Most Teens Spend Around 25% Using Screens Daily

For much of today, tomorrow, and likely some weeks after that, Americans will be glued to their (increasingly digital) screens, as information continues to drip through and we build a clearer picture of the nation’s future.

Still, it’ll probably be business as usual for the majority of US teens: a new survey from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics found that around half of all Americans aged 12-17 — “teenagers,” by the organization’s definition, at least — reported four hours or more of screen time each weekday. That’s equivalent to more than a quarter of typical waking hours... and didn’t include any time spent doing schoolwork.

Hold the phone

The study also found that, among the teens surveyed, those with screen times of four or more hours were more likely to have displayed symptoms of depression (~26%) and anxiety (~27%) in the past two weeks. Indeed, the negative effects of excessive screen time, particularly for young people who are still developing cognitively, are well documented, having been linked to memory impairment, diminished academic performance, and difficulty sleeping.

But, in the digital age, the influence of tech on the average American teenager’s lifestyle has become near impossible to avoid. One 2023 Pew Research survey found that 95% of teens had access to a smartphone at home, 90% had a desktop or laptop computer, and 65% could access a tablet.