Every five years, the national statistics agency INEGI conducts a National Survey on Time Use (ENUT).
The most recent survey was conducted at more than 32,000 homes in 2024. The results of the survey were published in August 2025.
In this week’s “Mexico in Numbers” article, we look at some of the key results.
Reading about how Mexicans spend their days and weeks may seem uninteresting on the surface. But some of the ENUT results might just surprise you! And, after all, how we spend our time is how we live our lives.
* N.B. — Males and females aged 12 and over participated in the 2024 ENUT.
How many hours do Mexicans work per week?
On average, Mexicans spend 59.6 hours per week performing paid and unpaid work, including domestic chores, care work and volunteer work.
In other words, Mexicans spend around 35% of their time each week working.
On average, women work 61.1 hours per week while men work 58 hours per week.
On average, women spend 39.7 hours per week on domestic chores, care work and volunteer work, compared to 18.2 hours for men. Thus, the weekly gender gap for such work is 21.5 hours.
In households where the occupants speak an Indigenous language, the weekly gender gap for domestic, care and volunteer work is even higher at 27.3 hours. For Mexicans who live in towns with fewer than 10,000 residents, the weekly gender gap for domestic, care and volunteer work is also much higher than the national average at 26.4 hours.
The state where people, on average, spend the most hours per week working is Hidalgo. On average, hidalguenses work 65.6 hours per week, six hours more than the national average.
The state where people, on average, spend the fewest hours per week working is Chihuahua. On average, chihauhuenses work 54.5 hours per week, 5.1 hours less than the national average.
How many hours do Mexicans sleep per week?
According to the results of the 2024 ENUT, women in Mexico, on average, sleep 53 hours per week. In other words, women usually get just over 7 1/2 hours of sleep per night.
On average, men sleep 52.1 hours per week, or just under 7 1/2 hours per night.
On average, women in Mexico spend 114.1 hours per week working and sleeping. Thus, women are left with 53.9 hours per week for other activities.
On average, men in Mexico spend 110.1 hours per week working and sleeping. Consequently, men are left with 57.9 hours per week for other activities.
How do Mexicans spend their time when they’re not working or sleeping?
In addition to working and sleeping, Mexicans — like people around the world — spend time eating, bathing, attending to their personal health needs and resting.
According to the 2024 ENUT results, women, on average, spend 8.6 hours per week eating while men spend 8.2 hours per week chowing down (on tasty Mexican food in many cases, no doubt).
On average, women spend 6.7 hours per week on bathing, dressing and personal grooming; 5.4 hours on their personal healthcare needs; and 4.1 hours praying, meditating and resting.
On average, men spend 5.6 hours per week on bathing, dressing and personal grooming; 6.1 hours on their personal health care needs; and 4.6 hours praying, meditating and resting.
The most popular “free time” activity for both women and men is “use of mass media” — e.g., surfing the internet; posting to social media or sending online messages; watching TV, movies and streaming services; listening to music and the radio; and reading material such as books, newspapers and magazines.
On average, women spend 15.1 hours per week using mass media, while men spend 15.7 hours per week on the same activity.
The next most popular “free time” activity for Mexicans is spending time with friends and family. The average time spent on such convivencia (coexistence) per week is 7.8 hours for women and 7 hours for men.
The third most popular “free time” activity for women is sports and physical exercise, with an average of 4.7 hours per week spent on such activities. On average, men spend 5.4 hours playing sports and doing exercise per week. However, sports and exercise only rank as the fourth most popular “free time” activity for men.
Mexican men’s third most popular leisure activity is “participation in games and hobbies.” On average, men spend 6.1 hours per week playing games and practicing their hobbies. The average for women is 4.1 hours, making games and hobbies the fourth most popular pastime for mexicanas.
So, how do you spend the 168 hours at your disposal each week? In what ways does your life differ from that of the average Mexican? Let us know in the comments.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
