X, the social media platform helmed by Elon Musk, saw its user base in the European Union diminish by approximately 11 million monthly active users – a drop of over 10.5% – during the five months leading up to March 31, 2025, based on the company’s own regulatory disclosure.
Mandated under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) – legislation designed to regulate large online platforms concerning illegal content, advertising, and algorithmic processes – the transparency report indicates X averaged 94.8 million active users (logged-in and logged-out combined) within the bloc from October 1, 2024, to the end of March 2025.
The decline pushes X’s active user count in the EU below the figures reported before Musk’s 2022 acquisition of Twitter, which had previously surpassed 100 million European users.
The erosion of X’s user base wasn’t uniform across the continent, according to the platform’s official DSA filing. France saw a particularly steep drop, losing more than 2.7 million monthly users to land at 17.4 million. Germany’s count fell by nearly 1.5 million, Poland’s by almost 2 million, and Spain registered a decrease exceeding 1 million users.
Even smaller member states like Luxembourg and Lithuania reportedly experienced a roughly 25% reduction in their X audience during this five-month window. This official data provides confirmation of trends previously suggested by third-party analytics and analyst forecasts pointing to a shrinking audience for X under Musk.
Regulatory Storm Clouds Gather Over X
This period of user attrition coincided with heightened regulatory attention from Brussels. The European Commission had already expanded its formal DSA investigation into X this January. The probe delves into the platform’s adherence to DSA rules regarding algorithmic transparency, the operation of its content recommendation systems, and the effectiveness of measures to mitigate systemic risks, such as the amplification of misinformation and illegal material.
The DSA report itself noted X suspended 132,155 accounts globally for violating its Child Sexual Exploitation policy and 4,626 for its Violent and Hateful Entity policy during the reporting period, offering a glimpse into the scale of moderation activities under review. Potential penalties for DSA non-compliance are substantial, reaching up to 6% of a company’s global revenue. Adding to the pressure, reports surfaced in early Aprilthat EU regulators were contemplating a fine possibly exceeding $1 billion related to perceived failures in content moderation and transparency.
Internal Shifts and Musk’s Shadow
X also faced considerable internal and financial challenges during this time. Musk himself reportedly conceded the company’s difficult position around January 2025, stating in an internal communication, “Our user growth is stagnant, revenue is unimpressive, and we’re barely breaking even.” T
he platform was still managing billions in debt from the 2022 takeover. This financial backdrop preceded a significant, unconventional corporate restructuring finalized just as the reporting period closed. In late March/early April 2025, Musk merged X (valued at $33B, including debt) with his AI venture xAI (valued at $80B) into a new entity, xAI Holdings Corp., bypassing standard corporate governance checks.
Shortly after, by late April, this new holding company was reportedly seeking around $20 billion in new funding, partly to service the debt X brought into the merger.
Platform Changes and Brand Perception
Decisions made about the platform itself might have influenced user numbers. In February 2025, X controversially doubled the cost of its Premium+ subscription to $40 per month, making its Grok 3 AI chatbot exclusive to that tier. This strategy aimed to increase subscription income amid struggles with advertising revenue, but may have deterred users unwilling to pay the higher fee.
Advertiser confidence remained shaky, partly due to concerns over content moderation – a study published in PLOS ONE had previously found an increase in hate speech on the platform post-Musk. The company also faced an ongoing trademark dispute over the “Grok” name with startup Bizly.
Elon Musk’s public persona also appeared to cast a shadow, particularly in Europe. His late 2024 endorsement of Germany’s far-right AfD party was directly cited by analysts explaining a stunning 76% year-over-year drop in Tesla’s German sales reported in mid-March 2025. This correlation in Germany, where X also lost a significant number of users, suggests Musk’s controversial image could be a factor driving platform disengagement. Concerns about a “branding crisis” linked to Musk’s activities, including his polarizing US government role, were echoed by analysts again in late April. Internal stability was also questioned following the departure of X’s head of engineering in late March, amidst the broader strategic shift towards AI integration driven by the xAI merger.
