With robocalls being the #1 complaint to the FCC, plus buzz around phone anxiety and interruptions in workflow, we set out to see whether Americans are even answering phone calls anymore.
In a nationally representative survey of American adults, we found that 3 in 4 Americans dislike answering their phones due to robocalls and spam calls, while nearly half of American adults (46%) avoid answering phone calls because they don’t enjoy phone conversations. Gen Zers in particular do not like answering the phone (68%) and prefer a text message instead.
We also found that almost all of those surveyed don’t think phone carriers (80%) or the FCC (90%) are doing enough to solve the robocall problem.
Our iOS app Firewall completely blocks robocalls and protects people from unknown callers by sending them straight to voicemail and quickly transcribing them. It allows you to avoid annoying and disruptive calls while still making sure you don't miss confirming that doctor's appointment or dinner reservation.
See the full survey results below.
Phone calls interrupt our lives many times a day
66% of American adults receive 1-5 phone calls a day
18% of American adults receive 6-10 calls a day
10% of American adults receive 11 or more calls a day
Americans avoid a significant portion of the phone calls they receive
52% of American adults answer less than half of the phone calls they receive
Only 17% of American adults answer all the phone calls they receive and 31% answer more than half of phone calls
Only 10% of Gen Zers answer all the phone calls they receive, compared to 19% of baby boomers
Nearly 1 in 3 Americans do not answer unexpected phone calls at all
29% of American adults do not answer unexpected phone calls
46% of American adults answer less than half of unexpected phone calls
Only 26% of American adults answer more than half of unexpected phone calls
When Americans do pick up the phone, almost a third say robocallers are most often on the other end
When American adults do answer the phone, 27% say robocallers are most often on the other end
46% say family members are most often on the other end of their answered calls
15% say friends are most often on the other end of their answered calls
Baby boomers (37%) are almost twice as likely to say robocallers are on the other end of their answered calls, compared to Gen Zers (20%)
Nearly 2 in 3 Americans find phone calls to be disruptive
65% of American adults say phone calls disrupt their day
The majority of Americans dislike answering the phone and Gen Z is more likely to dislike it than baby boomers
60% of American adults dislike answering the phone
68% of Gen Zers dislike answering the phone, compared to 57% of baby boomers
3 in 4 Americans -- and 9 in 10 baby boomers specifically -- dislike answering their phones due to robocalls and spam calls
75% of American adults dislike answering the phone because they get too many robocalls and spam calls
Baby boomers are avoiding the phone for this reason even more, with 88% saying they dislike answering the phone because they get too many robocalls and spam calls
46% of American adults dislike answering the phone because they don’t enjoy phone conversations
Gen Zers (66%) and millennials (61%) are more than twice as likely to dislike phone conversations than baby boomers (28%)
40% of American adults dislike answering the phone because they like to screen their calls and see if callers leave voicemails
33% of American adults dislike answering the phone because they find phone calls to be distracting
Most Americans -- especially millennials and Gen Zers -- would rather receive a text message than a phone call
60% of American adults would rather receive a text than a phone call
22% of American adults prefer phone calls and 19% have no preference
Gen Zers (74%) and millennials (75%) are 30% more likely to prefer texts than baby boomers (45%) are
Baby boomers (33%) are almost 3x as likely to prefer phone calls than millennials (12%) are, and more than 5x as likely to prefer calls than Gen Zers (6%) are
74% of Gen Zers prefer receiving texts, 20% have no preference and only 6% prefer phone calls
75% of millennials prefer receiving texts, 13% have no preference and only 12% prefer phone calls
Only 45% of baby boomers prefer to receive a text over a phone call; 33% prefer phone calls and 22% have no preference
8 in 10 Americans agree that the carriers aren’t doing enough to prevent robocalls
80% of American adults think their phone carriers are not doing enough to prevent robocallers from calling them
9 in 10 people agree that the FCC is not doing enough to prevent robocalls
90% of American adults think the FCC is not doing enough to prevent robocallers from calling them
Nearly half of people added their phone numbers to the FCC’s Do Not Call list but said it didn’t help and more than 1 in 3 haven’t bothered to add their numbers to the list
46% of American adults added their phone numbers to the FCC’s Do Not Call list but said it did not work
37% have not bothered to add their numbers to the Do Not Call list
Only 17% added their numbers to the Do Not Call list and said it reduced the number of telemarketer calls they receive
70% of Gen Zers have not bothered to add their numbers to the Do Not Call list
25% of Gen Zers signed up for the FCC’s Do Not Call list but said it does not work
Only 6% of Gen Zers added their numbers to the Do Not Call list and said it reduced the number of telemarketer calls they receive
53% of millennials have not bothered to add their numbers to the Do Not Call list
35% of millennials signed up for the FCC’s Do Not Call list but said it does not work
Only 12% of millennials added their numbers to the Do Not Call list and said it reduced the number of telemarketer calls they receive
57% of baby boomers say they signed up for the FCC’s Do Not Call list but it does not work
22% have not bothered to add their numbers to the Do Not Call list
More than 1 in 4 Americans say they or a loved one have been scammed by a phone call
Almost a third (28%) of American adults say they or their loved ones have been scammed by a phone call
More than 8 in 10 Americans are concerned about how companies are using their data
84% of American adults are concerned about companies collecting and selling their personal data without permission
Gen Zers (73%) are 17% less concerned about this than baby boomers (90%) are