In today’s digital world, screen time is an essential part of our daily routine.

From checking mail in the morning on a smartphone, to watching videos on the smartphone and doing some focused work on the desktop, screens seem to dominate our attention.

In this post, we’ll explore the latest screen time insights and how it varies depending on the age group, country.

Here’s a summary of what you’ll find out on this page:

Screen Time Statistics (Top Picks)

• Worldwide, people spend an average of 6 hours and 40 minutes per day on screens.
• In the US, average screen time per day hit 7 hours and 3 minutes.
• Nearly half (41%) of American teenagers (13-18) have a screen time of more than 8 hours per day.
• Entertainment screen time among children in the US has risen from 4 hours 44 minutes in 2019 to 5 hours 33 minutes in 2021.
• South Africans spend 9 hours 24 minutes on their screens each day (that’s 2 hours 44 minutes more than the global average).

Average Screen Time Worldwide

As of Q3 2023, on average users aged 16 to 64 worldwide spent 6 hours and 40 minutes per day on screens across various devices. That equals to 46 hours and 40 minutes for average screen time per week among worldwide internet users.

On average, daily screen time has declined by 4.3% (18 minutes) since 2021.

Here’s a table with average screen time among worldwide internet users since Q3 2013:

Source: DataReportal

Average Screen Time in the US

Average screen time on internet-connected devices among users in the US is 7 hours and 3 minutes (vs. global average of 6 hours and 40 minutes).

On average, screen time in the US remained almost unchanged since 2021 (from 7 hours 4 minutes in 2021 to 7 hours 3 minutes in 2023).

Here’s a table with breakdown of US average screen time since: 2017

According to Nielsen data (as of Q2 2023), Americans over 18 hours old spend an average of 59 hours and 56 minutes with media per week (which amounts to 8 hours 34 minutes per day).

Media consumption includes use of TV, internet/video on computer, app/web on a smartphone/tablet.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of screen time with media among Americans 18+ grouped by specific media type:

Sources: DataReportal, Nielsen

Screen Time by Age

According to recent data, younger users tend to have more hours of screen time compared to older age groups.

In particular, people aged 16-24 spend 7 hours and 32 minutes on internet-connected devices (among female users) and 7 hours and 4 minutes (among male users) vs. 5 hours and 17 minutes, 5 hours 14 minutes (female; male) among users aged 55-64.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of screen time by age group (data as of Q3 2023):

Earlier study conducted in the UK (with survey launched in March 2020) found a similar connection between age group and average daily screen time. Specifically, younger adults aged 18-34 were reported to have 8.8 hours of screen time per day vs. 5.2 hours among those 65 years old and over.

Another study found that the average weekly recreational screen time in the US among adults in their 20s was 28.5 hours per week in 2020 (that’s up from 25.9 hours per week in 2018)

Sources: DataReportal, National Library of Medicine, MDPI

Screen Time among Children and Teens

Among users aged 8-12 in the US, average entertainment screen time amounted to 5 hours 33 minutes in 2021.

Entertainment screen use includes time spent on watching TV, online videos, social media, browsing websites, reading e-books and creating content.

There has been a reported increase in screen time among tweens (8-12 years old), from 4 hours 36 minutes in 2015 to 5 hours 33 minutes in 2021.

Every fifth child (8-12 years old) reported to have more than 8 hours of entertainment screen time per day. Only 5% of users aged 8-12 years reported no screen time.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of screen time among tweens (8-12):

The same survey found that among teens (13 to 18 years old) in the US, average entertainment screen time reached 8 hours 39 minutes in 2021. That’s up from 7 hours 22 minutes pre-pandemic in 2019.

Here’s a table with entertainment screen time among teens since 2015:

When taking a detailed look, more than 4-in-10 teens (13-18) claim to engage with screen media more than 8 hours per day.

Here’s a table with details on screen time among teenagers (13-18) in the US:

What’s the breakdown of screen time by activity? Both groups (8-12 years old and 13-18 years old) spend the most on television/videos, 2 hours 40 minutes and 3 hours 16 minutes, respectively.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of screen time accounted for specific activity (data as of 2021):

Source: Common Sense Media

Screen Time by Country

When it comes to internet-connected screen time, South Africa leads the ranking with 9 hours 24 minutes of average screen time (that’s 2 hours 44 minutes more on top of the global average – 6 hours and 40 minutes).

Out of 50 counties included in the analysis, users in 9 countries spend over 8 hours on screens.

Here’s a complete list of 15 countries with most screen time (among users 16-64):

When it comes to the opposite of the ranking, Japanese have the least screen time – 3 hours and 56 minutes, on average. In fact, it’s the only county included in the survey with less than 4 hours of screen time.

Here’s a detailed list of 15 countries with least screen time (among users 16-64):

Source: DataReportal

Conclusion

That’s it for my collection of screen time statistics.

It’s incredible that we spend nearly half of our waking hours glued to screens whether on a smartphone, desktop, tablet or TV. And as you can see our relationship with media consumption always changes.