Leisure Monitor 2026: Classical Socializing Loses Significance in Germany

According to the study, other more withdrawn activities are also gaining favor. This includes streaming series and films, browsing social networks, and using digital helpers. The Foundation interprets this as an indication that classical forms of socializing are losing importance across the broader population.

Digital Spaces as the New Meeting Place

At the same time, this shift does not mean that people are no longer coming into contact with one another at all. Rather, contacts are partly shifting into digital spaces. Observers speak in this context of a change in social habits, in which real-life encounters are not replaced but transformed.

For the interpretation of the figures, it is above all the long-term development that matters. In earlier editions of the Leisure Monitor, the researchers had already established that individual relaxation and media consumption are gaining ground at the expense of classical socializing. The current finding continues this trend.

Ulrich Reinhardt of the Foundation for Future Questions sees this as a structural transformation that affects many areas of life. According to him, new technical possibilities, changing working hours, and a growing need for retreat are altering the way people spend their free time. The Leisure Monitor provides empirical evidence for this.

Contextualizing the Findings

The study is part of a series of regular surveys that have been measuring leisure behavior in Germany for years. It combines a representative population survey with supplementary analyses and is used by the Foundation to make developments visible over longer periods.

The high level of agreement on weekly music listening is not necessarily evidence of social isolation. Music accompanies many activities, such as sport, studying, or housework, and can be enjoyed both alone and in company. The figure does show, however, how self-evident the use of audio media has become in everyday life.

Outlook on Further Analyses

Overall, the Leisure Monitor 2026 paints a picture of a society in which individual forms of leisure continue to gain strength. Classical socializing, understood as regular in-person meetings with acquaintances and friends, remains part of everyday life but recedes further into the background than in earlier surveys.

For the coming years, the Foundation has announced further evaluations that will examine more closely the connection between digital usage, AI applications, and social contacts. In doing so, the research is responding to a lived environment in which technical tools and personal relationships must be newly balanced.