How to see how much time you’ve spent on an app – Android

Doom scrolling is increasingly common, with many of us spending too much time on our devices. It’s a negative habit that can happen to anyone, as many of us Android owners spent hours per week on our phones.

So, if there was a way to check out how much time you spend on any given app, would you use it?

If you’re wondering how to see time spent on apps on your Android phone, you’re in the right place.

Well, there is a way for you to check your app usage on Android. This can be used as a kind of a safety net so you can assess how much time you spend on any app at any precise time.

It also allows you to use a feature where you can also set limits for how long you want to spend on that app day-to-day in the future if you think your procrastinating is getting out of hand.

Seeing how much time you spend on an app on Android

You can usually see exactly how much time you’re spending on a particular app by going into your settings app and using your Digital Wellbeing tools.

This is fairly easy to do on an Android phone. And, you can use your app usage stats to determine whether you want to set time limits on specific apps too.

This can be useful if you’re managing the phone for children or family members, using app timers to restrict the amount of time spent on certain apps. Here’s how to do this in a little more detail.

How do I check my app usage on Android?

All Android phones have the feature that allows you to check your app usage on your phone.

On Android devices, you can use the Digital Wellbeing feature on your device to gain access to see how much screen time you’ve racked up.

Digital Wellbeing is the equivalent of Apple Screen Time. The first time you launch the app is a little more complicated than launching it after that.

Initially, you have to set up a profile to continue but it is worthwhile in the long run so you can keep on top of your daily usage.

To launch the digital Wellbeing app there is a guide below for you to follow:

1. Go to ‘Settings.’
2. Find ‘Digital Wellbeing and Parental Controls.’
3. Here you will see a summary of the usage of your phone apps.
4. In the Dashboard there is an option that shows information. Here you can set timers to limit how long you want to use the apps.
5. If you scroll to the very bottom of the Digital Wellbeing page you can flip the switch to show the app in your app drawer, in the future then you won’t have to go through settings to find a specific app every time.

You also have the ability to add a time limit to specific apps on yours or your child’s phone too.

How do I set screen time limits on Android?

Setting screen time limits for yourself as an adult make sense to keep yourself aware of how much time you are spending online.

It is also a great feature to limit kids from spending too much time on their phones so you can get them to do something productive with their time.

There is a separate part within the app to set parental controls that can be done through Google Link. So, you can see what your children are doing and limit their access where you find the need to.

You can use screen limits as a customisable feature for your phone or device. To set up your screen time limits here is how you do it:

1. Go to ‘Settings.’
2. Go to Digital Wellbeing and Parental Controls.’
3. Tap on the available chart.
4. Go to ‘Set Timer.’
5. You can do this for individual apps as you see fit.
6. You can also set daily allowances for any day of the week within the Digital Wellbeing app, for example, 2 hours on a Monday, 4 hours on a Tuesday so on and so forth.
7. Choose ‘Set Goal’ to finish your selection.

Focus Mode

Finally, within Digital Wellbeing there is an area called ‘Focus’.

This option blocks all the apps on your phone so if you need to work or you just want to switch off from the world, app notifications and other features won’t interrupt your work until the limit is over.

It is a great way to disconnect and get some personal time in when needed.

You can turn Focus mode on easily from within your Settings app. This can help you to remove distracting apps from your day and get things done.

Conclusion

In conclusion, It is super important that you limit your screen time if you want to protect your mental and physical health.

Particularly with children having access to things old people like me never had access to. On Android, you can do this by changing your app permissions.

Once you get into the habit of using your phone less, you’ll realise how much you’ve spent scrolling and not living.