How to reduce your screen time: 10 methods that really work

First, measure

We're very bad at estimating our own screen time: a meta-analysis showed that what people report only moderately matches what their device measures (Parry et al., 2021). Before changing anything, look at your real numbers: Digital Wellbeing in Android's settings, Screen Time in the iPhone's Settings. Also note your two or three heaviest apps: that's where everything plays out.

The 10 methods

1. Get the phone out of the room

A phone lying on the desk reduces your capacity to pay attention, even switched off; in another room, the effect disappears (Ward et al., 2017). For working or studying, it's the simplest method there is.

2. Turn off notifications

A notification distracts you even when you don't look at it (Stothart et al., 2015), and silenced alerts reduce inattention (Kushlev et al., 2016). Keep only calls and messages from the people who matter.

3. Switch the screen to black and white

Without colors, apps are much less appealing: about 39 minutes less per day in one study (Holte and Ferraro, 2020). The guide: switch your phone to black and white.

4. Add a pause before opening

A few seconds' wait, with the option to give up, is enough to make people abandon a third of their app openings (Grüning et al., 2023). That's the principle behind apps like one sec, and behind Livetime's compulsive apps.

5. Limit social media, without necessarily deleting it

Students limited to 10 minutes a day per network felt less lonely and less depressed after three weeks (Hunt et al., 2018). What matters is deciding on the time before you go in, not once you're inside.

6. No phone in bed

Reading on a screen in the evening delays falling asleep (Chang et al., 2015), and nine studies out of ten link screens with shorter sleep in young people (Hale and Guan, 2015). A cheap alarm clock lets you leave the phone outside the bedroom.

7. Empty your home screen

A visible icon is an invitation. Remove distracting apps from the home screen, and open them by typing their name: in the time it takes to type, the urge has often passed.

8. Remove Reels and Shorts

Short videos are the hardest format to stop. Keep Instagram and YouTube if you need them, but without their endless feeds: remove Reels, remove Shorts.

9. Create modes

A Work mode, a Sport mode, a Sleep mode, where only the apps useful for the moment stay available. The focus modes on Android and iPhone mostly filter notifications; a home screen like Livetime filters the apps themselves.

10. Replace rather than remove

Emptiness invites scrolling. Plan what you'll do with that time: read, draw, run, call someone. And aim first for one hour less a day: in one study, that was enough to improve well-being, with a longer-lasting effect than quitting entirely (Brailovskaia et al., 2023).

Why people give up, and how to stick with it

Each of these methods works. The problem is keeping them up. Grayscale becomes a pain when you want to look at a photo, timers switch off in two taps, and combining five apps takes an energy few people have. It's not a lack of willpower, it's a tool problem: we explain it in why willpower isn't enough.

Frequently asked questions