Most common uses of the internet

Key findings

90% of survey respondents use home internet to check email daily
75% use internet to search/research daily
Over 55% of respondents stream video content daily
55% use the internet for online banking, 52% use it for social media every day
51% of respondents never or rarely use the internet for work

The internet has become integral to daily life, whether used for work, school, entertainment or other activities. Over 65% of the world’s population was using the internet at the beginning of Q4 2023, and the number of internet users continues to climb yearly as we consume more data than ever before.

Allconnect asked internet customers about their online activities to better understand how people use their internet connections at home. From this data, we’ve compiled the most common uses of the internet for our customers on a daily and weekly basis.

Methodology

The data points presented in this article are sourced from 1,147 customer responses from Allconnect’s 2023 customer satisfaction survey gathered between May and October 2023. We compiled this data from a section of our survey asking respondents about how they use their internet connection at home.

How are people spending their days online?

Email is the most popular daily internet activity for those who took Allconnect’s 2023 customer satisfaction survey. 90% claimed they use the internet for email every single day.

Internet navigation and research were also popular internet activities for customers. 75% said this was their most common daily use of their home internet connection. Over 50% of survey respondents enjoy streaming, online banking and social media daily.

Weekly internet use

We also asked respondents about their weekly internet use and found they were likelier to do certain activities every week rather than every day.

Weekly, most survey respondents (84%) use the internet for online banking and to browse on social media (70%).

This is not surprising, considering the growing influence of social media in recent years. According to recent data, 93.5% of all internet users use social media every month and the total number of social media identities reached almost five billion in October 2023.

While only 31% of respondents use the internet for online shopping daily, almost 70% do every week.

Our survey respondents also do not use their internet connections as much for work daily (30%), but use it a bit more for work weekly (42%).

Many respondents never or rarely use the internet for certain activities

Most respondents (71%) do not use (or rarely use) the internet for job searching. Over 50% claimed they never use or rarely use the internet for gaming and home security.

Surprisingly, 51% of our survey respondents also claimed they never or rarely use the internet for work. Despite this statistic, 92% of all jobs require digital skills, so the need for an internet connection and tech skills in the workforce is now more important than ever.

Watch your screentime

Too much time online can negatively affect the mind and body in both children and adults. According to Mayo Clinic, excessive screentime can lead to:

Irregular sleep patterns
Physical strain to the eyes and body
Behavioral problems
Obesity
Impaired academic performance
Impaired social skills
Mood changes

Even though the internet is present in everyday life, limiting your time online can help you avoid excessive screen time’s mental and physical effects.

See Allconnect’s News and Research hubs for more broadband guides and information.

Written by:

Camryn Smith

Cammy is a writer with Allconnect, growing her broadband industry knowledge for over a year on the internet marketplace. Her expertise lies in home internet and broadband service with a focus on providers, plans… Read more

Edited by:

Robin Layton

Editor, Broadband Content

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