Americans of all ages are spending less time socializing

Americans are https://www.axios.com/2026/05/13/americans-neighbors-socializing-less" target="_blank">spending less time hanging out than they were 20 years ago — and the trend cuts across every generation, Axios' Erica Pandey writes from new American Time Use Survey https://www.bls.gov/tus/" target="_blank">data.

Why it matters: It's a fundamental shift in the way we live our lives that has implications for everything from https://www.axios.com/2024/03/25/news-media-filter-bubble-different-realities" target="_blank">what we believe to https://www.axios.com/2023/05/03/surgeon-general-vivek-murthy-fights-loneliness" target="_blank">how long we live.

By the numbers: Average time spent socializing per day has fallen from 45 to 35 minutes over the last 20 years.

• The decline is steepest among young people: 15- to 24-year-olds went from spending an hour a day hanging out with others to 35 minutes.

Between the lines: Sociologists and psychologists point to several trends driving this phenomenon, which Substack writer Derek Thompson dubbed "The Anti-Social Century" https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/02/american-loneliness-personality-politics/681091/" target="_blank">in the Atlantic last year.

• We're all on our smartphones, often interacting through screens instead of face to face — even though social media is no substitute for spending time together in person.

  Teens, in particular, spend an average of 4.8 hours a day on apps like TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat, https://news.gallup.com/poll/512576/teens-spend-average-hours-social-media-per-day.aspx" target="_blank">according to Gallup.

• The shift to remote work — and life — during the pandemic has https://www.axios.com/2026/06/29/remote-work-wfh-women" target="_blank">persisted, keeping more of us homebound.
• Longer-term trends are reshaping daily life in ways that make isolation easier.

  Homes are bigger and more comfortable, with larger TVs.

  Virtually every restaurant is on a food delivery app, making it easier than ever to stay in.

What to watch: Also contributing to the trend is the decline of gathering spaces, Axios' Avery Lotz writes.

• A 2025 report from CU Boulder researchers uncovered widespread closures of all kinds of hangout spots — from libraries to coffee shops to museums — in the last decade or so.
• Churches are also shuttering at unprecedented rates, Axios' Russell Contreras https://www.axios.com/2025/10/03/us-churches-close-religious-shift-christians" target="_blank">reports.