Each social media platform has its own set of best practices when it comes to hashtags, and we think it’s time someone put together a little cheat sheet to keep track. When used in the correct way, hashtags help amplify your content and create valuable engagement.
This quick graphic will help you determine whether or not to use hashtags in content developed for specific social networks. Keep it in your back pocket for those times when you’re not sure!

The Yes
Instagram, Twitter, and Vine are three platforms where there’s no question that you should be using hashtags. These platforms thrive on users creating and using hashtags to explore and categorize content.
On tumblr, hashtags are just called “tags,” and you type them into a box at the bottom of a post. They serve the same purpose as hashtags on any other network.
Google+ goes one step further with hashtags – along with your own added hashtags it will suggest some that it thinks are relevant to the content you are about to post. You can always opt out of this G+ feature if you’d like.
The Maybe
On YouTube, hashtags are generally used in the comment section to help users find other videos that have that particular hashtag in the title. Most brands and companies don’t use hashtags in the video description.
Pinterest only allows clickable hashtags in a Pin description and not anywhere else on the platform. Hashtags are not searchable on Pinterest.
The No
LinkedIn doesn’t support hashtags at this time, so there’s no reason to use them.
Facebook has hashtags enabled but they are rarely used. It is not advisable to include hashtags in Facebook posts.
 
Make sense? If you have questions or want to add your own opinion on when and where hashtags are appropriate — Tweet us @TheSocialLights!