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Most of us spend nearly a third of our lives looking at devices

NordVPN’s research reveals what we like to do online the most.

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What does our online life look like?

NordVPN began surveying citizens of different countries to learn about people’s digital habits. We’ll continue to update the numbers as more results come in. Here’s what we’ve found out so far.

How much time we spend online

lifetime online total mobile

What we do online

Key findings

Who is addicted to the internet the most?

Could you spend the day without going online?

More than half of the respondents in the UK admitted that they couldn’t go a day without using the internet, even though Brits are in the bottom half when it comes to internet usage. Right behind them is Taiwan, one of the top countries when it comes to time spent online.

web graph life online

What do we reveal online?

Since a lot of our time takes place online, some of our real life inevitably bleeds into the digital one. So what type of information about us is on the web?

bank details

How do you stay safe?

With a third of our life taking place on the internet, securing your online activities is becoming more and more important. If you lock your doors, why not take the same precautions on the web?

Learn about cybersecurity

Once you know where you like to spend your time online and what the associated risks might be, you’ll be ready to find the right cybersecurity solutions. And don’t forget to keep an eye out for new emerging threats.

Get cybersecurity tools

Spend a lot of time surfing the net? Maybe a more secure browser is the right tool for you. Have a lot of online accounts? A password manager like NordPass is your best bet. If you send lots of files back and forth, get an antivirus or a secure cloud storage program like NordLocker.

Use a VPN

A VPN is one of the most comprehensive and broadly applicable online security tools you can get. It encrypts all of your online activities, so the ⅓ of your life is protected.

Stay vigilant

If you get an email warning you that someone hacked your account, don’t be so fast to click on the link. It might be phishing. Be careful about the apps you download on your devices, and think twice before posting any personal information online.

Methodology

NordVPN commissioned the survey, and Cint conducted it in most countries studied. Quotas were placed on age, gender, and place of residence to achieve a nationally representative sample among internet users. The amount of average time online per lifetime was calculated based on the average lifespan of each country.

Each online activity was measured separately. So if, for example, someone listens to music and scrolls through social media simultaneously, both are counted as separate activities despite them happening at the same time.

Time of the study

Since this is an ongoing study, the dates of when the surveys were conducted differ. In the USA and Australia, the survey took place between June 26 and August 2, 2021. In Canada, the Netherlands, and Poland, the survey was conducted between August 23 and 30, 2021. In Lithuania, the survey took place between June 22 and 30, 2021. In Taiwan, the survey took place on September 19-26, 2021. In the UK the survey was conducted between April 1 to April 6, 2021.

In Japan and South Korea, the survey took place between November 15 and 19, 2021. In Sweden, the survey took place from November 22 to 29, 2021. In Brazil, it was conducted between January 3 and 4, 2022. In Singapore, between January 11 and 18, 2022.

In Hong Kong the survey took place between February 7 and 16, 2022. In Mexico, Portugal, and Italy, internet users were polled between August 16 and 25, 2022.

Number of respondents

The number of respondents per country varied between 1,000 to 1,003, with the exception of the UK (2,000 respondents), Spain (900 respondents), South Korea (964 respondents), and Singapore (800 respondents).

Age of the respondents

Respondents from all countries were 18 years and older, except for those from Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Mexico, and Lithuania. In these countries, the target audiences were younger, since there was a lack of willing respondents in the older age groups. The survey’s target group was residents of Taiwan and Hong Kong aged 18-54. In Mexico and South Korea they were aged 18-64 and in Lithuania 18-74.

Survey company

Cint carried out the surveys in all the countries (Germany, France, Spain, the United States, Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Poland, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Brazil, Mexico, Portugal, and Italy).

Norstat conducted the surveys in Lithuania and Sweden.

The UK’s survey was conducted by OnePoll and with a larger pool of respondents. OnePoll surveyed 2,000 respondents.

Wanna learn more about our digital life? Check out our other research!

Cyber Risk Index

We collected and analyzed data from 50 countries to determine their vulnerability to cybercrime. We wanted to find out what factors put internet users at greater cyber risk and how likely people from different parts of the world are to become victims of cybercrime.

Find out more

National Privacy Test

Thousands of users tested their cybersecurity-savvy. Find country rankings and average scores in different demographics.

Find out more

Parental monitoring apps

We looked into the top 4 parental monitoring apps. We analyzed how they work, their trends, and what problems these apps can create.

Find out more

Enjoy all-round security in your everyday digital life

Free yourself from worry. Additional Nord apps will keep your passwords and files secure.

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Password manager

Keep your passwords in a secure vault. Available on all major platforms.

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File encryption tool

Keep your data — your digital life — backed up, synced up, and protected.

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Want to know more?

Contact us directly at press@nordsec.com.