Ninety-seven percent of U.S. adults ages 18 to 29 own a smartphone, against 79% of those 65 and older, in Pew Research Center’s survey fielded January 30 to June 18, 2026. This guide covers smartphone users by age across ownership, reliance on phones for home internet, daily use, children’s first phones and global youth connectivity.
Smartphone Users by Age in 2026: Key Figures
Which Age Groups Own a Smartphone in 2026?
| Age group | Own a cellphone | Own a smartphone | Cellphone, but not a smartphone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18-29 | 100% | 97% | 1% |
| 30-49 | 99% | 97% | 2% |
| 50-64 | 97% | 91% | 6% |
| 65+ | 96% | 79% | 14% |
Source: Pew Research Center, National Public Opinion Reference Survey, Jan. 30-June 18, 2026
Smartphone ownership sits at 97% for both adults 18-29 and 30-49. It falls to 91% at ages 50-64 and 79% at 65 and older.
Phone ownership itself stays high in the oldest group. 96% of adults 65+ own a cellphone of some kind, and 14% own one that is not a smartphone.
Across all U.S. adults, 91% own a smartphone and 98% own a cellphone. That 91% matches Pew’s 2024 and 2025 readings and compares with 35% in its first smartphone survey in May 2011.
Source: Pew Research Center, Mobile Fact Sheet, surveys of U.S. adults 2011-2026 (2026 sample: 5,511 adults, margin of error plus or minus 1.8 points)
24% of Adults Under 30 Are Smartphone Dependent
Pew counts adults as smartphone dependent when they own a smartphone but do not subscribe to home broadband. 16% of all U.S. adults met that definition in 2026, the same share as in 2025.
Dependence peaks at 24% among adults 18-29. It dips to 14% at 30-49 and 12% at 50-64, then rises to 16% at 65 and older.
| Age group | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 18-29 | 27% | 24% |
| 30-49 | 11% | 14% |
| 50-64 | 15% | 12% |
| 65+ | 17% | 16% |
| All adults | 16% | 16% |
Source: Pew Research Center, pooled surveys of U.S. adults, 2025 and 2026
Pew changed survey modes in 2023 and again in 2024. The 2023 point above comes from a web-and-mail survey, while 2024-2026 also include phone interviews.
Without home broadband, these adults rely on mobile service from carriers such as T-Mobile or on connections outside the home.
Smartphone Users by Age 50 and Older: AARP vs Pew
AARP’s 2026 Tech Trends report puts smartphone ownership among Americans 50 and older at 90% in 2025, up from 55% in 2016.
Source: AARP Research, 2026 Tech Trends and Adults 50-Plus, fielded Sept.-Oct. 2025
Pew splits the same population into two bands: 91% at ages 50-64 and 79% at 65 and older in 2026. The surveys use different methods and age bands, so their figures belong side by side, not combined.
Device counts rose with phone ownership. Adults 50+ owned an average of seven tech devices in 2025, up from four in 2016, and texting is now their leading way to communicate.
What Adults 50+ Did With Tech in 2025
| Measure | Share of adults 50+ |
|---|---|
| Owned a smartphone, 2016 | 55% |
| Owned a smartphone, 2025 | 90% |
| Bought technology in 2024 | 67% |
| Bought technology in 2025 | 71% |
| Plan a tech purchase in 2026 | 41% |
Source: AARP Research, 2026 Tech Trends and Adults 50-Plus, fielded Sept.-Oct. 2025
Average tech spending in this group reached $756 in 2025, almost double the $394 AARP recorded in 2019.
Nine in 10 adults 50+ use social media, an age spread that shows up in Meta’s user demographics.
Eight in 10 stream video weekly, an audience covered in this Netflix viewer segmentation.
AARP also reports that digital services and apps are central to daily life for adults 50+, a trend visible in these online banking figures.
How Often Do Smartphone Users by Age Overuse Their Phones?
53% of U.S. adults say they spend too much time on their smartphone, in a Pew survey of 9,750 adults run May 26 to June 1, 2026. That share reaches 70% at ages 18-29 and drops to 25% at 65 and older.
Almost-constant use follows the same order: 42% at 18-29, 33% at 30-49, 21% at 50-64 and 9% at 65+. Across all adults, 26% describe their use this way and 60% use their phone several times a day.
Source: Pew Research Center, American Trends Panel survey, May 26-June 1, 2026
Where Phones Hurt: Sleep, Productivity and Mood
Sleep shows the widest age split. 62% of adults 18-29 say their smartphone hurts their sleep, compared with 14% of adults 65 and older.
Productivity comes next, at 49% for under-30s and 15% for adults 65+. Few adults of any age say their phone hurts how informed they are.
Source: Pew Research Center, American Trends Panel survey, May 26-June 1, 2026
Who Tried to Cut Back
| Age group | Tried to cut back on smartphone time, past 12 months |
|---|---|
| All adults | 45% |
| 18-49 | 58% |
| 50-64 | 39% |
| 65+ | 23% |
Source: Pew Research Center, American Trends Panel survey, May 26-June 1, 2026
Among adults who tried, 25% say they were extremely or very successful and 52% somewhat successful. Pew found that success varies little by age.
First Phones: When Children Become Smartphone Users
UK: Ofcom 2026
78% of UK children aged 8-17 have their own mobile phone, and parents say 96% of those phones are smartphones. Ownership climbs from 56% at age 10 to 83% at age 11.
Ofcom ties the jump at 11 to the move to secondary school. The data comes from 5,008 parent interviews, with fieldwork from November 2025 to February 2026.
Source: Ofcom, Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes Report, published May 21, 2026
Passive tracking of 701 children aged 8-14 logged 3 hours 36 minutes online a day across smartphones, tablets and computers. Of that, 1 hour 59 minutes went to social media or video-sharing services.
YouTube took 49 minutes a day and Snapchat 39 minutes. Ofcom reports a higher average of 6 hours 20 minutes a day for 15-17-year-olds.
Source: Ofcom, Children’s Passive Online Measurement, Oct. 2025-Mar. 2026
37% of 8-17s think they spend too much time on screens. Separately, 55% of parents of 8-17s say their child’s screen time is too high.
Source: Ofcom, Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes, 2026
U.S. Teens: Pew 2024
| Age group | Have or have access to a smartphone |
|---|---|
| All teens 13-17 | 95% |
| 13-14 | 90% |
| 15-17 | 98% |
Source: Pew Research Center, survey of 1,391 U.S. teens, Sept. 18-Oct. 10, 2024
Pew’s measure counts access as well as ownership, so it is not directly comparable with Ofcom’s ownership figures.
Teens and adults split on school phone rules. 41% of teens back a ban during class, compared with 74% of adults, and support for all-day bans stands at 17% and 44%.
Source: Pew Research Center, teen survey Sept. 25-Oct. 9, 2025; adult survey June 9-15, 2025
82% of 15-24-Year-Olds Are Online: Where Smartphone Users by Age Data Runs Out
ITU’s Facts and Figures 2025 estimates that 82% of people aged 15-24 used the internet in 2025, against 72% of the rest of the population.
These figures count internet users on any device, not smartphone owners. In low-income countries, ITU finds 15-24-year-olds are 1.9 times as likely as everyone else to be online.
Source: ITU, Facts and Figures 2025, published November 2025
Handset demand behind these connections is covered in this Qualcomm target market analysis.
FAQs
Which age group uses smartphones the most?
Adults 18-29 and 30-49 tie on ownership at 97% (Pew, January-June 2026). Under-30s lead on intensity: 42% use their phone almost constantly, versus 9% of adults 65 and older (May-June 2026).
What percentage of seniors have a smartphone?
79% of Americans 65 and older own a smartphone, per Pew’s January-June 2026 survey. AARP, using a different method, reports 90% for all adults 50 and older in 2025.
At what age do most kids get a phone?
Eleven, in the UK. Ofcom’s 2026 data shows ownership rising from 56% at age 10 to 83% at 11. In the U.S., 95% of teens 13-17 had smartphone access in Pew’s 2024 survey.
Reddit threads say young adults are glued to their phones. Does the data agree?
Yes, for self-reported use. In Pew’s May-June 2026 survey, 70% of adults 18-29 say they spend too much time on their smartphone, and 42% say they use it almost constantly.
How many adults rely only on a smartphone for internet at home?
16% of U.S. adults own a smartphone but lack home broadband (Pew, 2026). The share is 24% at ages 18-29, 14% at 30-49, 12% at 50-64 and 16% at 65+.
