Average Screen Time Statistics (2024)

A large section of people globally works using their laptops or smartphones, which has significantly increased the screen time presence of most adults. It was reported that an average American has a screen time of 7 hours and 4 minutes per day. While the global average screen time is 6 hours and 58 minutes every day. So have you ever wondered how much time you spend on screen on a daily basis for work, entertainment, news, etc? In this article, we are going to take an in-depth look at the average screen time for adults by region, generation, activity, and more. So, let’s begin. 

Key Statistics

• Every day an Average American spends around 7 hours and 4 minutes in front of their screen. 
• People worldwide spend about 6 hours and 58 minutes on their screens on a daily basis. 
• Since 2013, there has been an increase in screen time by 50 minutes per day. 
• Gen Z (people born between 1996 and 2010) spend about 9 hours of screen time every day. 
• There was a peak in the average daily screen time by 7.7 hours among people during the COVID-19 pandemic. 
• The top three popular sites that are consumed by Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers are Amazon, Facebook, and Google. 
• On Average, people spend about 44% of their waking hours looking at a screen. 
• Professionals have recommended less than 2 hours of screen time a day. 
• 49% of babies between the ages of 0 to 2 tend to have interacted with smartphones at some point. 

Average Screen Time Spend by Adults

• The Average screen time spent by adults ranges as they grow older. For example, young adults have phone usage up by 60 to 80% higher than pre-pandemic levels. Meanwhile, Gen Z (people born between 1996 to 2010) tend to spend 7+ hours on their screens on a regular basis bouncing between popular social media apps such as TikTok browsing videos for hours streaming online content on OTT platforms such as Netflix or Prime Video. 
• Millennials on the other hand spend an average of 205 minutes on screen per day. While the generation before Millennials which are Gen X and Boomers have an average screen time of 169 minutes and 136 minutes.
• Today, it’s for the younger generation to spend a day without their smartphones. Apparently, on average 42% of millennials aren’t likely to go on for more than 5 hours without taking a sneak peek at their social media accounts. Meanwhile, younger millennials or young adults are likely to check their smartphones about 150 times a day. 
• It’s no surprise that Gen Z tops the list when it comes to the highest screen time spenders. Around 76% of Gen Z users have claimed they spend way too much time looking at their screens. Followed by the Millennials generation with 67%, followed by Gen X with 66%, and Baby Boomers with 51%.

Distribution of Screen Time by Generation

Talking about the distribution of screen time by generation it’s no surprise that Gen Z (people born between 1996 and 2010) have the highest average screen time with 7 hours 18 mins. Followed by Millennials (people born between 1981 to 1995) who have the second highest average screen time by 6 hours 42 mins.

Generation	Average Screen Time Spend
Gen Z	7 hours 18 mins
Millennials	6 hours 42 mins
Gen X	6 hours
Baby Boomers	2 hours 54 mins

The Most popular internet activities that take majority of the screen time among different generations are as follows:

• For Baby Boomers, it’s online searches on Google and banking. 
• For Gen X it’s social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, etc, and online searches. 
• For Millennials it’s accessing social media platforms and streaming online content such as Movies, web series, etc. 

Average Screen Time By Region

Based on recent records South Africa has the highest average screen time consumption with 10 hours 46 mins every day. Followed by the Philippines which records the second highest screen time with 10 hours and 27 minutes of screen time consumption. 

Country	Average Screen Time
South Africa	10 hours 46 mins
Philippines	10 hours 27 mins
Brazil	10 hours 19 mins
Colombia	10 hours 3 mins
Argentina	9 hours 38 mins
Malaysia	9 hours 10 mins
Thailand	9 hours 6 mins
Mexico	8 hours 55 mins
Indonesia	8 hours 37 mins
UAE	8 hours 36 mins
Taiwan	8 hours 7 mins
Saudi Arabia	8 hours 5 mins

Average Daily Mobile Screen Time 

Even though South Africa tops the chart for the highest average screen time by region it isn’t the country with the highest Mobile screen time. Instead, the Philippines has recorded the highest average mobile screen time with 5 hours 47 mins. Followed by Thailand which is second in the list at 5 hours 28 mins. Here is a table showcasing the top 5 countries with the highest average mobile screen time globally.

Country	Average Mobile Screen Time
Philippines	5 hours 47 mins
Thailand	5 hours 28 mins
Brazil	5 hours 25 mins
South Africa	5 hours 9 mins
Colombia	5 hours 9 mins

Global screen time usage statistics

The average screen time spent by users worldwide in 2023 is 6 hours and 37 minutes across different platforms and devices. Below we have mentioned a table showcasing the average screen time spent by users between the span of 10 years from 2013 to 2023. The following data was taken from Q3 of each year.

Year	Average Screen Time Usage
2023	6 hrs 37 mins
2022	6 hrs 28 mins
2021	6 hrs 58 mins
2020	6 hrs 54 mins
2019	6 hrs 38 mins
2018	6 hrs 48 mins
2017	6 hrs 46 mins
2016	6 hrs 29 mins
2015	6hrs 20mins
2014	6 hrs 23 mins
2013	6 hrs 19 mins

Distribution of Screen Time Activity By Americans 

There are a variety of reasons that contribute to the overdoing of screen time by users. One of the top activities that consume the majority of screen time by Americans is watching television. About 34% of the screen time is consumed by TV, followed by Video Games which take up 16% of the screen time. Below we have mentioned a detailed table showcasing the total distribution of screen time among Americans: 

Activity	Total screen time spend
TV	34%
Video Games	16%
Movies	14%
Online Videos	12%
Social Media	9%
Other	9%
E-books	6%

Mobile Internet Traffic Over Time

A large number of people globally spend their time accessing the internet. Over the years there has been a massive spike in mobile internet traffic over time. Back in 2013, the share of internet traffic was only 17.02% but fast forward to 2023, the share of Internet traffic has taken a massive turn to 60.28%. Overall, the major growth in internet traffic took place in 2017. 

Year	Share of Internet Traffic
2013	17.02%
2014	28.97%
2015	37.24%
2016	45.91%
2017	54.09%
2018	53.01%
2019	52.26%
2020	53.07%
2021	56.53%
2022	59.40%
2023	60.28%

• People spend 45.8 minutes on average operating TikTok daily

Today, TikTok is one of the most widespread and highly utilized social media platforms globally where people tend to spend hours and hours watching fun and entertaining content. The day-to-day average screen time spent by people on TikTok is 45.8 min. The second spot is snatched by a popular video-streaming platform YouTube with 45.6 mins daily screen time.

Social Media Apps	Average daily screen time
TikTok	45.8 mins
YouTube	45.6 mins
Twitter	34.8 mins
Snapchat	30.4 mins
Facebook	30.1 mins
Instagram	30.1 mins
Reddit	23.8 mins

Impact Of Screen Time

• According to a survey conducted using 2000+ United States adults claimed that less than half the total amount of the time spent on screens is considered to be productive. While 41% of the audience claimed that they find it difficult to manage their screen time. 
• 21% of adults even find themselves guilty regarding how much time their children spend on screen.
• Excessive screen time can often lead to a large number of knock-on effects on people, especially children. 

Let’s take a look at some of the drawbacks related to excessive screen time:

• Sleep deprivation: Too much consumption of screen and blue light can interfere with melatonin production and cause a disruption in the circadian rhythm in the body. 
• Obesity: Numerous reports suggest that there is a solid association between screen time and obesity among children who fall under the age group of 5 to 17. Such instances are most likely to occur due to the sedentary nature of accessing the screen. 
• Delayed learning: Children who tend to watch a lot of television have the potential to experience various difficulties in understanding or picking up the language. 
• Type 2 Diabetes: Children who tend to spend more than 3 hours on the screen per day in the United Kingdom are more likely to show resistance to insulin. 

Limiting social media usage in the wider population with maximum usage to 30 minutes a day can be linked with reduced depression and can be helpful in improving overall well-being.

Conclusion 

The Internet has had a significant impact on the growth of screen time among adults and teens around the world. Ever since the Covid-19 pandemic the digital world has definitely transformed the working spaces. On average an American spends about 7+ hours on their screen, while globally the average screen time among the people is 6 hours and 58 minutes on a daily basis accessing social media, streaming apps, performing searches, and more.