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Daily work and leisure habits of men and women

June 30, 2026

On an average day, 75 percent of men and 87 percent of women spent some time doing household activities like housework, cooking, lawn care, or household management in 2025. Of those who participated, men spent an average of 2.1 hours on days they did household activities, while women spent 2.8 hours.

Chart Image
Chart Data

Average hours per day for people who engaged in selected primary activities, 2025 annual averages
Activity	Total	Men	Women
Sleeping	9.04	8.94	9.13
Eating and drinking	1.25	1.28	1.23
Household activities	2.46	2.11	2.75
Purchasing goods and services	1.74	1.67	1.80
Caring for and helping household members	2.23	1.90	2.47
Caring for and helping nonhousehold members	1.97	1.90	2.05
Working and work-related activities	7.98	8.29	7.63
Educational activities	5.17	5.12	5.21
Organizational, civic, and religious activities	2.08	2.07	2.08
Leisure and sports	5.43	5.83	5.04
Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail	1.01	0.87	1.09
Other activities, not elsewhere classified	1.32	1.37	1.28

Men were more likely than women to spend time on work and work-related activities (46 percent compared to 37 percent). Among those who worked on an average day, men averaged 8.3 hours, while women averaged 7.6 hours.

Nearly everyone aged 15 and older (95 percent) engaged in daily leisure or sports activities, such as watching TV, socializing, or exercising on an average day. Men were slightly more likely to participate than women (96 percent versus 94 percent) and spent more time doing so, averaging 5.8 hours compared to women's 5.0 hours.

Around 19 percent of men and 25 percent of women spent time caring for and helping household members. Among those who provided care, men averaged 1.9 hours per day, while women averaged 2.5 hours.

These data are from the American Time Use Survey. For more information, see “American Time Use Survey — 2025 Results.” We also have more charts on activities and time use.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Daily work and leisure habits of men and women at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2026/daily-work-and-leisure-habits-of-men-and-women.htm (visited July 04, 2026).

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