The UK’s earliest risers

We wanted to find out if the UK was full of people who spring out of bed early each morning, ready to take on the day ahead, or if we prefer an extra snooze in our warm and cosy beds.

So, we surveyed over 1000 people across the UK to find out if we’re a country of early risers or a national of night owls. Here’s what we discovered.

What time do we rise and shine?

Our survey results reveal the most popular time to get up and out of bed in the morning is between 7 am and 8 am. More than 42% said this was their normal wake-up time both on days they work and days they don’t (a).

It may be unsurprising to learn that although most people get up between 7 am and 8 am, it was common for people to also get up an hour or two earlier than this on a working day (b) and an hour or two later on their day off (c). On a workday, we may need to get up earlier to make sure we have time to get ready and do the school run or head to the office, but on a day off, we can switch the alarm off and enjoy a well-deserved extra hour under the duvet.

Where do the earliest risers live?

Those living in the East of England had the highest number of people saying they were usually up before 5 am on a workday (d) and between 5 and 6 am on their day off (e).

You may wonder why you’d still get up early even when you aren’t at work, however sticking to our usual wake-up time may help us feel refreshed in the long term. According to our sleep expert, Dr Sophie Bostock, our internal body clocks control our alertness, digestion, and core temperature. A change of just one hour to your usual rhythm can take your internal body clocks 24 hours to adjust to  (1). So, trying to get up at the same time on our days off (hard though it is) may actually help us feel more energised the rest of the day.

Do we get up earlier as we grow older?

Younger adults were the least likely demographic to get up early. Just over 9% of adults we surveyed aged between 16 and 24 said they usually get up between 5 am and 6 am (f) compared to more than 17% of adults aged 55 and over (g).

But before you put this down to youthful laziness, for teenagers the body clock can shift, almost like it’s on a later time zone, which makes waking up even more difficult  (2)

However, as we age, some of us may experience further hormonal changes. For example, for women during perimenopause and post menopause, a reduction in the hormone progesterone may lead to an increased risk of sleep apnoea which can disrupt deep sleep.  (3)

How often do we snooze?

Being able to stay up late may have its benefits (no dozing off during your favourite Netflix show, for example), but it may impact how easy it is for us to get out of bed the next day. For example, more than 20% of 16 to 24-year-olds said their regular bedtime on workdays was between 12 am and 1 am (h). And 40% of them said they snooze their alarms at least two to three times a week (i) – that’s more than the average of just once a week (j).

This pattern was also reflected in areas of the UK where people were more likely to stay up later. For example, more than 20% of the people surveyed in Greater London said their usual bedtime on a workday was between 12 am and 1 am (k). And this was also the region that had the highest percentage of people who report never getting up when their alarm goes off (l).

In comparison, Yorkshire and the Humber had the least number of people going to bed between 12 am and 1 am (m) on a workday, and they had the highest number of people reporting that they get out of bed as soon as their alarm goes off on a daily basis (n).

So, although staying up late and hitting the snooze button might be tempting, it may make it even more difficult for us to rise and shine.

Are we getting enough sleep?

We were curious to find out if most of the people we surveyed were actually getting the recommended 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night  (4). We established most get up between 7 am and 8 am, but what time do they go to bed?

Of over 1000 people we surveyed, more than 52% said they typically go to bed between 10 am and 11 pm (o), which would mean that most people could be getting up to nine hours of sleep a night, which is good news for our health. Getting enough quality sleep is vital for our overall wellbeing – it can help us feel less stressed, more confident, more productive and it may even help strengthen our immune defences.  (5)

What about if you’re a parent?

Our survey results show that parents tend to go to bed slightly earlier than those without children. For example, of the people we surveyed, parents were more likely to report turning in by 9 pm even on their day off (p), compared to those without children who were more likely to wait until 1am before hitting the hay. (q).

Whether you’re running around after a toddler or being a taxi service for a teenager, getting as much sleep as possible is vital when you’re a parent to ensure you have enough energy to take on whatever lies ahead the following day.

Unfortunately, if you’re a parent dreaming of a lie-in, we have some less-than-ideal news. More than 20% of the parents we surveyed said they are woken up by their children, pets, or their partner up to three times per week (r). Women seem to be bearing the brunt of this, with twice as many women as men reporting they get woken up by others more than six times a week (s).

READ MORE: If you’re a new parent and looking for ways to improve your sleep, take a look at our recent article for tips on how to protect your sleep.

Why do we wake up and go to bed when we do?

Creatures of habit

The reality is that most people go to bed and wake up when they do because that’s what they’re used to. Our jobs, kids and pets dictate when we get up in the morning, and once we have an established routine, it can be difficult to break. In fact, even the COVID19 pandemic didn’t change our usual habits, as more than 75% of the people we surveyed said the recent pandemic hadn’t affected their morning and evening routine at all! (t)

Seasonal changes

More than 31% of the people we surveyed said they feel the time of year affects what time they get up in the morning and go to bed at night. (u). Darker mornings during the winter can often make it even harder to drag ourselves out of bed, while the barmy summer evenings can mean we often stay up way later than we usually would. Twice a year, we also must move our clocks forward or back an hour which can further disrupt our sleep. 

READ MORE: Our sleep expert, Dr Sophie Bostock, shares some excellent tips for the best ways to combat this.

We feel sleepy

Although there’s no denying that external factors can influence what time we end up getting into bed, our survey results show that the most popular reason for people going to bed when they do is simply because they feel sleepy (v). Listening to our bodies and not forcing ourselves to stay awake can support us getting into a regular routine and may help us drift off easier at bedtime.

READ MORE: If you’re looking for ways to help you wake up in a good place and feel more refreshed in the morning, check out Katie Piper’s top ten tips for sleeping well here.

References

1)  How to Make the Most of the Clock Change | Sleep Hub - Bensons for Beds

2)  https://www.bensonsforbeds.co.uk/sleep-hub/how-much-sleep-do-children-need-nationalbedmonth/

3)  World Menopause Day: How to Sleep Well During Menopause - Bensons for Beds

4)  Pregnancy & Sleep: How to Sleep Well During Pregnancy | Sleep Hub - Bensons for Beds

5)  Could a Good Night’s Sleep Help in Fight Against COVID-19? | Sleep Hub - Bensons for Beds

Sources

a)Of the 1003 people surveyed, 425 answered 7am-8am when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually get up in the morning on a workday?’ Of the 1003 people surveyed, 430 people answered ‘7am-8am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually get up in the morning on a non-workday?’

b)Of the 1003 people surveyed, 235 answered ‘5am-6am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually get up in the morning on a workday?’

c)Of the 1003 people surveyed, 253 answered ‘9am-10am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually get up in the morning on a non-workday?’

d)13.83% (13 of 94) people surveyed from East of England answered ‘before 5am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually get up in the morning on a workday?’

e)18.09% (17 of 94) people surveyed from East of England answered ‘5am-6am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually get up in the morning on a non-workday?’

f)13 of 134 adults surveyed aged between 16 and 24 answered ‘5am-6am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually get up in the morning on a non-workday?’

g)66 of 381 adults surveyed aged 55 and above answered ‘5am-6am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually get up in the morning on a non-workday?’

h)27 of 134 adults surveyed aged 16 to 24 answered ‘12am-1am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually go to bed on a workday?’

i)53 of 134 adults aged 16 to 24 answered ‘2-3 times per week’ when asked ‘On an average week, how often, if at all, do you snooze your alarm?’

j)Of the 1003 people surveyed, the average (mean) times per week people reported snoozing their alarm was 1.37

k)26 of 130 people surveyed from Greater London said ‘12am-1am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually go to bed on a workday?’

l)26 of 130 people surveyed from Greater London answered ‘never’ when asked ‘On an average week, how often, if at all, do you get up straight away as soon as your alarm goes off?’

m)9 of 84 people surveyed from Yorkshire and the Humber said ‘12am-1am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually go to bed on a workday?’

n)25 of 84 people surveyed living in Yorkshire and the Humber answered ‘more than six times’ when asked ‘On an average week, how often, if at all, do you get up straight away as soon as your alarm goes off?’

o)525 of 1003 adults surveyed answered ‘10pm-11pm’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually go to bed on a workday?’

p)10.25% (65 of 634) of parents surveyed answered ‘7pm-9pm’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually go to bed on a non-workday?’ compared to 7.86% (29 of 369) non-parents surveyed who gave the same response.

q)11.38% (42 of 369) non-parents surveyed answered ‘later than 1am’ when asked ‘On average, what time do you usually go to bed on a non-workday?’ compared to 6.31% (40 of 634) parents surveyed who gave the same response.

r)132 of 634 parents we surveyed answered ‘two to three times’ when asked ‘On an average week, how often, if at all, do you get woken up by your partner/kids/pets?’

s)12.5% (64 of 512) females surveyed answered ‘more than six times’ when asked ‘On an average week, how often, if at all, do you get woken up by your partner/kids/pets?’ Compared to 5.50% (27 of 491) men who were surveyed that gave the same response.

t)75.27% (755 of 1003) people surveyed said ‘no’ when asked ‘Do you think the COVID-19 pandemic has changed your morning routine?’ And 76.37% (766 of 1003) people surveyed said ‘no’ when asked ‘Do you think the COVID-19 pandemic has changed your evening routine?’

u)314 of 1003 people we surveyed answered ‘yes’ when asked ‘Do you think the time of year/season affects the time you go to bed and get up in the morning?’

314 of 1003 people surveyed answered ‘I feel sleepy’ when asked ‘What is the main reason, if any, for going to bed at this time?’

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