A detailed study released by Google reveals roughly 40% of people search only on a smartphone. More people are searching Google via smartphone than ever before the company says, with the most popular categories revolving around health, parenting, and beauty.
Other top findings from Google’s study include:
- 80% of people use a smartphone
- 67% of people use a desktop computer
- 16% of people use a tablet
- 57% of people use more than one type of device
- 27% of people use a smartphone only
- 14% of people use a desktop computer only
Dissecting these findings, it’s interesting to learn that of the people who only use one type of device, twice as many are using smartphones than desktop computers.
On top of that, people who use smartphones use them a lot — up to 3 hours a day. By comparison, an average of 2 hours a day is spent using desktop computers, and 75 minutes is spent using tablets.
That’s fairly solid evidence that we are living in a mobile-first world now more than ever.
Google warns marketers that if you’re not making an attempt to reach customers on mobile you’re missing a quarter of your potential audience.
”We live in a world where people literally expect answers at their fingertips, and to find them, they’re turning to the nearest device”
Desktop computers’ time to shine is around 8am, which is right around the time people may be starting their work day. Smartphone usage then takes over in the afternoon with a particular increase being seen around prime time viewing hours.
Smartphone usage is said to be consistent throughout the day, peaking around noon and being used steadily during the afternoon and into the night. “There’s never really an off time”, Google says. Throughout 15 of the 24 hours in a given day, more searches are happening on mobile than on computers or tablets.
Google’s data is based on findings from a behavioral measurement of 11,964 opt-in Google users between January 1, 2016, and March 31, 2016. Opt-in users include a U.S. demographic of 18 to 49-year-old cross-device users.
More details from Google’s study can be read here in this PDF.
![Mobile Search on the Rise: Almost Half of All People Search Only on Smartphones [STUDY]](https://cdn.searchenginejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Depositphotos_67963611_l-2015.jpg)
