Average age of children getting first mobile is now below 9.5 years-old
A new report has been published as part of Safer Internet Day
Last updated 1st May 2025
A new report has revealed the average age of children getting their first mobile is now below 9.5 years-old.
It is part of Safer Internet Day and the report says it has been driven by concerns of being left out and parents feeling guilt tripped, with over half (57%) saying they felt pressure to give their child a phone whilst they are primary school age, despite almost three quarters (74%) being hesitant initially.
We have been speaking to some people in Middlesbrough who said: "I got an iPad at nine years-old. I think my mum gave it to me for games and stuff like that but I feel like it's different with phones because it's social media. It's more normal when you start primary school because you're meeting new people and you can talk to them outside of school and everything."
"I didn't get my phone until I was 12 and my little brother's had one since he was like seven because more people have them. When I was younger with people having mobiles phones, smart phones weren't that common and now everyone has one, so it's kind of common for younger children to get them younger and because when you get a new one what do you do with your old one? You just hand it down."
Smartphones can provide reassurance to parents, as they say top practical features are safety and GPS tracking (56%) of their child, followed by staying connected with calls and texts (53%) and access to educational resources (33%).
However, among parents who introduce phones at a primary school age, only a quarter (27%) said they had put strict usage and access restrictions in place, and over on-in-ten (13%) admitted they used light or no restrictions.
This Safer Internet Day, research commissioned by Motorola delved into smartphone usage to highlight the challenges parents face when buying their child their first phone, as well as platform helpful resources available such as Parent Talk by Action For Children.
It has found that almost half the children surveyed (44%) had accessed the internet or apps without their parents' knowledge and almost a third (31%) had seen content they think they were too young to see.
When deciding, fear of being their child being left out (44%) was the top reason why parents felt pressure to give in. It was also the top reason why parents choose a smartphone over a feature phone with limited access to the internet. Parents also stated that this pressure starts when friends start to get phones, with almost half (47%) saying they were 'guilt tripped' into handing over a device.
This has also led to one-in-four parents saying that they did not talk to their child to assess their emotional readiness before giving them a phone which is why parents are being urged to have continued conversations with their children about smartphone usage.