‘Chore Snacking’ to Incessant Spring-Cleaning, The Aussie Cleaning Obsession Grows

New Research Reveals How Australians Are Living At Home in 2021

Australians are obsessed with cleaning, ‘chore snacking’ whilst working from home and watching more TV as a way to share time with others – according to the latest installment of Samsung’s Australians@HOME research.

The study, conducted in May, explores the common trends in homes around the country and the behaviours and attitudes which continue to evolve the more time we spend at home. This year’s research uncovers a house-proud nation obsessed with cleaning.

“Our daily routines have changed over the last twelve months and our homes will be never be the same,” explains Jeremy Senior, Vice President, Consumer Electronics, Samsung Australia.

“For most, home is a safe haven. It’s where we stay connected, our classroom, our office and our cinema/ entertainment hub. Our latest research reveals Australians have become more obsessed than ever with cleaning and decluttering. We have updated our appliances to be more efficient and with our change in daily routines we have adopted ‘chore snacking’ – doing smaller more frequent cleans rather than saving-up lots of tasks for the weekend.

“As a house proud nation, seven in 10 have said that having a cleaner home provides a barrier of comfort and safety as we declutter and dial up cleaning their spaces, surfaces and air in the home.”

“As we adopt new routines, technology is here to support and give families back time for activities they love. Time together with the family around the TV proving the key escapism and reward from our chores, work and schooling.” concludes Mr. Senior.

Obsessed with cleaning

Over the last year, one quarter of Australians have changed their cleaning routine as they adapt to more time living and working at home. Almost one-third of Australians now consider themselves ‘obsessed’ with cleaning (29%), increasing to 44% for young families and 43% amongst millennials.

The research also found that 34% of Australians are doing a ‘deep clean’ at least weekly and over half (64%) are cleaning around the home daily.

Having a clean home also makes 3 in 4 Australians feel less stressed, while 7 in 10 say a clean home makes them feel safe. For those obsessed with cleaning, 72% think their home is one of the cleanest they know.

New routines

Stress has been reduced from tireless chores thanks to ‘chore-snacking’. 60% admit they are doing smaller, more frequent cleans of the home each day – helping Australians feel on top of the cleaning and giving them more time back at the weekend for activities they love.

To support their new ‘chore-snacking’ routine, 38% of Australians have purchased a new appliance to make cleaning easier.

Working from home has also allowed over half of Australians to catch up on chores and feel more in control; with 22% washing dishes, 18% vacuuming and 24% admitting to doing more laundry during work hours or lunchbreaks.

A return to the traditional

With ‘chore snacking’ alleviating time pressure at the weekend, a quarter of Australians are turning to the kitchen as a form of relaxation, while mealtimes have become increasingly important as a time to reconnect with loved ones (43%, higher for young families at 60%).

61% of Australians also admitted they would rather have a good home cooked meal than go out for dinner, and 2 in 5 said they are cooking more meals from scratch in the past 12 months – higher amongst young families (50%).

With more time, and a greater connection to home, many Australians are finding comfort and entertainment in generation-old traditions. 1 in 2 are partaking in activities such as knitting, cross stitching, embroidery, crochet, jam making, and baking with 56% of Australians doing at least one of these in the past 12 months.

Enjoying spending time together (and apart)

34% of Australians say they watch TV to share time together with others, and 69% prefer to watch movies with others – cementing our desire to connect with family and friends in the home. The research also revealed the average household has three TVs, and whilst the primary purpose of the living room TV is to spend time with others, 46% will retreat to the bedroom to watch TV away from others.

31% of Australians have TVs in the bedroom where they unwind and watch their ‘own’ shows without judgement or interruption – with reality TV (42%), news (42%) and documentaries (46%) proving the most popular to watch solo.

Samsung Australians@HOME 2021 Products

Jet 90 Stick Vacuum and Clean Station – RRP from $899

• 200W suction and 60mins run time
• 5 layered filtration system
• Accredited by Sensitive Choice

Air Purifier range – RRP from $449

• Purifies air in all types of living spaces quickly and powerfully
• HEPA filter, Captures up to 99.97% of ultrafine dust and even bacteria
• 3-way air flow and dual power fan

9000 Series Family Hub™ – RRP from $5,999

• Beverage centre with autofill infuser jug
• Family board and view inside
• Flat door design with recessed handles and fingerprint resistant finish

85″ QN900A Neo QLED 8K Smart TV – RRP from $21,999

• Infinity Display
• 8K Resolution & AI Upscaling
• Picture quality with Quantum Matrix Technology
• Vivid colour with Quantum Dot

HW-Q950A 11.1.4ch Home Theatre Soundbar – RRP from $2,099

• Surround sound with Dolby Atmos speakers
• Q-Symphony technology that synchronises motion tracking sounds from compatible Samsung QLED TVs

About the Australians@HOME research

The Australians@HOME research by Samsung seeks to uncover the role technology plays in helping make Australian lives easier, taking the pressure off household chores and helping to save time through effective use of appliances and food storage.

The 2020-21 Australians@HOME research is the third study conducted following similar research in 2015 and 2017, and seeks to support Samsung in its ongoing efforts to understand the lives of Australians. This research was in field in May 2021 (sample: n=1000 nationally representative on age, gender and state among people aged 18-75) and was conducted by third-party research agency Fiftyfive5.