Social Media Addiction Lawsuits: Take Action Over Harm to Mental Health

Social media companies are facing thousands of lawsuits alleging they intentionally designed their platforms to be addictive without warning users about the risks to their mental health.

According to the social media addiction lawsuits, platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Snapchat have contributed to what one case called a “mental health crisis among America’s youth” by using addictive design features to maximize engagement without regard to users’ well-being.

Various studies, including Meta’s own research, have linked social media use to mental health issues, and young users claim to have experienced anxiety, depression, body dysmorphia, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and other mental health problems caused by or exacerbated by their use of the platforms. The lawsuits claim Meta (Instagram and Facebook), Google (YouTube), ByteDance (TikTok) and Snap (Snapchat) were well aware of the dangers of social media addiction yet failed to protect their users.

As the litigation over social media addiction gains traction, the attorneys working with ClassAction.org are looking to represent others who may have been harmed. Filing a lawsuit could help affected users recover money for medical bills, lost wages, emotional distress and more.

Social Media Mental Health Effects

Various studies have been conducted to evaluate the impact of social media platforms on users’ mental health.

Studies have also shown that social media addiction can interfere with education, work and daily life due to users spending so much time on the apps.

According to research, users’ susceptibility to depression, anxiety and other negative mental health impacts depends, in part, on their motivation for using social media. For example, studies have shown that people who use the apps to gain social status or compare themselves to others are more likely to experience depressive symptoms, social anxiety, body image concerns and decreases in self-esteem.

A 2017 survey of young people in the U.K. found that of all the social media platforms they used, Instagram had the most negative effect on well-being, with one expert commenting that because Instagram’s content is image-based, it could be causing increased feelings of inadequacy and anxiety in young users.

Further, one study found that people who posted edited “selfies” on Instagram or similar apps were more likely to have eating disorders.

Social Media Addiction Symptoms

According to the American Psychiatric Association, social media addiction is characterized by problematic and compulsive use of social media platforms, and it often disrupts a person’s real-world relationships and leads to problems in functioning.

Social media addiction may also cause physical symptoms, such as eye strain, headaches and disrupted sleep.

The American Psychiatric Association notes that children and teens may be especially vulnerable to social media addiction given their brains are still developing. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Center of Excellence on Social Media, social media addiction in teens can negatively impact their psychological, physical, social and developmental well-being and lead to “significant distress.”

Social Media Addiction Lawsuits

Social media companies are facing lawsuits in both state and federal courts over their platforms’ allegedly addictive design and the resulting harm to users’ mental health. The following are summaries of just some of these social media addiction lawsuits.

Instagram Addiction Lawsuit Claims

One Instagram addiction lawsuit filed in 2022 claimed that Meta intentionally designed its apps to exploit children’s unique vulnerabilities, including their increased responsiveness to rewards, their need for social validation, and their susceptibility to thrill-seeking behavior without regard to consequences. According to the proposed class action lawsuit, the company began targeting pre-adolescents as early as 2006, viewing their susceptibility to addiction as “an opportunity” to increase profits. Addictive social media design features such as the “Like” button and algorithmically controlled content feeds were introduced to keep young users engaged with Instagram despite the risk to their mental health, the lawsuit claimed.

Another Instagram addiction lawsuit filed in August 2024 claimed Meta knew from its own and existing research that social media is addictive and that excessive use could lead to depression, body dysmorphia, anxiety, suicidal ideation, self-harm, insomnia, eating disorders and other damaging mental health issues. Nevertheless, the company allegedly failed to warn users about the risks of Instagram addiction and instead continued to introduce features that were designed to generate addictive behavior, such as the “infinite scroll,” “Live,” “Reels” and “Stories.”

Facebook Addiction Lawsuit Claims

The Arkansas attorney general filed a Meta addiction lawsuit in March 2023, claiming the company misled the public about the addictive nature and safety of its Facebook and Instagram platforms.

In October 2023, 42 attorneys general sued Meta in federal and state courts over allegations that the company knew Facebook and Instagram were harming young people and, instead of addressing the issues, fueled users’ social media addiction through design features like infinite scroll, “near-constant alerts” and algorithms that led users down “rabbit holes.” The Facebook addiction lawsuit further claimed Meta knew children were using its platforms and intentionally targeted this “valuable, but untapped” user base while publicly stating that children under 13 were not allowed on its platforms.

Snapchat Addiction Lawsuit Claims

In April 2025, the Florida attorney general filed a lawsuit alleging Snap, Inc., the operator of Snapchat, violated Florida law by deceiving parents about the dangers of Snapchat, including its addictive features. According to the Snapchat addiction lawsuit, the platform utilizes four out of five addictive design features identified in the law, including infinite scrolling, push notifications, personal interactive metrics (such as SnapStreaks) and auto-play videos. The law at issue also prohibits social media platforms from allowing children who are 13 or younger to make accounts and requires that the platforms obtain parental consent before providing accounts to children who are ages 14 or 15.

A similar Snapchat addiction lawsuit was filed by the Kansas attorney general in September 2025. The lawsuit claimed Snapchat was intentionally designed to be addictive and is “filled with content that is anything but safe,” causing “substantial harm” to users, especially teens.

TikTok Addiction Lawsuit Claims

In August 2025, the attorney general of Minnesota filed a lawsuit against TikTok Inc. for alleged violations of the state’s consumer protection laws. The TikTok addiction lawsuit claimed the platform has “prioritized profit over wellbeing at virtually every turn” by using addictive design features to maximize user engagement. According to the lawsuit, research shows that excessive use of TikTok and other social media platforms can double the risk of mental health issues like depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation.

YouTube Addiction Lawsuit Claims

A lawsuit filed against Google by the Arkansas attorney general in September 2024 claims the company has “[contributed] to a mental health crisis” by designing YouTube to “exploit and addict young users.” According to a press release announcing the YouTube addiction lawsuit, most children between the ages of 13 and 17 report using the platform every day, and Google has allegedly made a substantial profit by keeping users engaged, at the expense of their mental health.

Who’s Eligible to File a Social Media Addiction Lawsuit?

Family members may be able to file a social media addiction lawsuit on affected individuals’ behalf.

If you are 25 or younger and have been significantly impacted by social media addiction, or have a family member who is addicted, fill out the form on this page to learn more about what you can do.

What’s Involved in Filing a Social Media Addiction Lawsuit?

If you decide to file a social media addiction lawsuit on behalf of yourself or a family member, the attorney you hire will first need to gather case-relevant documentation and information from you.

Once your lawyer has collected enough information, they will begin drafting a complaint—a legal document that lists which companies are being sued (the defendants), explains the reasons for the lawsuit (including a description of the injuries alleged to have been caused by social media addiction) and the allegations against the defendants.

After your social media addiction lawsuit has been filed, your attorneys will go back and forth with the defendants’ attorneys to try to resolve the case, whether that means it gets dismissed, settles or goes to trial (though it should be noted that jury trials are increasingly rare in civil cases).

Notably, thousands of lawsuits over social media addiction have been consolidated in state and federal courts to be litigated before a single state or federal judge. While consolidated cases can still pursue compensation for individual damages, consolidation is done in an effort to efficiently manage the litigation, ensure consistent rulings and save time and money for all parties.

In consolidated litigation, a group of lawyers is named to oversee pre-trial proceedings and resolve the litigation. This sometimes involves the selection of individual lawsuits to move forward as “bellwether trials,” which are a sort of “test run” to see if juries more often side with the plaintiffs or defendants. If most of the bellwether trials go the way of the plaintiffs, the companies being sued may decide to reach a global settlement to avoid the risk and uncertainty of jury trials in the remaining lawsuits. If the defendants win more of the bellwether trials, a settlement may not be established.

Social Media Addiction Lawsuits Update: Latest News

Meta, Instagram, TikTok, Snap and Google are facing thousands of lawsuits in state and federal courts filed by attorneys general, school districts and individuals who claim to have been harmed by social media addiction.

On March 25, 2026, a Los Angeles jury awarded $3 million to the plaintiff at the center of a landmark bellwether trial in the social media addiction litigation, finding Meta and Google liable for the harm caused to the plaintiff’s mental health. The plaintiff, now 20 years old, claimed she became addicted to social media as a minor through features like infinite scroll and YouTube’s “autoplay,” ultimately leading to anxiety, depression and body dysmorphia.

According to the nonprofit Tech Oversight Project, internal documents revealed during the litigation amount to “smoking-gun evidence” that the social media companies intentionally designed their platforms to addict children and teens without regard to their mental health. For example, one Meta employee reportedly referred to Instagram as “a drug” and social media platforms as “pushers,” and a Google document reportedly detailed the company’s plan to keep children on YouTube “for life” despite internal research showing that young users were more likely to suffer harm from “habitual heavy use, late night use, and unintentional use.”

Facebook founder and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri testified during the social media addiction trial, with Meta maintaining that the plaintiff “faced many significant, difficult challenges well before she ever used social media.”

Snapchat and TikTok were also named in the lawsuit but reached private settlements with the plaintiff on the eve of trial.

On March 24, in a separate trial in New Mexico state court, a jury found that Meta had violated state law and ordered the company to pay $375 million in damages. The lawsuit was brought by the New Mexico attorney general and claimed that Meta misled the public about the safety of its platforms and failed to protect young users from predators. 

A federal bellwether trial is set to begin in June to resolve claims filed by school districts over social media’s impact on children.

Is This a Social Media Class Action?

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org are looking to file individual cases on behalf of people who have suffered from social media addiction, rather than pursuing a class action lawsuit, because they believe the harm associated with social media addiction is severe enough to warrant individual action.

Typically, class action lawsuits are filed on behalf of a large group of individuals who have suffered a comparatively small harm, such as purchasing a falsely advertised food product. In these instances, the case is only financially viable if handled collectively, as the cost of separate lawsuits for affected individuals would outweigh their potential recovery.

Learn more about the difference between class action lawsuits and individual injury lawsuits here.

What Could I Get from a Social Media Harm Lawsuit?

Family members may also be able to recover funeral expenses for deceased individuals.

How Much Does a Lawyer Cost?

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org are handling social media addiction lawsuits on a contingency fee basis. This means they will only get paid if they win your case, and their payment will come as a percentage of your jury award or settlement.

How to Join the Social Media Addiction Litigation

After you get in touch, an attorney or legal representative may reach out to you directly to ask you some questions about your experience and see if you qualify to file a social media addiction lawsuit. It doesn’t cost anything to fill out the form or speak with someone about your options, and you’re not obligated to take legal action if you decide you don’t want to.

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