Could Americans Survive a Tech-Free Weekend?

• Over 3 in 4 Americans (76%) believe internet access is as essential a utility as water and electricity.What would it take for Americans to unplug for just one weekend? Payless Power, a leading Texas-based prepaid electricity provider, surveyed 1,000 Americans to find out how dependent the
  country has become on technology and what rising energy costs might finally convince them to power down.

We found a nation deeply tethered to its screens, uncertain about the grid keeping them on, and largely unwilling to give up Wi-Fi, even in an emergency.

Key Takeaways

• Wi-Fi and smartphones are America’s new non-negotiables: 74% of Americans would refuse to give up either, even in a power grid emergency.
• Almost half of Americans (47%) would find it difficult to make it 48 hours without technology.
• Over three-fourths of Americans (76%) say the internet is as essential as running water.
• 1 in 4 Americans couldn’t go more than 2 hours without their phone before they started to feel anxious.
• When forced to choose, 17% of Americans would pick social media over air conditioning for a weekend.
• 65% of Americans say their electricity bills are higher than last year, and 36% are concerned about the reliability of their local power grid.
• Texans are more grid-anxious than the rest of America: 48% are worried about power reliability vs. 36% nationally.
• Gen Z logs more screen time than any other generation over the weekend, averaging 7.7 hours per weekend day. That’s over an hour more than the overall average of 6.2 hours.

What Americans Consider Essential Technology

• In a power grid emergency where respondents could only keep up to 3 devices, Wi-Fi/home internet and smartphones tied for the top spot, chosen by 74% Americans.

• Though the majority of Americans use Wi-Fi, smartphones, and streaming services on the weekend,
  AI chatbots are also seeing significant adoption
  : 44% of Americans now use AI chatbots on weekends, surpassing gaming consoles (36%) and iPads/tablets (33%).

The Gap Between What We Use and What We Need

• While 90% of Americans use streaming services on the weekend, only 35% would keep it as an essential, marking a 55-point gap.

• Nearly 9 in 10 Americans (87%) use social media on the weekend, but only 20% consider it an essential, marking a 67-point gap.

• 44% of Americans use AI chatbots on the weekend, but only 3% would keep it as an essential, marking a 41-point gap.

• Gen Z prioritizes social media as essential at more than twice the rate of baby boomers (28% vs. 11%).

• When forced to pick just one platform for the weekend, Americans split nearly evenly among Instagram (23%), Facebook (21%), and TikTok (20%).

Screen Time and the 48-Hour Challenge

• Almost half of Americans (47%) say going 48 hours without any electricity except essentials would be at least somewhat hard, and 2% say they couldn’t do it.

• When asked to choose between air conditioning and social media for a weekend, 17% of Americans would choose social media.

How Long Before Anxiety Sets In?

• Phones are the ultimate security technology: 17% of Americans couldn’t go 2 hours without the internet before feeling anxious, and 25% couldn’t go more than 2 hours without looking at their phone.

• 1 in 2 Americans would feel uncomfortable within 5 hours of not checking their phone.

• Anxiety would start to hit 40% of Americans within 5 hours of being without internet access. Gen Z hits the anxiety threshold fastest: 49% report discomfort within 5 hours without the internet, compared to 32% of baby boomers.

• Android users can go an average of 7.2 hours without Wi-Fi before anxiety kicks in, compared to 6.6 hours among Apple users.

• Android users hit their social media anxiety threshold earlier, at an average of 5.8 hours, while Apple users last an average of 6.9 hours.

Energy Costs, Grid Anxiety, and What It Would Take To Unplug

The Price of Powering Down

• 80% of Americans would go tech-free each weekend if it saved them money on electricity monthly. They would need at least an average of $155 in savings per month to make it worth it. That’s roughly equal to the average electricity bill ($150).

• Millennials need more in monthly savings than any other generation to go tech-free on weekends, requiring an average of $163.

• Android users need $153 in savings to participate in tech-free weekends, compared to $156 for iOS users.

• 10% say no savings amount would convince them to go tech-free for a weekend.

• Gen Z and millennials are the heaviest weekend energy users:
  44% in both generations say their weekend consumption is higher than on weekdays, compared to only 11% of baby boomers.

Grid Anxiety Is Real, but Most Aren’t Acting on It

• Nearly 3 in 4 Americans (72%) have at least some concern about the reliability of their local power grid; 36% describe themselves as somewhat or extremely concerned.

• Only 7% of Americans concerned about the grid say they’ve cut down on technology use. 59% have made no changes, and 6% say they aren’t sure what to cut.

• Texans are significantly more worried about their local grid:
  48% are somewhat or extremely concerned, versus 35% of non-Texans.

Rising Bills, Slow Responses

• 65% of Americans have noticed their electricity bills are higher compared to this time last year; 13% describe the increase as significant.

• Despite noticing higher costs, 44% of respondents have taken no steps to cut energy usage, and 8% say they don’t know where to start.

• Baby boomers are most likely to have taken energy-saving steps: 62% say yes, compared to just 37% of Gen Z.

Methodology

Payless Power surveyed 1,000 Americans about their technology use over the weekend and asked them which technologies they’d deem essential if they had to reduce their energy usage. We asked respondents about their electricity costs, the reliability of their power grid, and whether they could
survive a weekend without any technology.

Survey respondents by generation are as follows: 18% Gen Z, 50% millennials, 22% Gen X, and 9% baby boomers. A small sample size of Texans took this survey, accounting for 84 or 8% of all survey respondents. The survey was fielded on April 14, 2026.

About Payless Power

As energy bills climb and grid concerns grow, having a flexible, affordable electricity plan matters more than ever.

Payless Power

offers prepaid electricity plans that give Texas residents greater control over their energy usage and costs, with no large deposits or surprises. If you’re ready to take charge of your electricity bill, explore Payless Power’s

prepaid plans

today.

Fair Use Statement

The data, findings, and visuals contained in this study are free to share and republish for non-commercial purposes. We ask only that you credit Payless Power and provide a link back to this page so readers can access the full research and methodology.

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