic data and analytics provider. I will also give my own prejudice in defining what the online Filipino community does at this point in time.
But first, let me give to you the list of the top 25 (most popular) websites in the Philippines.
So, what is in it for me reading this post? What is the importance of this ranking? What does this list tell us about the average Filipino netizen?
- Facebook.com
- Google.com
- Google.com.ph
- Youtube.com
- Yahoo.comm
- Gmanetwork.com
- Amazon.com
- Blogspot.com
- Twitter.com
- Wikipedia.org
- Inquirer.net
- Lazada.com.ph
- Olx.ph
- Rappler.com
- Linkedin.com
- Instagram.com
- Ask.com
- Abscbnnews.com
- Kat.cr
- Wordpress.com
- Diply.com
- Onclickads.net
- Blogger.com
- Paypal.com
- Pinterest.com
Here are some points to ponder on. These are just my generalizations on what Filipino do online.
FIRST: Filipino netizens love to network with other people.
Deeply rooted within our culture of Filipino hospitality, perhaps it's not that hard to say that Filipinos love to let others people know what they are doing or even speak out their minds in the online world since the Philippines was known to be the text messaging capital of the world - the behavior of which is often exploited by telecommunication companies like PLDT, Globe, Smart, TalknText, TM, and Sun Cellular. What evidence must be needed when this list is topped by Facebook, shown with the inclusion of Twitter and LinkedIn. Perhaps, the extent of social networking far reaches the negative side of the spectrum as more and more Filipinos nowadays are being lured to pyramid scams which are often proliferated by fellow netizens in these social networks.
SECOND: Filipino netizens love to write and share.
A lot of Filipinos love to share just anything from things they know to things they don't know he he. Clearly, there are a lot of bloggers who have established their niches through their blogs either via Blogger (or Blogspot) and Wordpress. I mentioned "things they do not know" because a few bloggers just gain popularity because they post hearsays, rumors, and scandals just to get more traffic - at the expense of celebrities and other public figures.
Don't forget Instagram which is like the online super photo album of Filipino netizens and Kat.cr which I think is a torrent site for anything pirated haha. Posts on Diply.com are also some of the most shared online in social media networks, hence, its position in the top 25 list.
THIRD: Filipino netizens love to search, learn, and pursue things that interest them.
What could clearly prove this point is the presence of not one, not two, but four search engines in the top 25 list of high traffic websites in the Philippines namely Google.com, Google.com.ph, Yahoo.com, and Ask.com. This clearly encompasses all types of search from whatever type of Filipino netizen to whatever subject one searches about. It's not only that, Filipinos online love to refer to Wikipedia (probably because it's oftentimes indexed high in search engine results) as their library. It should be noted though that this practice of relying on Wikipedia should be guided as Wikipedia is still unreliable especially when it comes to student reports and assignments. Better stick with .edu sites.
Let's also not forget Youtube.com and Pinterest.com which clearly are for those who want to engage in their passion and know more about just anything which are interesting.
FOURTH: Filipino netizens love to transact online.
This is very true. Filipinos want to buy, sell, pawn, trade, and get paid for their services/products online. I always thought that OLX is the leading buy and sell platform but I was wrong. Amazon.com and Lazada.comph rank higher than Olx.ph. Another proof for this is the presence of many online buy and sell groups in Facebook. You don't believe? Just type in Buy and Sell on your search bar in Facebook. The presence of Paypal.com and Onclickads.net also support this statement.
FIFTH: Filipino netizens love news.
When it comes to daily news, I always go to Inquirer.net to read about the freshest scoop on business/finance and politics (both local and international). I also visit Rappler.com often because their site is visually pleasant and easily navigable, add to that the fact that they make their own wRap of the hottest issues for the day. But I was shocked to find out that GMA News topped them all - Inquirer, Rappler, and ABS-CBN News.
BONUS: Filipino netizens don't watch porn that much?
If the top 25 list is to serve as basis here, yes, it's true. But if we'd take a look at the top 50 ranking, haha, you'd definitely change your mind. One almost reached the top 25 list. Just search it up or visit alexa.com. :))
