We surveyed Americans 18 and older about their phone habits and behaviors. And like Narcissus staring into an endless pool of reflection, most of us can’t live without our cellphones in sight for very long—if at all. Even while driving, 35% of Americans use or look at their cell phones. On romantic dates, 43% of us are more wrapped up in our phones than our partner’s company. And when we say “I couldn’t be without our cell phones for five minutes,” most of us mean it—70% of Americans check their phones within five minutes of receiving a notification. On average, we check our phones every four minutes. Over half of Americans have never gone longer than 24 hours without their cell phones. We’re so reliant on our phones that 61% of us have texted someone in the same room as us. And, lest we sit enthroned without our cell phone scepters, 64% of us use our phones on the toilet too. It’s no surprise that 45% of Americans say that their phone is the most valuable possession. What is surprising is how far our obsessions with cell phones go:
Over one-third of Americans (36%) say they’d give up their pets to keep their cell phone. 53% say that in a house fire or other disaster, their cell phone would be the number one possession they’d try to save 26% say they’ve endangered themselves to avoid losing or damaging their cell phone
Now, we’re not saying you should stop endlessly scrolling, but we’d like you to keep yourself (and your animal friends) safe—you can always replace your cell phone! We’re not here to judge (some of us are right there with you)—but still, it might be a good time to make sure if you’re going to use your phone, you like using it. Check out our mobile reviews to get what you need:
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Respondents were asked to refer to their phone’s screen time report to determine the average number of times per day they check their phones, in addition to how much time in total they spend on their phones per day. Source:Reviews.org Proprietary Survey conducted December 2021. Our cell phone habit seems to be growing by the minute. We used to check our phones every 5.5 minutes on average, but now we’re down to just 4 minutes before our codependency kicks in. Oof. To compare the rest of the stats, jump to our 2021 report below! You’re not alone. On average, Americans checked their phones 262 times per day in 2021—that’s once every 5.5 minutes! In the land of unlimited data plans and stupefying smartphones, we surveyed Americans 18 and older about their phone-related behaviors to see how far we’ve fallen into our screens. How do your cell phone habits stack up against the rest of the US?
83% of Americans use their phone as an alarm clock. 80% of Americans say they check their phones within the first 10 minutes of waking up. 62% say they sleep with their phone at night. Americans spend an average of 50 minutes on their phones before bed. 67% say they have texted someone in the same room as them before.
They say where you spend your time is where you spend your love, so what does that say about us? We also asked respondents to refer to their phone’s screen time report to determine the average number of times per day they check their phones and how much time in total they spend on their phones per day.
