Screen Time is one of the most popular iOS features. And for a good reason. It allows for full control over what one can do with their iPhone and provides a deep insight into the daily usage of apps. A similar feature was absent on Android for years, but we finally got it when Google released Digital Wellbeing. Even though Digital Wellbeing isn’t as advanced as Screen Time it’s still a good tool for checking screen usage on your Android phone.
Or if you don’t like Digital Wellbeing, there are some third-party alternatives in the App Store. Either way, keep reading to find the best option for checking the screen time on your Android phone.
Use Digital Wellbeing to check screen time on Android
Starting with Android 11, Digital Wellbeing comes pre-installed with most Android phones. You can use this feature to check the usage time of your phone. On top of that, Digital Wellbeing is designed to help you use your phone more responsibly and prevent distractions.
In case your phone didn’t come with Digital Wellbeing pre-installed, you can also find it on the Play Store.
Digital Wellbeing is simple in design. It shows app usage by time, as well as the number of unlocks and notifications. There are also additional features, like scheduling the Do Not Disturb mode and the Wind Down feature, which applies Greyscale to your screen to ease looking at the screen at night. Also, there’s the Bedtime mode. We covered everything you need to know in our article about using Digital Wellbeing on Android.
To access Digital Wellbeing, simply go to Settings > Digital Wellbeing. You can also show its icon in the app drawer.
But if you just want to know screen usage for power consumption purposes, check the options below.
Check screen time through Power Usage
If you don’t want to install any third-party apps that will allow you to check the screen time on your Android phone, its power status got you covered. Of course, it shows battery usage and time on battery, which can be translated into screen time.
Here’s how to check screen time through Power Usage:
- Go to Settings > Battery.
- Tap the 3-dot menu, and go to Battery usage.
- Tap the 3 dot menu again, and choose Show full device usage.
As you can see, the power graph and status show exactly how much time your screen has been active.
The instructions above are for stock Android or Android One. The steps may vary on non-stock ROMs. But the principle stays the same, as all you have to do is look for battery usage.
The obvious drawback of this method is that it only shows screen time since the last charge. So, you cannot sort the stats by days, hours, or weeks. Additionally, the information may be too scarce if you need an in-depth analysis of your screen-on-time usage.
If you want to keep track of your daily screen time, you’ll have to install a third-party app. Apps like AccuBattery should serve the purpose (found on the Play Store). Using this method is also useful for checking which app drains the battery the most. You can further use this info to optimize the settings and save some battery on your Android phone.
If you are not a fan of Google’s Digital Wellbeing, there are plenty of alternatives. Usage Time is just one of them.
Install Usage Time
If the ‘stock way’ doesn’t provide enough info for you, you can always go with a third-party app. There are a couple of options in the Play Store that allow you to technically check the screen time on your Android, but I recommend Usage Time (not sponsored by), because of its simplicity.
The app just gives you what you want to know, without any unnecessary features and distractions. It just shows time spent with the screen on for the current day, divided between used apps.
There’s also a graph of the usage time, so you can easily keep a record of the phone use for the past week.
And that’s about it, as you can see, even though Android doesn’t offer the Screen Time feature by default like iOS does, there are still easy ways to check your screen usage. If you want to discuss this article further, but also find even more similar content, make sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published in March 2019. We made sure to revamp it for freshness and accuracy.
FAQ
Can I uninstall Digital Wellbeing?
Digital Wellbeing cannot be uninstalled from your Android phone. The closest thing you can do is stop it from accessing your data. Go to Settings > Digital wellbeing > Tap 3 dots in the top-right corner > Turn Off Usage Access.
Do Samsung phones have Screen Time?
Samsung doesn't have its own app for checking screen usage. However, newer Samsung phones come with Digital Wellbeing pre-installed, which you can use to check your phone usage.
