How much time do people spend online?

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2025 is expected to be another exciting year in the field of digital technologies. The development of artificial intelligence, the increase in social network users and the expansion of online services are the main drivers of this process. In this regard, the Digital 2025 global report, prepared in collaboration with We Are Social and Meltwater, was published.

The report provides information on changes, trends and growth indicators in the fields of digital technologies and the Internet. According to it, today there are 8.20 billion people living on Earth, which is 70 million more people than at the same time last year. 5.78 billion people, or 70.5 percent, use a mobile phone. Smartphones now account for nearly 87 percent of all mobile phones in use worldwide.

A total of 5.56 billion people are expected to use the internet by early 2025, representing a 67.9 percent penetration rate. The number of internet users increased by 136 million in 2024, but 2.63 billion people remain unconnected by early 2025.

Why do people use the internet?

The number of global social media users is 5.24 billion, or 63.9 percent of the world’s population. “Finding information” remains the single biggest motivation for going online by early 2025. 62.8 percent of adult internet users cited it as one of their main reasons.

However, more than 6 in 10 internet users now say that “staying connected with friends and family” is their top digital motivation.

Most importantly, social interaction is the top reason for going online among internet users aged 16 to 34, and it ranks third among internet users aged 55 and older.

The fact that young people cite social interaction as their most important digital need is important for the future of digital devices and services.

Young people’s search for entertainment or news plays a significant role in determining their likelihood to go online. While young people are more likely to focus on videos and music, older generations are more likely to focus on current issues.

“Learning how to do something” and “finding new ideas or inspiration” remain other important reasons for going online. This is important for anyone involved in creating content in the digital environment. Below is a breakdown of the reasons why people go online by age:

How much time do people spend online on average per day?

The amount of time people spend online around the world has been steadily increasing in recent months. The latest GWI research shows that adult internet users spend an average of 6 hours and 38 minutes online per day.

This is actually 2 minutes less than the figure reported at this time last year, but higher than all averages in the interim period.

But people have a certain number of hours each day, and they already spend about 40 percent of their waking hours actively engaging with digital devices and services.

Global TV viewership is down

Internet users worldwide watch an average of 3 hours and 13 minutes of TV each day. This includes traditional TV, streaming platforms, and recorded TV.

For comparison, this is 7 minutes more than the daily average reported at this time last year (+3.8 percent), but about 10 minutes per day less than the value reported at this time two years ago (-5 percent).

Interestingly, people spend twice as much time online each day as they do watching TV. However, watching TV shows and movies also makes up a significant portion of daily internet time, with 3 in 10 people also accessing content via their TVs.

Most importantly, despite claims that the internet is “killing” television, 97.5 percent of internet users watch at least one television episode each month.

People aged 55 to 64 watch about 25 percent more television than people aged 16 to 24. Follow “Zamin” news on “Telegram”