UK spending half an hour longer online than in pandemic, says Ofcom

UK adults spent over half an hour longer on-line day by day in 2025 than they did throughout the pandemic, based on an annual survey of web habits by the regulator Ofcom.

The On-line Nation report discovered on common, individuals within the UK spent 4 hours and half-hour on-line day by day in 2025 – 31 minutes longer than in 2021.

Psychologist Dr Aric Sigman informed the BBC this was not an issue in itself, however what mattered was “what this time is displacing and the way this may occasionally hurt psychological well being”.

He added the “excellent news” was society was “starting to query on-line time extra critically”.

In a yr the place the main UK Netflix drama Adolescence gained reward and politicial consideration for shining a lightweight on misogynistic on-line content material, the survey discovered adults have been feeling much less optimistic concerning the impression of the web general.

Solely a 3rd (33%) mentioned they felt it was “good for society” – down from 40% in 2024.

Nonetheless, almost two thirds of individuals nonetheless believed the advantages of being on-line outweighed the dangers.

And plenty of adults mentioned they discovered the web to be a supply of creativity, with roughly three quarters agreeing being on-line helped them to broaden their understanding of the world.

The report additionally explored kids’s experiences of being on-line.

Whereas greater than eight in ten aged 8-17 mentioned they have been pleased with the period of time they spent on the web, additionally they recognised there have been detrimental impacts of endlessly scrolling on smartphones.

The time period “mind rot” was utilized by some kids surveyed to explain the sensation they have been left with after spending too lengthy on their units.

It has develop into a well-liked phrase to explain overconsuming on-line posts and movies thought-about to be the other of mentally difficult.

And Ofcom discovered throughout 4 of the principle providers utilized by kids – YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok and WhatsApp – as much as 1 / 4 of the time 8 to 14-year-olds spent on-line was between 2100 and 0500.

From 25 July, Ofcom required web sites working within the UK with pornographic content material to “robustly” age-check customers, underneath the On-line Security Act.

Some individuals started utilizing a digital non-public community (VPN) presently – instruments which might disguise your location on-line to can help you use the web as if you’re overseas.

The rise signifies persons are possible utilizing them to bypass necessities of the Act.

After the age checks turned obligatory, the survey mentioned VPN use greater than doubled, rising from roughly 650,000 day by day customers earlier than July and peaking at over 1.4 million in mid-August

However it additionally discovered the quantity had since declined to round 900,000 in November.

The report additionally discovered 69% of kids aged 13 to 17 mentioned they used on-line providers to assist with their wellbeing, both to chill out or enhance their temper.

Greater than half named ASMR as a software that they had utilized in explicit to assist them chill out.

These movies turned an internet phenomenon greater than a decade in the past – which some individuals declare causes them to really feel a tingling sensation.

It has led to a whole business of on-line creators making particular content material seen on platforms comparable to YouTube.

However kids weren’t solely optimistic about their on-line experiences.

Seventy p.c mentioned that they had points with self-improvement media – involving poisonous messaging or physique shaming.