TL;DR
Ofcom's Annual Online Nation research, based on a YouGov poll of 7,340 adults in June 2025, shows people aged 18–34 growing more negative about the internet's impact on society and their mental health. Younger adults still spend substantially more personal time online than older groups and report more feed-driven encounters with potentially harmful material.
What happened
The UK communications regulator published annual research in June 2025 showing a marked decline in positive attitudes toward the internet among 18–34-year-olds. Only about a third of that age group agreed the internet is good for society, down from 42 percent a year earlier; older groups also declined but more modestly. Young adults shifted from net-positive to net-negative on whether online life benefits their emotional wellbeing — in 2025 more said the internet harmed their mental health than helped it. Despite this, 18–34s remain the heaviest personal users of online services, averaging six hours and 20 minutes a day on non-work devices. The report highlights younger people encountering potentially harmful material more often via algorithmic feeds on platforms such as Instagram and TikTok, and notes they are more likely to manage use through settings changes or app deletion while being less inclined than older users to report harmful content.
Why it matters
- Shifting youth sentiment could influence public debate on digital regulation and platform accountability.
- High daily personal usage combined with rising harm perceptions raises concerns about youth mental health and online exposure.
- Feed-driven discovery of harmful material points to algorithmic curation as a factor in negative experiences.
- Lower reporting rates among younger users may affect how platforms and regulators assess the scale of harmful content.
Key facts
- Ofcom's findings are drawn from YouGov polling of 7,340 adults conducted in the summer for the Annual Online Nation report.
- In June 2025, roughly one third of 18–34-year-olds agreed the internet is good for society, down from 42% in 2024.
- For those aged 55 and over, agreement the internet is good for society fell to 34% in 2025 from 38% in 2024.
- On emotional wellbeing, 35% of young adults in 2025 disagreed that being online had a positive overall effect, while 31% agreed; in 2024 the balance was 28% disagreeing and 39% agreeing.
- Young adults averaged 6 hours 20 minutes a day on personal devices in 2025, up 10 minutes year-on-year; the average for all adults was 4 hours 30 minutes.
- Among young adults, 47% of potentially harmful encounters came from scrolling a feed, compared with 26% for people aged 55+.
- Instagram and TikTok were the platforms where younger adults most often reported encountering potentially harmful material, though Facebook was the single platform where such encounters were most common overall.
- Younger adults are more likely to use tactics such as disabling notifications, Do Not Disturb, pausing services, or deleting apps to manage internet use.
- A fifth of young adults felt they did not have a good balance between online and offline life, compared with 13% of all adults.
- More than half of younger respondents chose not to report potentially harmful content, often judging it not serious or harmful enough.
What to watch next
- How enforcement of the UK Online Safety Act affects young people's online experiences and platform behaviour (not confirmed in the source).
- Whether social platforms adjust algorithmic feed design or content-moderation practices in response to rising youth concern (not confirmed in the source).
- Trends in reporting behaviour and whether lower reporting among younger users leads to changes in platform or regulator response (not confirmed in the source).
Quick glossary
- Ofcom: The UK's communications regulator, responsible for overseeing broadcasting, telecommunications and online safety policy in the UK.
- YouGov: A market research and polling company that conducts surveys of public opinion and consumer behaviour.
- Algorithmic feed: A content stream where items are ordered or recommended by automated systems based on signals like engagement, rather than solely by chronological order.
- Online Safety Act: UK legislation aimed at reducing harmful online content and establishing rules for services that host user-generated material.
- Potentially harmful content: Online material that users might find distressing, dangerous, or otherwise damaging; precise definitions vary by study and platform.
Reader FAQ
How was the data collected?
Ofcom's Annual Online Nation findings are based on a YouGov survey of 7,340 adults carried out in the summer of 2025.
Are young people spending less time online?
No — 18–34-year-olds averaged six hours and 20 minutes a day on personal devices in 2025, an increase of ten minutes from the previous year.
Do older adults view the internet more positively?
Yes; while favourable views fell across age groups, people aged 55 and over were proportionately more positive than 18–34s in 2025.
Is the Online Safety Act responsible for these shifts in sentiment?
Not confirmed in the source.
Why might young people report more harmful encounters?
The report points to a greater share of algorithm-driven feed content and platform-specific exposure (e.g., Instagram, TikTok) among younger users, which is linked to higher rates of potentially harmful encounters.
OFF-PREM 55 Faith in the internet is fading among young Brits Ofcom survey finds 18-34s increasingly see life online as bad for society and their mental health SA Mathieson Fri 19 Dec 2025…
Sources
- Faith in the internet is fading among young Brits
- From apps to AI search: how the UK goes online in 2025
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