New York, NY—In celebration of National Selfie Day, CyberLink Corp., a multimedia technology company and maker of the photo-editing app PhotoDirector, released findings from its latest consumer research report. The survey, conducted by YouGov, examines how often and where, as well as with whom, consumers are taking selfies.
Established in 2014, National Selfie Day is observed in the United States and abroad every June 21. The millennial-inspired holiday serves as a time to celebrate the image of oneself through the cultural phenomenon that is the selfie. A selfie is the action of taking a photograph of oneself, typically with a smartphone, and sharing it on social media platforms.
According to new research from CyberLink, commissioned through the third-party polling agency YouGov, 62% of U.S. adults and two-thirds of millennials claim to take at least three selfies. However, that number can rise to more than 25 before they decide which one they want to share.
On average, how many selfies, if any, do you usually take before deciding on the one you will use (e.g. post on social media, text to someone, etc.)?
# of Selfies U.S. Adults* U.S. Millennial Males* U.S. Millennial Females*
1 13% 16% 9%
2 26% 21% 20%
3-5 37% 35% 35%
6-10 19% 19% 27%
11-15 4% 5% 5%
16-24 0% 0% 1%
25+ 2% 3% 3%
*All U.S. Adults, U.S. Millennial Males or U.S. Millennial Females who take selfies
“Across the board the data is clear—few individuals make the initial decision that the first selfie they take is the one they decide to publish and share with others,” commented CyberLink. “While on average most take between three to five, the larger question is where and with whom are people claiming to take these selfies?
When looking at mainstream Americans who take selfies, nearly one in five (18%) have been lucky enough to take a selfie with a celebrity. Another 46% have taken selfies in the bathroom mirror, 38% while still in bed and 16% of Americans have actually taken a selfie on the toilet.
Looking further into the specific practices of U.S. millennials who take selfies, the results are slightly different. Twenty-two percent claim to have taken a selfie with a celebrity, more than half (51%) have taken one in the bathroom mirror, 48% have taken a selfie while still in bed, and a quarter of millennials who take selfies claim to have done so on the toilet, according to the report.
When looking at more exotic and culturally sensitive locations, 20% have taken a selfie at the hospital, 11% at the site of a memorial and 9% at a cemetery or graveyard.
“Without a question, selfies are the modern self-portrait and have entered nearly every aspect of pop culture imaginable. It’s a spontaneous celebration of who we are. National Selfie Day this year is simple a reminder of that,” said Richard Carriere, senior vice president, Global Marketing, CyberLink. “The research is clear that by looking at the number of selfies people take prior to sharing, there is a certain care that goes into the craft of capturing the perfect photo.”
CyberLink’s PhotoDirector mobile app, iOS/Android, is its flagship photo-editing app with close to 40 million downloads worldwide. Perfect Corp., a sister company of CyberLink, is the creator of YouCam Makeup, YouCam Perfect and YouCam Fun. All three are available for both Android and iOS platforms. Perfect Corp’s apps have more than 450 million global downloads. Furthermore, more than 16 billion selfies have been taken on the YouCam app since its 2014 launch.
National Selfie Day Survey Methodology
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. The total sample size was 1,145 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between June 19–20, 2017. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all U.S. adults (aged 18+).
CyberLink 
CyberLink is a multimedia software design company founded in 1996. The company’s products are sold to all major PC manufacturers as well as millions of customers worldwide. Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, CyberLink also runs regional operations through offices in the U.S., Japan, Europe and Asia-Pacific territories. cyberlink.com
Perfect Corp. 
Perfect Corporation is dedicated to transforming how consumers, content creators and beauty brands interact together. Its team of engineers and beauty aficionados are pushing the frontiers of technology to create the beauty platform of the future—a fluid environment where individuals express themselves, learn the latest about fashion and beauty, and enjoy instant access to the products from their favorite brands. perfectcorp.com
