We used to think burnout lived in our inboxes and calendars. But now it lives in our browsers too.
According to a nationwide survey of 1,000 U.S. adults compiled in Shift’s recently released 2026 State of Browsing Report, browsers have quietly become the operating system for modern life. Browsers today carry our work, our side projects, our passions, and our distractions in a single, overloaded interface. And the strain is showing.
Of those surveyed, 62% experience recurring digital burnout, and nearly half say their browser helps them focus and distracts them in equal measure.
For marketers, this shift serves as both a warning sign and a roadmap. Browsing behaviors influence search patterns, engagement, retention, and even how people evaluate the brands they trust. What’s emerging is a new kind of user, one that is intentional, easily overloaded, hungry for personalization, and increasingly skeptical of one-size-fits-all digital experiences.
Here are the top insights shaping browsing behavior today…
Digital burnout has become the default state of online life
Today’s browser is a portal into dozens of digital identities, each with its own tabs, notifications, and context switches. And most people are struggling to manage the load. The main drivers of this burnout include endless notifications (24%), social media overload (23%), news rabbit holes (18%), and constant switching between apps and tabs (13%).
All are also marketing problems. Notifications and content streams are major components of digital strategy, but they’re also major sources of digital fatigue. When people are overwhelmed, they begin filtering everything—including brand messaging—more aggressively.
Although Boomers show the lowest levels of burnout, every other generation reports considerable strain. Millennials are the most likely to feel burnt out regularly (35%) and the most likely to struggle to disconnect (30%).
The takeaway: Digital overload is now a universal user experience issue. Marketing that contributes to chaos gets ignored. Marketing that reduces cognitive load earns trust.
Tab chaos is mainstream
The browser tab has become a symbol of modern life. Our report reveals that one in five people manage 11+ tabs at a time. But the demographics tell a deeper story. Boomers are the most disciplined tab minimalists: 75% keep five tabs or fewer open. Gen Z and Millennials are the most likely to exceed ten. This matters for marketers because it reframes user intent. A person with 14 tabs open is multitasking across identities, roles, and responsibilities.
The takeaway: The future of browsing isn’t about shrinking workflows. It’s about supporting them. Brands that assume single-task attention are already behind.
The attention tax is rising
Nearly 43% of users lose focus in their browsers several times a day, and 21% get distracted multiple times every hour. Those distractions add up, with 13% of people saying a single digital interruption can cost them 30 minutes or more.
This new attention economy is defined by fragility. Every click competes with dozens of other tasks. Every ad competes with dozens of other tabs.
Complicating things further, app sprawl has become the default workflow:
- Half of users rely on 3–5 apps a day for work
- One-third spend 4–6 hours online daily
- The biggest productivity killers include app switching, slow performance, notification overload, and lost logins
What marketers often interpret as low intent may simply be cognitive exhaustion.
The takeaway: Distractions, not other brands, are your real competitor. Simplicity, speed, and relevance are now the most persuasive marketing tools.
Marketing Technology News: MarTech Interview with Michael McNeal, VP of Product at SALESmanago
Users want personalization—not surveillance
A powerful theme running through the report is that people want browsers and digital experiences that adapt to their behaviors, with 92% citing personalization from their browser as a top demand. Another 47% say a browser that fits their workflow is very important, and 81% are open to switching browsers to get it.
But with that comes control, as indicated by their most-requested features:
- Multiple accounts and logins (39%)
- Better task organization (34%)
- Notification blockers (31%)
- Integrated apps (18%)
What this tells us is that users want control, not intrusion. Things like autonomy, agency, and the ability to navigate the internet without contributing to the noise are top of mind.
The takeaway: Personalization must feel more like empowerment and less like surveillance. Brands that give users more control rather than annoying prompts will get ahead.
AI is reshaping expectations, but trust remains a barrier
Despite the explosion of AI tools, traditional search still dominates, with 68% preferring search engines compared to 21% who prefer AI search tools.
Among the top barriers to AI adoption are:
- Privacy concerns (45%)
- Uncertainty about how generated content is used (35%)
- Distrust of AI accuracy (34%)
- Rising concern about AI’s energy footprint
Consumers want AI to streamline their digital load rather than add to it, such as research assistance (49%), task automation (37%), and drafting support (34%).
The takeaway: AI won’t replace the browser. It will augment it. Trust, transparency, and sustainability will shape who people choose to adopt AI tools from—and who they avoid.
What it means for marketers
The browser is evolving from a passive window into a personalized command center. People want better control, and they want to be intentional about how they work, create, search, and explore online. In short, they want technology that reduces cognitive load. And that should change how marketers think about digital engagement.
The next era of marketing belongs to the brands that reduce digital friction, respect users’ mental bandwidth, and meet people where they already operate: inside fluid, customized, user-authored digital environments.
The opportunity is clear: help people reclaim control of their digital space, and they’ll reward you with their attention.
