The 2025 Social Media Ranking Of Free-Market Think Tanks

Forbes

09-05-2025

Several of the largest and most established think tanks advocating for free-market principles continue to lead across major social media platforms. The digital landscape, however, is dynamic, and a few newer organizations with credible voices, compelling messages and savvy media strategies are gaining influence, helping to advance the cause of a free society.
The rankings in this piece are based on the latest publicly available data and reflect my own assessments as a Forbes contributor—they are not official Forbes rankings. As always, I invite readers to alert me to any pro-free-society organization they believe deserves recognition for scoring better than those mentioned.
The most subjective aspect of this work is deciding which organizations truly support a free economy. Some (such as Brasil Paralelo, which produces films and videos) cover many topics that go beyond economics, but their programs are always aligned with messages favorable to a free society and free markets. Others appearing in my ranking, like CIDAC/México Evalúa, focus on measurement and policy evaluation, but their analyses usually conclude that solutions based on economic freedom and rule of law benefit society.
The Heritage Foundation continues to lead in the traditional think tank category. Heritage president Kevin Roberts has defended President Trump's tariff policies, which most free-market economists oppose; yet the foundation's promotional material and communications do not mention tariffs, focusing instead on 'unleashing prosperity through economic freedom,' getting government out of the way, slashing job-killing regulations, lowering taxes, dismantling the Deep State, and empowering businesses.
During this past year, the Mises Institute ranked better in some YouTube measures than even mighty Heritage, which came second. On Instagram, on a global scale, Fe & Trabalho—a relatively new and small Brazilian think tank founded in 2021—leads the world.
Below are the free-market think tanks scoring first or second in the United States and from around the world (data compiled during the first week of April 2025):
· Most Facebook likes (U.S.): #1 Heritage (1,900K) #2 Acton Institute (732K); (Non-U.S.): #1 Instituto Millenium, Brazil (392K) #2 Fundación para el Progreso, Chile (271K)
· Most X followers (U.S.): #1 Heritage Foundation (742K) #2 Cato Institute (368K); (Non U.S): #1 CIDAC/México Evalúa (143K) #2 CEDICE, Venezuela (119K)
· Most monthly visitors to the website (statistics compiled from SimilarWeb) (U.S.): #1 Heritage (1,500K) #2 Cato Institute (1,151K); (Non-U.S.): #1 Fraser Institute, Canada (290K) #2 Adam Smith Institute, U.K. (86K).
· Most subscribers to YouTube (U.S.): #1 Heritage (453K) #2 FEE (311K); (Non-U.S.): #1 Fundación para el Progreso, Chile (263K) #2 Fundación Libertad y Progreso, Argentina (143K)
· Most views of YouTube video (longer than 2 minutes) uploaded in past twelve months (U.S.): #1 Mises Institute (1,900K) #2 Heritage (1,200K); (Non-U.S.): #1 Fundación Libertad y Progreso, Argentina (505K) #2 Fundación Para el Progreso, Chile (192K)
· Most LinkedIn Followers (U.S.): #1 Heritage (102K) # 2 Cato (58K); (Non-U.S.); #1 Fraser Institute, Canada (26K) #2 Centro de Estudios Públicos, Chile (20K)
· Instagram followers (U.S.): #1 Heritage (282K) #2 FEE (68K); (Non-U.S.): #1 Fe & Trabalho, Brazil (380K) #2 Instituto Mises, Brazil (188K)
Among other things, these figures show that leading U.S. think tanks continue to grow their presence on X (formerly Twitter) but not on Facebook. Although Facebook presence is almost flat for most, Instagram, owned by the same company, continues to grow. Brazilians, especially, use Instagram as main platform, and Fe & Trabalho continues to lead free market think tanks globally on the platform.
On X, Heritage is growing well (7%), Cato has been mostly stagnant, and the Mises Institute and FEE (not on the top two), grew at 8% and 11%, respectively.
Specialization helps, so think tanks that have mastered the art in some areas, such as video production, continue to appear on top. Fundación Para el Progreso (FPP) in Chile and Fundación Libertad y Progreso in Argentina again ranked among the top two in the world.
World leaders in video, news outlets, and magazines:
Traditional think tanks, like Heritage or Cato, have considerably less social media impact on most platforms than these groups that focus on videos, news, and films.
· Most Facebook likes: #1 PragerU (4,500K) #2 CNSNews (2,200K)
· Most X followers: #1 PragerU (1,000K) #2 Brasil Paralelo (939K)
· Most monthly visitors to website (SimilarWeb): #1 National Review (5,842K) #2 Brasil Paralelo (4,014K)
· Most subscribers to YouTube: #1 Brasil Paralelo (4,350K) #2 PragerU (3,360)
· Most views of YouTube video (2 minutes or longer) uploaded in last 12 months: #1 PragerU (5,000K) #2 Daily Signal (2,400K)
· Most Instagram followers: #1 Brasil Paralelo (3,600K) #2 PragerU (2,300K) traffic
· Most LinkedIn followers: #1 Prager U (35K), #2 Brasil Paralelo (29k)
Brasil Paralelo's reach continues to be impressive; despite Brazil's political challenges, the group is now ahead of PragerU in both Instagram followers and YouTube subscribers. Brazil's population is one-third smaller than the United States, and its courts tend to conduct lawfare against anyone who opposes the statist government. Brasil Paralelo has many films that are similar to those produced by think tanks favorable to a free economy; it also, though, promotes films and videos that are mostly just healthy entertainment but help attract new audiences to the promotion of free enterprise.
In Brazil, Instituto Mises and Instituto Millenium continue to score well. Perhaps most impressive, however, is Fe & Trabalho which promotes low taxation and regulation, describes the importance of the Brazilian agricultural sector, and focuses on defending a Christian view of competitive and free economies. The group's founder and leading light is Antonio Cabrera, who combines the talents of an entrepreneur, an intellectual entrepreneur, and a former public servant. In 1990, when he was only 29 years old, he became Brazil's Minister of Agriculture. In addition to his major farming operation, Cabrera has devoted his life to help produce champions of freedom. He was a driving force in the creation of the Center for Economic Liberty, which is part of the MacKenzie Presbyterian University. MacKenzie, founded in 1870, is usually ranked the top private university in the country.
The Hoover Institution (at Stanford University), continues to dominate the university think tank scene. Mercatus Center (at George Mason University) ranks second among university-based pro-free-market centers.
Think tanks and public interest legal groups focusing on legal defense, legal training, investigations, and judicial activism continue growing fast. Judicial Watch and Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) have budgets similar to that of the Heritage Foundation. Project Veritas, on the other hand has so far survived its battle with its founder, James O'Keefe. O'Keefe has 3.1 million followers on X, almost three times that of Project Veritas. He also beats his former organization on Instagram, so in this field he is king. O'Keefe Media Group, his new organization, has less social media following than O'Keefe himself, and Project Veritas's media presence is mostly due to O'Keefe's past efforts. In addition to ADF, Institute for Justice is the top among legal defense groups, and the Federalist Society leads among educational groups focusing on lawyers.
U.S. judicial defense and rule of law organizations (data compiled during the first week of April 2025):
· Most Facebook likes: #1 Judicial Watch (7,100K) #2 ADF (1,700K)
· Most X followers: #1 Judicial Watch (2,200K) #2 Project Veritas (1,200K)
· Most monthly visitors to the website (SimilarWeb): #1 Judicial Watch (791K) #2 Federalist Society (248K)
· Most subscribers to YouTube (U.S.): #1 Project Veritas (1,310K) #2 Judicial Watch (573K)
· Most views of YouTube video (longer than 2 minutes) uploaded in past twelve months (U.S.): #1 Institute for Justice (3,400K), #2 ADF (929K)
· Most LinkedIn Followers (U.S.): #1 The Federalist Society (30K) #2 Project Veritas (22K)
· Most Instagram followers (U.S.): #1 Project Veritas (1,400K) #2 Judicial Watch (1,000K)
Among groups focusing on students, TurningPoint is the overwhelming leader. It wins in all categories except web traffic. Campus Reform, a Leadership Institute effort, has achieved impressive growth over the last 12 months.
TikTok, Podcasts and Independent Voices
Given the controversies about Chinese control, few pro free-market groups use TikTok, but the number is growing. Some of the leaders in different categories include TurningPoint (286K), Voz Media (103K), Chile's Fundacion Para el Progreso (42K), the Acton Institute, and Judicial Watch (both 29K).
It continues to be difficult to have transparent podcast numbers. Chartable was one of the few resources in this regard, and it has closed its doors. Most think tanks have podcasts, but they are far behind Joe Rogan, Tucker Carlson, Ben Shapiro, Lex Fridman, and other leaders in the field, who occasionally touch on economics. John Stossel, who does focus on economics, attracted 1.2 million followers on X, 1.1 million on YouTube, and 190K on Instagram, growing his audience by over 10% in one year.
Other influential voices like Mark Levin and Charlie Kirk also continue to grow. Mark Levin has 4 million followers on X and Kirk now has 4.9 million, two million more than last year. Both dwarf their respective organizations (Landmark Legal Foundation and TurningPoint) in traffic.
Last year the Heritage Foundation spun off its media arm, The Daily Signal, into a standalone organization. Originally launched in 2014 to deliver in-depth reporting and commentary from a conservative viewpoint, The Daily Signal is now operating independently. The shift highlights the changing dynamics of social media and efforts by policy groups to get their message across. On X, the most relevant media platform, Daily Signal grew 34% during the last 12-month period.
In the Spanish-speaking world, leading conservative and free-market figures remain more influential on social media than think tanks. Argentinian political philosopher Agustín Laje, with 1.2 million followers on Instagram, 2.51 million on YouTube, and 929K on X, achieved growth of almost 10% over last year. Spaniard Juan Ramón Rallo comes out second, growing over 10% with 128K followers on Instagram, 869K on YouTube, and 474K on X. Chilean Axel Kaiser, Chairman of Fundación Para el Progreso, also grew at a similar pace, attracting 291K on Instagram, 98.4K on YouTube, and 358K on X. Juan Ramón Rallo is totally devoted to economic education and analysis, while Laje and Kaiser also touch on cultural topics. Last year the most powerful decision makers on the team of Argentinian President Javier Milei helped create a think tank, Fundación Faro, with Agustín Laje as executive director and Axel Kaiser as academic vice director. I expect that both will continue to have more social media impact than Faro. Javier Milei, who inspires Faro, is a stand-alone free-market advocate and player, he has 3.9 million followers on X and 6 million on Instagram.
Social media represents only one of several means through which individuals and organizations seek to influence public policy. I am on the board of academic organizations, also committed to the free society, and I would never judge their performance based on their social media impact. Think tanks, however, allocate substantial financial and strategic resources to enhance their visibility and engagement across multiple platforms. It is likely that the majority of those reviewing this analysis are either consumers, supporters, or both of institutions that promote a free-market economy. Hopefully this analysis will help them understand their effectiveness and improve their strategies.
Juan Cruz Isetta, of Fundación FREE conducted research for this piece, [e-mail]