What are Americans doing at 5 AM?
At 5 AM on an average weekday, 82.4% of Americans age 15 and older are asleep, 5.1% are on personal care, and 3.2% are working. 1.7% (about 4.2 million) are driving.
Explore 5 AM by age, work, income, and more ↗
Everything Americans are doing at 5 AM
| Activity | Weekdays | People | Weekends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleeping | 82.4% | 207.0 million | 90.8% |
| Personal care | 5.1% | 12.9 million | 1.8% |
| Working | 3.2% | 7.9 million | 1.7% |
| Leisure & socializing | 2.3% | 5.8 million | 2.0% |
| Household tasks | 2.1% | 5.2 million | 1.3% |
| Driving | 1.7% | 4.2 million | 0.6% |
| Eating & drinking | 1.3% | 3.2 million | 0.7% |
| Sports & exercise | 0.5% | 1.3 million | 0.2% |
| Caring for others | 0.5% | 1.2 million | 0.3% |
| Other travel | 0.4% | 1.0 million | 0.3% |
| Religious activities | 0.3% | 653,000 | 0.1% |
| Learning | <0.1% | 217,000 | <0.1% |
| Shopping & services | <0.1% | 116,000 | <0.1% |
| Volunteering | <0.1% | 78,000 | <0.1% |
| Calls & messages | <0.1% | 71,000 | <0.1% |
| Civic activities | 0.0% | fewer than 1,000 | <0.1% |
The ten most common activities at 5 AM on weekdays
- Sleeping: about 207.0 million people (82.4%)
- Washing, dressing and grooming oneself: about 11.6 million people (4.6%)
- Work, main job: about 7.6 million people (3.0%)
- Television and movies (not religious): about 3.2 million people (1.3%)
- Eating and drinking: about 3.2 million people (1.3%)
- Driving · Travel related to working: about 2.6 million people (1.0%)
- Food and drink preparation: about 2.5 million people (1.0%)
- Care for animals and pets (not veterinary care): about 1.1 million people (0.4%)
- Reading for personal interest: about 800,000 people (0.3%)
- Physical care for household children: about 717,000 people (0.3%)
About these numbers
Estimates come from all 258,954 diaries in the American Time Use Survey (Bureau of Labor Statistics and Census Bureau), 2003–2025, weighted to the U.S. civilian population age 15 and older and pooled across years. Times are local clock time. Counts are people on an average day of that type, not a live count. Weekdays are Monday–Friday. How the estimates work.