Does a Digital Detox Work? Why Some Breaks Backfire

A digital detox can lift your mood a little, but the research is mixed, and some breaks leave people feeling worse. In two large trials that helped, people spent the freed-up time with friends and family in person.

If you've ever deleted every app before a vacation and come back feeling out of the loop, that fits the research. The same goes if your family's plans, your kids' school updates and your friendships all live in one group chat. Going dark cuts all of that at once. The useful question is which part of your phone to switch off.

Does a Digital Detox Work? What the Review Found

Sometimes. The clearest overview is a 2022 review of 21 studies with 3,625 participants, 12 of them randomized trials. The breaks ran from 24 hours to four weeks, and a week was the most common length.

Who was studied matters here. Fifteen of the 21 studies used students, and only six were rated high quality. Women made up about half the samples or more in most studies, but the review didn't compare results by gender.

The studies came from 11 countries, most often the US, then Australia.

The results split like this:

• Depression: all three studies that measured it found symptoms dropped.
• Stress: three found less, two found no change.
• Life satisfaction: four found a rise, two found no change and two found a drop.
• Screen time: all six studies that measured it found people used their phones or apps less.

One of the life satisfaction gains held only for women. That was an Italian study of 80 Instagram users who took a week off. The review's authors concluded they couldn't say whether to promote or discard digital detoxes.

Why Do Some Digital Detoxes Backfire?

Because the phone isn't only the scroll. It's also how you reach people, and some breaks cut that too.

At Australian Catholic University, 138 active Facebook users either gave up Facebook for five days or carried on as usual. The break group had lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol afterward. They also reported lower life satisfaction. Lower cortisol and lower contentment, from the same five days.

The 2022 review found the same pattern elsewhere. In a week-long study of 78 university students in the United Arab Emirates, life satisfaction fell and loneliness rose. A 48-hour Facebook break in another study lowered feelings of relatedness, the sense of being close to others.

A single day off, meanwhile, made no difference. Three experiments in the UK, US and Hong Kong gave 600 undergraduates one day without social media and one normal day. Most were women around 20. Their well-being came out about the same on both days, and only about half fully stuck to the rules.

What the Breaks That Worked Had in Common

In two of the strongest trials that found benefits, people spent more time with friends and family in person. Neither cut off direct contact. The phone trial kept calls and texts, and Facebook quitters could still use Messenger.

The trial closest to most readers' lives ran in the US and Canada. Researchers at the University of Alberta, Georgetown and other universities recruited 467 iPhone users, average age 32, and 63% were women. For two weeks, an app blocked all internet on their phones. Calls and texts still worked, and laptops were untouched.

Average phone screen time fell from about 5 hours 14 minutes to 2 hours 41 minutes a day. The authors report that "91% of participants improved on at least one" of three outcomes: attention, mental health or well-being. People spent more time socializing in person, exercising and outdoors, and they slept more. Feeling more connected to others was one of the things that explained the gains in mood and well-being.

The second trial was larger and plainer. Economists split 1,661 US Facebook users into two groups and paid one to deactivate for the four weeks before the 2018 midterm election. The sample leaned young, female and well-educated. Well-being rose by a small amount, and people spent more time with friends and family in person.

A one-week break in adults up to age 72 also helped. How social media affects your mental health sets that trial beside two others, including one in women aged 17 to 35.

What Happens After a Digital Detox?

In the phone trial, well-being and mental health were still higher two weeks after the block ended. In the Facebook trial, people were still using Facebook less about a month later. Most studies never checked, and the 2022 review said it remains unclear whether the effects last.

In the Facebook trial, people who had deactivated were still using the app 12 minutes a day less about a month later. That's a 23% drop compared with the group who never stopped, though the drop was smaller when measured from phone settings. They also planned to cut back further.

The two-week phone trial had another useful detail. Only about a quarter kept the block on for at least 10 of the 14 days, yet the results held when everyone was counted. Those who slipped improved too, just less. You don't need a perfect detox to get something from it.

How Long Should a Digital Detox Last?

The research doesn't point to one ideal length. One day changed nothing in the undergraduate experiments. Gains have shown up after breaks from 48 hours to four weeks, and the clearest trials ran for one to four weeks.

A week isn't a guarantee, though. The week-long study of students in the UAE saw life satisfaction fall and loneliness rise.

How to Do a Digital Detox Without Cutting People Off

Copy the design that worked rather than going fully dark. These steps follow the two-week phone trial and the Facebook trial.

• Keep calls and texts. Both helpful trials left direct messages open.
• Plan who you'll see. In both trials, more in-person time went with the gains.
• Pick a set length, and write down the end date. The clearest trials used one to four weeks.
• Don't quit because you slipped. Partial blocking still helped.

If the trouble is one kind of content, a narrower break may fit better. For news you can't stop refreshing, how to stop doom scrolling deals with that loop. If you'd rather cut down than stop, screen time limits that last past the first week covers what makes a limit hold. And if the phone keeps coming between you and a partner, read how technoference strains a relationship.

When a Digital Detox Isn't Enough

A break from your phone isn't a treatment for depression or anxiety. NIMH says that if signs of depression persist or do not go away, talk to a health care provider. Those signs include a sad, anxious or "empty" mood most of the day, losing interest in things you enjoyed, and changes in sleep or appetite.

See a doctor if your mood stays low for two weeks or more, even after cutting back. Go sooner if you're struggling to work, sleep or look after yourself.

If you're having thoughts of harming yourself, you can talk to someone now. In the US and Canada, call or text 988 at any time. In the US that's the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, and in Canada it's the 9-8-8: Suicide Crisis Helpline.

If your life is at risk or you can't keep yourself safe, call 911 or go to the nearest ER.

In the UK and Ireland, call Samaritans free on 116 123, day or night, and in a UK emergency call 999. Anywhere else, call your local emergency number.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are the Side Effects of a Social Media Detox?

Some people feel lonelier or less satisfied with life during a break. In the 2022 review, two studies found life satisfaction fell, and one found loneliness rose. Keeping calls and texts on is one way to copy the phone trial, where people felt more connected.

Does a Digital Detox Help Anxiety?

It may help a little. Anxiety scores improved in the four-week Facebook trial, though the change was small. In the two-week phone trial, a combined mental health measure that included depression and anxiety improved.

Is a Phone Detox Different From a Social Media Detox?

Yes. A social media detox means quitting certain apps, while the two-week phone trial blocked all internet on the phone. Both kinds of break have improved well-being in trials. The trials above tested one or the other, not both side by side.