Why do I keep checking my phone?

The average American checks their phone about 96 times a day, or roughly once every ten minutes, according to a 2019 survey of nearly 2,000 smartphone users (Asurion, 2019).

Most of those checks aren't decisions. You pick up the phone, unlock it, look at nothing in particular, and put it down again. Sometimes you don't even remember doing it.

If that sounds like you, it isn't a character flaw. There are good reasons the habit is so strong.

Why the urge is so strong

You never know what you'll find. Sometimes there's a message from someone you love. Sometimes there's nothing. That uncertainty is exactly what makes checking so hard to stop. It's the same pull that keeps people at a slot machine.

It fills every gap. Waiting for the kettle, standing in line, sitting at a red light. The phone is always there, and it's always quicker than being bored.

It's built that way. Feeds that never end, red badges, notifications timed to bring you back. Many apps are designed by very smart people whose job is to keep you looking.

It's attached to things you really need. Your phone is also your map, your bank, your calendar and your link to family. That makes it very hard to put down for good, and very easy to drift from a useful check into a long scroll.

Why willpower alone doesn't work

Most of us have tried to just check less. It lasts a day or two.

That's because the reach happens before the thought. By the time you notice you're holding your phone, your hand has already done the deciding. Telling yourself "no" a hundred times a day is exhausting.

Settings and app limits help a little, but they live on the same phone you're trying to put down, and they're easy to skip. We compared the most popular app blockers if you'd like to see how they stack up.

Simple ways to check less

The trick is to make checking a little less automatic, so your head gets a vote before your hand does.

• Put distance between you and your phone. Another room is best. Out of sight, out of reach. This works better than almost anything else.
• Turn off non-essential notifications. Keep calls and messages from people. Let everything else wait.
• Move the tempting apps. Off the home screen, into a folder, or off the phone entirely.
• Pick phone-free windows. A morning hour, meals, the last hour before bed. Here's why it's worth starting your morning without your phone.
• Notice the reach. Next time you pick up your phone, ask "what did I come here for?" Just asking breaks the autopilot more often than you'd think.
• Give the phone a home. A spot where it lives when you're at home. That's the idea behind the Saalo Box: place your phone inside, close the lid, and the Saalo app starts counting the time you spend away from it.

The first few days of checking less feel strange. Here's what usually happens when you use your phone less.

A little more distance does more than willpower ever will.