Schools nationwide are cracking down on students’ cellphone use. At the same time, support for cellphone bans is rising among U.S. adults. But what do teenagers think?
Teens largely oppose banning cellphones for the entire school day; views on classroom bans more mixed
% of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 who say they would support or oppose a ban that prevents middle and high school students from using cellphones during …
Note: “Strongly/Somewhat support” and “Strongly/Somewhat oppose” responses are combined. Those who did not answer or said “Not sure” are not shown. Refer to the questionnaire for full question wording.
Source: Survey of U.S. teens conducted Sept. 25-Oct. 9, 2025.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Teens largely oppose banning cellphones for the entire school day; views on classroom bans more mixed
% of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 who say they would support or oppose a ban that prevents middle and high school students from using cellphones during …
| Support | Oppose | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | 41 | 51 |
| The entire school day | 17 | 73 |
Note: “Strongly/Somewhat support” and “Strongly/Somewhat oppose” responses are combined. Those who did not answer or said “Not sure” are not shown. Refer to the questionnaire for full question wording.
Source: Survey of U.S. teens conducted Sept. 25-Oct. 9, 2025.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Today, 41% of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 say they support banning middle and high school students from using cellphones during class, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in fall 2025.
Still, roughly half of teens oppose such a ban. And 9% are not sure.
Teens are far less supportive of a full-day ban on cellphone use. About one-in-five teens support banning cellphones during the entire school day, including at lunch and between classes. Another 73% oppose this.
Views by race and ethnicity
White teens more supportive than Hispanic and Black teens on cellphone bans in schools
% of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 who say they would support a ban that prevents middle and high school students from using cellphones during …
Note: “Strongly/Somewhat support” responses are combined. Those who did not answer or gave other responses are not shown. Refer to the questionnaire for full question wording.
Source: Survey of U.S. teens conducted Sept. 25-Oct. 9, 2025.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
White teens more supportive than Hispanic and Black teens on cellphone bans in schools
% of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 who say they would support a ban that prevents middle and high school students from using cellphones during …
| Class | The entire school day | Sort | |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. teens | 41 | 17 | Total |
| Boys | 41 | 15 | Gender |
| Girls | 41 | 20 | Gender |
| White | 46 | 20 | Race |
| Black | 33 | 10 | Race |
| Hispanic | 36 | 14 | Race |
| Ages 13-14 | 43 | 21 | Age |
| 15-17 | 39 | 15 | Age |
| Less than $30K | 36 | 16 | Income |
| $30K-$74,999 | 38 | 17 | Income |
| $75K+ | 42 | 17 | Income |
Note: “Strongly/Somewhat support” responses are combined. Those who did not answer or gave other responses are not shown. Refer to the questionnaire for full question wording.
Source: Survey of U.S. teens conducted Sept. 25-Oct. 9, 2025.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Views on cellphone bans vary by race and ethnicity. While 46% of White teens say they support banning cellphones in classrooms, that share drops to about a third among Hispanic and Black teens.
The pattern is the same for all-day bans. But relatively low shares across racial and ethnic groups support them.
Views by other demographic characteristics
Older and younger teens are similarly likely to support a classroom ban. However, teens ages 13 to 14 are slightly more likely to back a full-day ban.
Support for each type of cellphone ban is similar across gender and household income.
Comparing teens’ and adults’ views on school cellphone bans
Teens far less supportive than adults on cellphone bans in schools
% of U.S. adults and teens ages 13 to 17 who say they would support a ban that prevents middle and high school students from using cellphones during …
Note: “Strongly/Somewhat support” responses are combined. Those who did not answer or gave other responses are not shown. Refer to the questionnaire for full question wording.
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted June 9-15, 2025; survey of U.S. teens conducted Sept. 25-Oct. 9, 2025.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Teens far less supportive than adults on cellphone bans in schools
% of U.S. adults and teens ages 13 to 17 who say they would support a ban that prevents middle and high school students from using cellphones during …
| U.S. teens | U.S. adults | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | 41 | 74 |
| The entire school day | 17 | 44 |
Note: “Strongly/Somewhat support” responses are combined. Those who did not answer or gave other responses are not shown. Refer to the questionnaire for full question wording.
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted June 9-15, 2025; survey of U.S. teens conducted Sept. 25-Oct. 9, 2025.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Adults are far more supportive than teens are of banning cellphone use in schools.
In a separate survey conducted in summer 2025, 74% of U.S. adults said they support banning middle and high school students from using cellphones during class. That compares with 41% of teens.
Adults are also far more likely than teens to back cellphone bans for the entire school day (44% vs. 17%).
Previous Center research has also found that adults are more supportive than teens are of several social media policies aimed at minors, such as platforms requiring parental consent to create an account or setting time limits for underage users.
