Some Gen Zers swap their smartphones for "dumb" phones to cut back on social media

Kendall Schrohe is 23 years old and lives in Washington, D.C. Not long ago, she made a big decision — she got rid of her iPhone and switched to a basic flip phone. She told CBS News that the moment her smartphone was gone, it felt amazing. Like many young people today, she wanted to stop spending so much time on social media.

Schrohe is part of a growing group of young people who are giving up their smartphones for simpler devices sometimes called "dumb phones." These phones do less on purpose. The idea is to help people stop scrolling through social media apps all day. Many users say they feel better about their mental health after making the switch.

According to the Pew Research Center, about half of U.S. adults visited social media sites like YouTube and Facebook at least once a day in 2025. For teenagers, the numbers are even higher. The American Psychological Association found that the average U.S. teen spends almost five hours a day on social media. That is a lot of time on screens every single day.

So what exactly is a "dumb phone"? The name covers a wide range of devices. Some are old-school flip phones from the late 1990s and early 2000s that can only make calls and send texts. Others look like flip phones but still have a few useful apps. Some devices even work with a regular smartphone to block social media apps without replacing the phone entirely.

Schrohe got her flip phone from a company called Dumb.co. It sells phones that come with helpful apps like Uber, maps, and Spotify — but no social media. The company says it has more than 5,000 active users, and its average customer is a 24-year-old woman. Other companies, like The Light Phone and Brick, also sell similar products for people who want fewer distractions.

Even though Schrohe is happy with her choice, she admits that quitting social media is not easy. She said that young people have grown up using these platforms their whole lives, which makes it very hard to imagine living without them. Breaking a habit that started in childhood takes real effort, she explained.

In March, a jury decided that the companies Meta and YouTube were responsible for creating products that caused harm to young users. The jury found that their platforms were designed in ways that made young people addicted to them. This was a major legal decision that could affect how social media companies are treated in court in the future.

Dr. Jason Nagata is a doctor and professor at the University of California, San Francisco. He studies how social media affects young people. His research found that using social media too much can look a lot like a substance addiction. He said it can cause problems like losing control, feeling withdrawal, and relapsing — the same issues seen with drug or alcohol dependence.

Dr. Nagata also found some good news for people who cut back. Those who reduce their social media use or quit it altogether often feel better over time. "In the long term, many do notice improvement in sleep, better concentration, less overall stress," he said. These are big benefits that can improve a person's daily life in many ways.

Schrohe spent years trying to use her smartphone less before she found something that worked. She joined a program called "Month Offline," which challenged her to go without her smartphone for 30 days. That experience helped her realize she actually preferred life without constant scrolling. She hopes others will know that changing their relationship with technology is possible too.