People are shocked after finding out what the global average screen time is per day

People have been left shocked after finding out the average amount of screen time across the globe.

As computers, tablets, and especially smartphones become a more or less essential part of being able to function in society in 2024 it's perhaps not surprising to see the world average what it is.

Bear in mind, of course, that this is going to include people who barely ever look at the screen on the more extreme, so that means that a whole lot of people have a very high screen time.

Screens permeate through more or less every aspect of our lives in some way or another now.

Whether it's having a job which has you using a screen all day, money, video calling, gaming, TV and movies, and, of course, social media, there are few things we do that aren't via a screen.

The very nature of social media is designed to keep us spending as much time as possible looking at a screen, chasing a little hit of dopamine as we doom-scroll through our feeds.

But just how high is the global average?

Many people also double screen. (Aja Koska / Getty)

It's at six hours and 58 minutes.

Some people thought the number seemed a bit low, with one writing: "Including my day job where I stare at multiple screens for 8 hrs every day?" Meanwhile, another posted: "Those are rookie numbers."

If that seems a little low, bear in mind that this is taking account of people who spend very little time at all with a screen.

But if that's the average, including people with little or no screen time, then it says a lot for just how much time others are spending on their screens.

People piled into the comments to share their thoughts on just how much time they would spend on their screens.

Let's be honest - most of us spend too much time on our phones. (Stefania Pelfini, La Waziya Photography / Getty)

One was very reflective on just how much we rely them in every aspect of our lives, commenting: "Dude, some of us, it's the first thing we see in the morning and the last thing we turn off at night. And then we're in front of it for 8 hrs a day for work."

Another echoed the sentiment, saying that whether it's work or play, there's nearly always a screen involved in some way.

They commented: "Work all day staring at a screen > sit on the couch all night staring at 2 screens intermittently. Even working out I'm likely to be looking at a screen."

While a third made this interesting observation: "Compared with how much sleep time, I wonder."

Though screens are pretty much unavoidable at this point, maybe we should all try to use them a bit less wherever possible.