A large survey-based study conducted in four European countries provides an up-to-date and detailed picture of how young people use smartphones, laptops, tablets and other digital devices

Smartphones dominate daily digital life, with more than 90% of participants reporting regular use

Females report higher smartphone use for most activities, whereas males report spending more time on online gaming

A GOLIAT study involving 4,000 young people aged 16 to 25 has characterised the use of digital communication devices across four European countries. The research, led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), in collaboration with the Center for Network Biomedical Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), describes which devices young people use, for which activities and how much time they spend on them. The findings have been published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research.

Based on an online survey conducted in 2023 in Spain, Italy, Poland and Switzerland, the study provides one of the most comprehensive and recent assessments on digital device use among young people in Europe. Unlike previous research, it goes beyond overall screen time to analyse specific devices, activities and patterns of use, as well as differences according to age, gender and other socioeconomic and demographic characteristics.

Smartphones dominate daily digital life

The smartphone emerged as the most widely used device, with more than 90% of participants reporting regular use. Laptops were used by nearly 70% of respondents, followed by tablets (33%), smartwatches or activity trackers (23%) and cordless phones (12%).

Smartphones were mainly used for social media, voice calls and messaging, email and internet browsing. On average, participants reported spending around 85 minutes per day on social media via their smartphone, 61 minutes on messaging and internet use, 52 minutes on music or podcast streaming and 47 minutes on video streaming. Tablets and laptops were used more frequently for video streaming, browsing and social media, though for shorter daily durations than smartphones.

Differences by age, gender and socioeconomic factors

The study identified notable differences in device use across demographic groups. Younger participants (aged 16–18) tended to spend more time on smartphones for activities such as social media, video and music streaming, while older age groups reported greater use of laptops, tablets and wearable devices.

Gender differences were also observed. Females reported longer durations of smartphone use for most activities, whereas males spent more time on online gaming across devices. Patterns of device use also varied according to parental education level, employment status and country of residence, highlighting the role of social and contextual factors in shaping digital behaviours.

New data to support public health research

In addition to measuring frequency and duration of use, the survey collected information on how devices are positioned relative to the body during certain activities, such as voice calls, video calls and media streaming. This level of detail is particularly relevant for the epidemiological research being conducted in GOLIAT, examining the potential health effects related to digital device use and exposure.

“These data provide a much-needed, updated snapshot of how young people interact with digital technologies today,” says Matthew Stamets, researcher at ISGlobal and first author of the study. “Having detailed and comparable information on devices, activities and usage patterns is essential for advancing research on digital health and for informing future studies on potential health impacts.”

“As with any survey-based study, our results rely on self-reported information, which may be affected by recall bias,” says Mònica Guxens, researcher at ISGlobal and last author of the study. “In addition, the rapid evolution of digital technologies means that usage patterns can change quickly over time. For this reason, regularly updating this type of data is essential to ensure that research and public health strategies are based on current behaviours.”

Reference

Stamets M, Castaño-Vinyals G, de Llobet Viladoms P, Fernandes Veludo A, Thielens A, Martin L, Wydaeghe R, Aerts S, Parazzini M, Tognola G, Wiart J, Polanska K, Popovic M, López M, Maule M, Joseph W, Grellier J, Röösli M, Guxens M. Characterizing Digital Communication Device Use Among Young People From 4 European Countries: Cross-Sectional Survey Study. J Med Internet Res 2025;27:e76767. DOI: 10.2196/76767