Household Activities
Household activities are those done by persons to maintain their households. These include housework; cooking; yard care; pet care; vehicle maintenance and repair; home maintenance, repair, decoration, and renovation; and household management and organizational activities (such as filling out paperwork, balancing a checkbook, or planning a party). For a more detailed description of this activity category, see the ATUS 2008 Technical Note.
Tables on this page:
Other sources of ATUS data
Household activities on weekdays and weekend days in 2008
Time spent in household activities and percent of the civilian population engaging in household activities, averages per day on weekdays and weekends, 2008 annual averages
Activity |
Average hours per day, civilian population |
Average percent engaged in the activity per day |
Average hours per day for persons who engaged in the activity |
Weekdays |
Weekends and holidays
|
Weekdays |
Weekends and holidays
|
Weekdays |
Weekends and holidays
|
Total, household activities |
1.57 |
2.08 |
73.3 |
74.6 |
2.15 |
2.80 |
Housework |
.53 |
.70 |
34.4 |
38.0 |
1.53 |
1.86 |
Food preparation and cleanup |
.50 |
.59 |
53.0 |
50.6 |
.93 |
1.16 |
Lawn and garden care |
.16 |
.25 |
8.8 |
10.8 |
1.86 |
2.28 |
Household management |
.12 |
.15 |
18.1 |
18.1 |
.65 |
.83 |
Interior maintenance, repair, and decoration |
.05 |
.10 |
2.8 |
3.6 |
1.93 |
2.73 |
Exterior maintenance, repair, and decoration |
.05 |
.08 |
2.4 |
3.6 |
1.97 |
2.16 |
Animals and pets |
.09 |
.09 |
15.4 |
12.5 |
.59 |
.75 |
Vehicles |
.03 |
.06 |
2.4 |
3.5 |
1.34 |
1.69 |
Appliances, tools, and toys |
.01 |
.02 |
1.1 |
1.6 |
|
1.30 |
Travel related to household activities |
.04 |
.05 |
9.6 |
9.0 |
.37 |
.52 |
These and other detailed activity estimates are also available in:
Table A-2: Time spent in detailed primary activities, and percent of the civilian population engaging in each detailed primary activity category, averages per day on weekdays and weekends, 2008 annual averages (PDF)
For a further description of ATUS data and methodology, see the ATUS 2008 Technical Note.
Household activities done by men and women in 2008
Time spent in household activities and percent of the civilian population engaging in household activities, averages per day by sex, 2008 annual averages
Activity |
Average hours per day, civilian population |
Average percent engaged in the activity per day |
Average hours per day for persons who engaged in the activity |
Total |
Men |
Women |
Total |
Men |
Women |
Total |
Men |
Women |
Total, household activities |
1.73 |
1.30 |
2.13 |
73.7 |
64.2 |
82.6 |
2.34 |
2.02 |
2.58 |
Housework |
.58 |
.24 |
.90 |
35.5 |
19.7 |
50.3 |
1.64 |
1.23 |
1.79 |
Food preparation and cleanup |
.52 |
.30 |
.73 |
52.3 |
38.4 |
65.3 |
1.00 |
.78 |
1.12 |
Lawn and garden care |
.19 |
.26 |
.12 |
9.4 |
11.0 |
7.9 |
2.00 |
2.35 |
1.56 |
Household management |
.13 |
.10 |
.15 |
18.1 |
14.5 |
21.5 |
.70 |
.68 |
.71 |
Interior maintenance, repair, and decoration |
.07 |
.10 |
.04 |
3.0 |
3.9 |
2.2 |
2.22 |
2.50 |
1.73 |
Exterior maintenance, repair, and decoration |
.06 |
.08 |
.03 |
2.7 |
3.8 |
1.8 |
2.04 |
2.22 |
1.68 |
Animals and pets |
.09 |
.08 |
.10 |
14.5 |
12.1 |
16.7 |
.63 |
.69 |
.59 |
Vehicles |
.04 |
.07 |
.01 |
2.7 |
4.5 |
1.0 |
1.48 |
1.65 |
.73 |
Appliances, tools, and toys |
.01 |
.02 |
.01 |
1.2 |
1.8 |
.7 |
1.05 |
1.03 |
|
Travel related to household activities |
.04 |
.04 |
.04 |
9.4 |
8.5 |
10.3 |
.41 |
.46 |
.37 |
These and other detailed activity estimates are also available in:
Table A-1. Time spent in detailed primary activities and percent of the civilian population engaging in each detailed primary activity category, averages per day by sex, 2008 annual averages (PDF)
For a further description of ATUS data and methodology, see the ATUS 2008 Technical Note.
Other sources of ATUS data
ATUS news releases
ATUS tables
ATUS charts
ATUS papers and publications
Last Modified Date: June 24, 2009
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