How many bad days do Americans have per month?

This story version has been formatted as an on-air script for broadcast outlets. See the original research story here.

BY 8:36 A.M., THE AVERAGE AMERICAN KNOWS IF IT’S GOING TO BE A ‘BAD DAY.’

THAT’S ACCORDING TO A NEW STUDY CONDUCTED BY TALKER RESEARCH ON BEHALF OF AVOCADO GREEN MATTRESS, WHICH REVEALED THAT NOT ONLY DO BAD DAYS START EARLY IN THE MORNING — SOMETIMES THERE’S NO SAVING THEM.

A QUARTER OF THE 2,0000 AMERICANS WHO TOOK THE SURVEY (26%) SAID WHEN SOMETHING GOES WRONG IN THE MORNING, THEY CAN’T TURN THE DAY AROUND.

RESULTS ALSO FOUND THAT THE AVERAGE PERSON HAS FOUR BAD DAYS PER MONTH — ADDING UP TO OVER A FULL MONTH OF BAD DAYS PER YEAR (48).

TOPPING THE LIST OF REASONS WHY WE HAVE BAD DAYS WAS WAKING UP AND FEELING SICK (35%), FOLLOWED BY A POOR NIGHT’S SLEEP (31%) OR WAKING UP WITH A HEADACHE (29%).

WHAT ARE THE TOP 20 CAUSES OF A “BAD DAY”?

• Waking up and feeling sick — 35%
• Sleeping poorly throughout the night — 31%
• Waking up with a headache — 29%
• Losing my keys — 26%
• Forgetting my phone at home — 25%
• Running out of toilet paper — 22%
• Forgetting my wallet at home — 22%
• Sleeping through my alarm — 19%
• Generally oversleeping (not waking up on time/when intended) — 18%
• Having forgotten to plug my phone in the night before — 18%
• Stubbing my toe — 17%
• Waking up on the “wrong side of the bed” — 17%
• Forgetting to set my alarm — 17%
• Waking up and finding the Wi-Fi is down — 16%
• My credit card is declined — 16%
• My partner is in a bad mood — 15%
• Running out of coffee — 15%
• Spilling my coffee in the morning — 14%
• Waking up to a mess from the dog/cat (poop, throw-up, etc.) — 14%
• Running into traffic — 14%

Survey methodology:

Talker Research surveyed 2,000 general population Americans; the survey was commissioned by Avocado Green Mattress and administered and conducted online by Talker Research between July 23 and July 30, 2024.

We are sourcing from a non-probability frame and the two main sources we use are:

• Traditional online access panels — where respondents opt-in to take part in online market research for an incentive
• Programmatic — where respondents are online and are given the option to take part in a survey to receive a virtual incentive usually related to the online activity they are engaging in

Those who did not fit the specified sample were terminated from the survey. As the survey is fielded, dynamic online sampling is used, adjusting targeting to achieve the quotas specified as part of the sampling plan.

Regardless of which sources a respondent came from, they were directed to an Online Survey, where the survey was conducted in English; a link to the questionnaire can be shared upon request. Respondents were awarded points for completing the survey. These points have a small cash-equivalent monetary value.

Cells are only reported on for analysis if they have a minimum of 80 respondents, and statistical significance is calculated at the 95% level. Data is not weighted, but quotas and other parameters are put in place to reach the desired sample.

Interviews are excluded from the final analysis if they failed quality-checking measures. This includes:

• Speeders: Respondents who complete the survey in a time that is quicker than one-third of the median length of interview are disqualified as speeders
• Open ends: All verbatim responses (full open-ended questions as well as other please specify options) are checked for inappropriate or irrelevant text
• Bots: Captcha is enabled on surveys, which allows the research team to identify and disqualify bots
• Duplicates: Survey software has “deduping” based on digital fingerprinting, which ensures nobody is allowed to take the survey more than once

It is worth noting that this survey was only available to individuals with internet access, and the results may not be generalizable to those without internet access.