Julian Luke

The second 6 months of 2016 was the first time that a majority of American homes had only wireless telephones. Preliminary results from the July– December 2016 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) indicate that 50.8% of American homes did not have a landline telephone but did have at least one wireless telephone (also known as cellular telephones, cell phones, or mobile phones) —an increase of 2.5 percentage points since the second 6 months of 2015. More than 70% of all adults aged 25-34 and of adults renting their homes were living in wireless-only households. This report presents the most up-to-date estimates available from the federal government concerning the size and characteristics of this population.

Preliminary results from the July -- December 2013 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) indicate that the number of American homes with only wireless telephones continues to grow.

Two in every five American homes (41.0%) had only wireless telephones (also known as cellular telephones, cell phones, or mobile phones) during the second half of 2013 -- an increase of 1.6 percentage points since the first half of 2013 and 2.8 percentage points since the second half of 2012.

However, these increases are smaller than those observed in previous years.

This report presents the most up-to-date estimates available from the federal government concerning the size and characteristics of these populations. The 41 percent of households without a landline telephone account for nearly 93 million adults and almost 35 million children across the country. People under 30, houses with several unrelated roommates, poorer residents and Hispanic people were more likely to be relying solely on their cellphones. Nearly 9 percent of American households had only landline service, without wireless access.