How long is too much on your phone? (2023)

How long is too much on your phone?

What's a healthy amount of screen time for adults? Experts say adults should limit screen time outside of work to less than two hours per day. Any time beyond that which you would typically spend on screens should instead be spent participating in physical activity.

Time Spent Using Smartphones in 2022

According to recent data, the average person spends 3 hours and 15 minutes on their phone each day. And 1 in 5 smartphone users spends upwards of 4.5 hours on average on their phones every day. Perhaps surprisingly, weekdays average more smartphone use than weekends.

Around a quarter of those who showed signs of addiction used their phone for three hours a day, and a further 18.5 per cent said they used their device for more than five hours each day.

A large amount of phone consumption, can lead to a multitude of problems. “They may cause headaches, decreased attention, shortness of temper, sleep disorders and depression” according to the FCC. I used to spend 9 hours a day on my phone, now I have reduced it to 2 hours.

"Most experts agree that adults should limit screen time to less than two hours per day outside of work-related activities," Dr. Moghaddam says.

Adults tend to use screens for entertainment and interaction. They are usually at a higher risk of screen dependency. This is why it is important that they should limit screen time outside work. It must be less than two hours per day and anything beyond is considered harmful.

In previous generations of phones, 5-7 hours of use might zap your battery. But newer phones should, at the very least, get you through the day without having to charge it up (with normal usage) often stretching past 8-10 hours.

Battery life is a highly subjective thing. For some, getting 3-4 hours of screen-on time is more than adequate, others don't consider anything short of 6 to be enough.

Persistent failed attempts to use cell phone less often. Preoccupation with smartphone use. Turns to cell phone when experiencing unwanted feelings such as anxiety or depression. Excessive use characterized by loss of sense of time.

How long does it take to break a phone habit?

Some experts suggest going without your phone for 3 days. That can help you kick bad phone habits and find new, healthier things to do instead. You can ease your way back into using it -- say, just calls and texts at certain times -- then gradually start to do other things if you decide you want to again.

But just how often do we need to shut off our smartphones? As opposed to how often you need to shut down your computer, your smartphone has a more hard and fast rule you should live by: once a week, shut it off, let it rest at least one minute, and then you can fire it back up.

Prolonged screen time can cause eye strain and vision problems, called digital eyestrain. When compounded with headaches and issues focusing your vision, this can lead to “computer vision syndrome.” “It can be from TV, smartphones, tablets or other computer screens.

It's not good for your health to spend so much time without any movement. Your body will start to suffer as well as your mind. Even if are 10 hours just for jobs well, you should really force yourself to take some time off, better in the middle, in order to give your human body what it needs.

Is it ok if I spend 11 to 12 hours on my phone daily? World will appear very different when you will look up after those 11–12 hours and you will miss a lot of people and events in real life. There has to be time spent with real people, real places and real world to manage physical and mental health.

The American Optometric Association recommends the 20/20/20 rule: look away from the screen every 20 minutes, focus on an object at least 20 feet away, for at least 20 seconds. In addition, children should walk away from the screen for at least 10 minutes every hour.

No screen time before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m.

Limiting smartphone use is especially beneficial at the start and end of your day to avoid interfering with sleep and tasks unrelated to work or school. Set hours during the day when you can engage with your phone for work-related reasons and non-work-related reasons.

"Screen time" is a term used for activities done in front of a screen, such as watching TV, working on a computer, or playing video games. Screen time is sedentary activity, meaning you are being physically inactive while sitting down. Very little energy is used during screen time.

Experts recommend shutting down your phone at least once a week. After shutting it down, let it rest for a minute or two before starting it back up again. Not only will this help enhance your phone's performance, it is also incredibly beneficial for your battery.

A smartphone that is made for longevity can be a real thing.

Is it OK to charge phone overnight?

Charging your phone overnight occasionally probably won't make a noticeable difference in the battery life for years to come, but if you do it every night consistently, you will probably notice your battery performance degrading over time.

Set rules around your daily smartphone use.

Besides a screen fast, Dr. Lembke and Dr. Alter recommended finding other, less stringent, ways to distance yourself from your phone each day. That might mean allotting times of the day or days of the week when you don't use your phone at all, such as before and after work.

Researchers also found that smartphone addiction can lead to an imbalance in brain chemistry that triggers depression and anxiety. Ultimately, smartphone addiction can impair your ability to interact in the real world to the detriment of your personal and professional relationships.

According to data from DataReportal, the average American spends 7 hours and 4 minutes looking at a screen every day. This is slightly below average and around 45 minutes longer than the British who average 6 hours and 12 minutes of screen time per day.