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It turns out binge-watching might actually be helping us get more sleep, not less. A new study has revealed that, contrary to popular belief, streaming services like Netflix, Prime Video, and Apple TV are encouraging people to go to bed earlier than they did two decades ago.
According to research from the University of Kansas, the average adult now switches off the lights and heads to bed at 10:14pm, a full 22 minutes earlier than the average bedtime in 2003, which was 10:36pm. And in a twist that challenges common assumptions, it’s younger adults who are tucking in the earliest. The study found that those aged 18 to 29 now go to bed at around 9:42pm, despite often being viewed as the most screen-obsessed age group.
The shift in bedtime habits, researchers say, is largely down to the way we consume television and entertainment in the streaming era. With on-demand access to shows and movies available 24/7, viewers no longer feel compelled to stay up late to catch a scheduled broadcast. Instead, people can watch what they want, when they want, and then call it a night.
“Our findings support the possibility that in the era of online video streaming, people are more able to schedule their viewing at times facilitating healthy sleep schedules,” the researchers explained. “They show that earlier TV viewing cessation accounted for earlier bedtimes observed in the streaming era.”
In other words, the age of the fixed TV schedule, once responsible for keeping millions up past their bedtime, may have quietly been replaced by healthier sleep routines, all thanks to the convenience of streaming.
Of course, not every night is early to bed, especially when a new season drops or a gripping cliffhanger keeps us saying “just one more episode.” But overall, it seems that digital entertainment platforms are offering viewers more control over their evenings, and that control may be helping people prioritise rest over rigid TV slots.
So, while streaming services have been blamed for many modern habits, from screen addiction to the death of channel surfing, they might also be helping us sneak in a little more shut-eye. Netflix and chill, it seems, really does end with the lights off, just a bit earlier than before.
