Behind the Numbers: an EMARKETER Podcast Growing Up “Constantly Online”: What Teens’ Online Lives Really Look Like | Behind the Numbers
Mar 9, 2026
Emmy Liedermann, an eMarketer analyst on teen device use and AI trends; and Paola Flores-Marquez, a demographics analyst focused on youth behavior. They explore which devices teens favor and why. They discuss how smartphones power social commerce and where physical stores still fit. They map teens’ platform habits, gaming as a social space, and evolving uses of AI.
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Teens Defined As 12 To 17 For Habit Clarity
- eMarketer defines teens as ages 12 to 17, focusing on school-aged youth still under parental care.
- This narrower band helps track habit formation and highlights large usage jumps in social media between 12–14 and 15–17.
Smartphones Are Teens Primary Computing Device
- Smartphones are the default device for teens and often feel instinctual because many learned on them from a young age.
- Teens still use larger devices for homework and long-form streaming, but many tasks adults deem 'computer-only' happen on phones.
Teens Shop Most On Their Phones Via Social Commerce
- Shopping is the activity teens do most on smartphones, outpacing games and video viewing in time spent.
- Social commerce fuels this: discovery, validation, and purchase all happen within social apps in one flow.