Adults Laugh 15-20 Times Daily (Kids Way More!)

If you're keeping score, you should be racking up about 15 to 20 genuine laughs every single day. That's the average for adults according to laughter researcher Robert Provine, who spent three decades studying what makes humans crack up.

But here's where it gets interesting: that number varies wildly depending on who you are. Studies have tracked people logging anywhere from zero laughs to 89 laughs in a single day. Your mileage may vary.

Women and Young People Laugh More

Science has your number, literally. Research consistently shows that women laugh more frequently than men, and younger people laugh more than older adults. If you're a young woman, you're probably crushing the daily average.

Laughter also follows a daily rhythm. Most people laugh more as the day goes on, with peak giggling happening in the evenings. Morning people? More like mourning people, at least when it comes to laugh counts.

The Laughter Deficit

Here's the kicker: while adults average 15-20 laughs daily, young children laugh an estimated 300-400 times per day. What happens between childhood and adulthood? Life, apparently.

Some of this drop-off is methodological—kids giggle at everything, while adult laughter requires more sophisticated humor or social context. But part of it is real: we genuinely lose some of that spontaneous joy as we age.

Modern measurement techniques using wrist-worn wearables found people average about 2.5 "belly laughs" per day—the really good ones. The rest are chuckles, snorts, and polite ha-has that grease the wheels of social interaction.

Your Daily Dose

Laughter serves important biological and social functions. It bonds us to others, reduces stress, and might even boost immune function. Some experts suggest we should aim for at least 15 laughs daily, treating it like a vitamin for mental health.

So next time someone tells you to "lighten up," they might be onto something. You've got a quota to hit.