The Bureau of Labor Statistics has released their annual American Time Use Survey, revealing how Americans age 15 and older spend their days. It offers insight into the amount of time people spend working, doing household activities and engaging in leisure activities.
Key findings from the report include:
- The number of people working from home at least part time has dropped since 2020, but it’s still higher than pre-pandemic levels.
- Overall, more than one in three Americans worked from home last year, but it’s even more common for those with higher levels of education. While 54% of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher worked from home in 2022, only 18% of workers with a high school diploma worked remotely.
- Aside from sleep, the only thing Americans did more than work was engaging in sports and leisure activities. Watching TV was the most popular, with the average person doing it for two hours and 47 minutes a day.
- Other popular leisure activities include playing games and computer use (34 minutes), socializing (34 minutes), relaxing and thinking (21 minutes), sports, recreation and exercise (20 minutes), and reading (16 minutes).
- How we spend our time changes depending on the day, with Americans spending an average of three extra hours working on weekdays than on weekend days.
- On an average day in 2022, Americans spent:
- 1.89 hours on household activities
- 1.23 hours eating and drinking
- 5.20 hours on leisure and sports
- 9.02 hours sleeping
- 7.69 hours working
- And 1.34 hours caring for and helping kids and parents
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics