It tends to go without saying that when you’re at work, you do work-related things. Any online browsing should be restricted to whatever helps you do your job. If you want to see what’s on sale at Target, order a few new novels from Amazon, or book cinema tickets for that evening, you can browse those sites on your own time — such as during lunch breaks or after hours. But let’s be realistic; unless your boss tracks your online activity, most of us start our workday with a cup of hot coffee and a quick scroll through our favorite websites before diving right into our emails and meetings.

HostingAdvice surveyed 3,002 respondents to find out which websites employees visit first thing in the morning. Do most people start the day catching up on social media, checking in on sports scores, or browsing lifestyle sites for relationship and career advice? Perhaps some even take a more work-focused approach, heading straight for LinkedIn or industry-specific platforms.

Firstly, they asked the question: Which type of website do you typically visit first thing in the morning when you arrive at work?

The majority of New York employees, it seems, can't wait to catch up on the latest sports news; 38% confessed to logging on to sites such as ESPN and Fox Sports. Another 29% can't be away from social media for too long, admitting to logging onto sites such as Twitter/X, Facebook, and Instagram, presumably to check how many likes they’d accumulated. 12% found that first thing in the morning at work was the perfect time to browse the online sale racks and check the likes of Amazon or eBay, while 9% love entertainment and lifestyle sites such as Buzzfeed and Reddit. A diligent 8% are actually checking sites related to their work — keeping an eye on their chosen industry, or maybe the job market, looking at sites such as LinkedIn. Finally, just 3% like to know what is going on in the world by checking news sites such as CNN or Fox News.

The survey found that, on average, workers spend a not-insignificant 16 minutes browsing before actually starting to do any work-related tasks. A deviant 8% then continue to check non-work-related websites almost hourly during the working day, while the majority (47%) admit to doing it just once or twice a day, and a saintly 25% claim to never look at anything that’s not to do with work at all when they’re sat at their desk. 

Half (50%) claim that the most bizarre site they’ve ever browsed during work hours was a random site they just clicked on by accident, while 17% enjoy a good conspiracy theory site. Approximately 16% like to look at a niche hobby blog, while another 16% enjoy logging on to a fan forum for a hotly discussed TV show or band.

Most, however, don’t feel they have anything to hide; Over half (54%) say they wouldn’t feel embarrassed if their boss could see their browser history. Nearly a third (31%) confess to feeling mildly nervous, as there would definitely be some guilty pleasures in there, while 7% would be absolutely mortified and looking for a new job immediately! 

And in fact, if their browsing habits could predict their next career move, 7% say that they would probably be getting fired! Another 49% say their habits would show that they’re just trying to make getting through the working day a little less dull, while 25% said they would show that they’re actually on track for a promotion.