Understanding Reach
Overview
Reach is the main visibility metric in Analytics. It estimates how many times your content was seen by people. Social Cascade uses it as the single measure of visibility across your connected platforms.
How Reach Is Measured
Each platform reports reach differently, so we use the best number each one provides:
| Platform | What Reach counts |
|---|---|
| Unique accounts that saw the post. | |
| Total views of the post (Meta's "Views" metric), on photos and videos alike. If views aren't available, we use unique viewers. | |
| TikTok | Unique accounts reached. If TikTok doesn't report reach, we use video views. |
| YouTube | Video views. |
Your period total adds up the reach of each post published in the selected period. That means:
- Someone who sees three of your posts counts three times.
- A month with fewer posts usually has lower reach, even if each post did well.
Where to Find Reach
- Click Analytics in the left sidebar.
- In the Overview section, the Reach card shows total reach for the selected period. On Pro, Premier and Enterprise plans, it may also show how you compare with the industry.
- The Reach & Engagement section shows how reach built up over the period (Cumulative Reach) and which platforms drove it.
- Click any post in the Content Performance list to see its reach.
The Overview page also shows Total Reach for the current month.
How Reach Relates to Other Metrics
| Metric | Relationship to Reach |
|---|---|
| Engagement Rate | Engagements รท Reach. See Understanding Engagement Rate. |
| Sustained Attention Rate | The share of views that paused on your post. See Understanding Sustained Attention Rate (SAR). |
| Video views | On Instagram, a video can have more views than reach, because one person can watch several times. On Facebook and YouTube, reach is already a view count. |
| Followers | Reach can be higher or lower than your follower count. Non-followers see your content through shares, hashtags and recommendations. |
Tips for Growing Reach
- Post consistently. Platforms favor accounts that post regularly, and every post adds to your period reach.
- Use relevant hashtags. Well-chosen hashtags help people outside your followers find your content.
- Mix your formats. Short videos often reach people who don't follow you yet.
- Encourage shares. Shared content reaches new audiences.
FAQ
Q: Why is my reach different from my follower count?
A: Reach includes people who don't follow you, and not every follower sees every post. It can be higher or lower than your follower count.
Q: Is reach the same across all platforms?
A: No. Each platform defines reach differently (see the table above). Social Cascade shows them side by side and adds them up. Compare trends within a platform rather than absolute numbers across platforms.
Q: Why did my Facebook reach change in mid-2026?
A: In June 2026, Meta replaced its impressions metric with views. Social Cascade now uses Facebook views for reach, so Facebook numbers before and after that change aren't directly comparable.