5 Easy Ways To Reduce Your Screen Time

Tech gadgets like the best laptops and gaming handhelds are exciting, and we love discussing them. Unfortunately, it is easy to get carried away while mindlessly using all your devices. By now, you’re probably used to compulsively checking your phone, reading or watching unimportant stuff, and then dreading the moment when you look up and see how much time you wasted.

This is a cycle that I’m personally tired of, and I’ve been taking tiny steps to reduce my screen time. In this guide, we’ll discuss some of these simple techniques and see how you can put them to good use.

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5 Keep proper track of your screen time

The numbers might surprise you

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Chances are that you clicked on this post because you already know your screen time is high, but it helps to get an accurate number to plan things accordingly. The hours you spend in front of a screen might surprise you, as most people tend to underestimate screen time. Here’s a quick look at how you can check screen time on iPhone and Android.

For iPhone

1. Head over to Settings> Screen Time.
2. If this is the first time you’re setting up Screen Time, tap App & Website Activity. On the message that pops up, click the option to Turn On tracking.
3. From this Screen Time page thereafter, you’ll get a weekly average of your iPhone screen time.

For Android

The specific steps are a bit different, but screen time tracking works very similarly on Android.

1. Open the Settings app on your phone.
2. Scroll down and tap on Digital Wellbeing and parental controls.
3. You’ll now be presented with a screen that shows your daily screen time.
4. Tap View activity details to get detailed insights about your screen time throughout the whole week.

What about Mac and Windows?

Your phone is likely the biggest culprit behind your big screen time numbers, but it always helps to check your computers too. If you’re using a Mac, you’ll find the same Screen Time feature as on iOS in the Settings app. Unfortunately, there’s no easy way to check screen time on Windows. You’ll have to resort to third-party apps such as RescueTime.

Establishing accountability

If you’re truly serious about reducing screen time, you need to start by holding yourself accountable. Adding a screen time widget that loudly displays your screen time numbers on your home screen is a good start. While this technique won’t directly lower your screen time, it will give you a slight push toward staying true to your goals.

On iPhone

1. Tap and hold an empty area of your iPhone home screen.
2. Press the Plus (+) icon in the top-left corner.
3. Scroll down until you find the Screen Time widget, and tap it.
4. Choose the size of the widget, and tap Add Widget.
5. Tap, hold, and drag the widget to where you want it to be.

On Android

1. Tap and hold any blank area on your home screen, and you should see an option for Widgets.
2. In the widgets menu, scroll down until you see the Digital Wellbeing option. Tap to select the Screen time widget.
3. Long press the widget, and position it however you want on your home screen. Let go of the widget to snap it in place.
4. Use the four dots on the corner of the widget to change its size or orientation.

Now is a good time to break away from TikTok

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The main culprits behind your phone addiction are likely apps such as TikTok, Instagram, Reddit, or other social media platforms. We all know that spending too much time on social media is generally a bad idea, so here’s how you can set time limits on some of these apps to restrict your usage.

On iPhone

1. Navigate to Settings> Screen Time> App Limits.
2. From the App Limits menu, tap Add Limit.
3. The App Limits feature categorizes all your apps, but you can tap the arrow icon next to these categories to access individual apps. You could also just search for individual apps.
4. After you select all the apps you want to add a time limit to, tap Next.
5. Set a time limit of your liking for all the selected apps, and tap Add when you’re done.
6. If you try to use an app after the set time is used up, you’ll get a message telling you that you’ve reached the time limit. You can tap OK to exit the app or Ignore Limit to use the app for a few more minutes.

On Android

1. Go to Settings> Digital wellbeing & parental controls.
2. Under Ways to Disconnecttap App Limits.
3. From here, you can scroll through the list of apps and set a time limit on each one. You can do this by tapping the hourglass icon next to the app in question.

2 Try to stop gaming on your phone

A surprisingly major time sink

Our phones are already way too addicting, and adding games to the mix further fuels the fire. This is something that I experienced recently after upgrading to an iPhone 15 Pro. The latest iPhones are surprisingly capable gaming devices, and I just had to try out games like Resident Evil Village and Assassin’s Creed Mirage. On top of that, I was also experimenting with emulators on the iPhone.

If you’re anything like me, and you enjoy games a bit too much, you know how easy it is to get sucked in. During the week while I was trying out games on my phone, my screen time rocketed to a 7-hour average. That’s not within my normal usage, so I decided to ditch gaming on phones from there on. If you’re facing the same problem with games, you might want to avoid them.

1 Break your usage patterns

It all comes down to discipline

While using app timers and tracking screen time are great starting points, the path to reducing screen time ultimately comes down to discipline. You could also make your phone less appealing, such as by using a grayscale mode or lowering the brightness down. However, I believe these tricks are a bit too severe.

Instead, you should develop healthy habits that help lower your screen time. For example, if you often watch a video on your phone while eating, try avoiding that for a week. Similarly, leave your phone to charge or leave it on the bedside table instead of using it in bed. If you do have to use your phone, maybe try avoiding social media and reading something enriching there instead.

All of these habits are simple, but they’re not easy. You’ve built up the habit of compulsively picking up your phone all the time, so it’s going to take a bit of dedication to get there. Another thing you can try is setting up clear boundaries. For example, no social media or work emails after 9 pm. These are some little tips that can go a long way, and they build healthier habits that will not only lower screen time but also improve your life a little bit.

Digital minimalism has never been more important

One of the reasons why topics like this are so popular is because people are exhausted. We are constantly overstimulated by news, negative opinions, and comparing ourselves to others on social media. It’s not healthy in the slightest, so recognizing this issue and making a change is a great step forward. Of course, none of us can live without our phones these days, but being more mindful of how we use them is highly important.