At Lokalise, we wanted to explore a question that resonates with nearly every modern professional: How much personal time are we sacrificing because of inefficient workflows? We also wondered how much people could get back by using AI-powered tools at work.
To find out, we surveyed 1,001 full-time employees working in highly technical roles across the U.S. and Europe. From developers and data scientists to product managers and designers, respondents shared candid insights about their work-life balance, sacrifices, and how artificial intelligence shapes their daily routines.
The results revealed a compelling story about the modern struggle between productivity and personal life and how advancements in technology might just help restore balance.
What if you could measure how your work habits stack up against other tech professionals and uncover your personal "burnout risk"? Our interactive quiz makes that possible.
This tool analyzes your answers on work-life balance, personal sacrifices, and AI adoption to calculate your Work-Life Balance Score. Your score is a reflection of your real-world habits, revealing how much time you might be losing (or gaining) due to the way your team works. With AI-powered insights, you can see how small workflow improvements could translate into hours of personal time reclaimed every week.
From long hours to lingering stress, our data shows that the line between work and home is blurrier than ever for technical teams.
On average, employees worked around 41 hours a week. Gen Z logged the fewest work hours (39.9), while Gen X topped the list (41.8). By country, professionals in Italy (41.8 hours), Portugal (41.3 hours), and the U.S. (41 hours) worked the longest, while those in France averaged just 39.1 hours. Senior managers and executives worked significantly more than anyone else, averaging a 44.6 hour workweek.
Only about half of respondents rated their job satisfaction (55%), mental health (54%), or work-life balance (52%) as "good." Gen Z workers consistently rated the lowest across all three categories. More than half of employees (53%) said they regularly bring work-related stress home, with Gen Z (55%) again being the most affected of all generations.
When it comes to time spent at work, the biggest tasks were project management and coordination (10.5 hours weekly), visual and multimedia creation (8.4 hours), and drafting, writing, or scripting (7.7 hours), highlighting areas ripe for efficiency gains through automation and better workflows.
Behind every late-night email and extra project sprint lies a human cost. Learn just how much personal and family time employees are giving up in the name of productivity.
Nearly three-quarters of employees (73%) said they sacrifice personal time to work, at an average of 8.6 hours every week. Gen Z was the most likely to make this trade-off (77%). On average, workers gave up 9 hours of family time weekly, or nearly 20 full days a year. Gen X reported the most family time sacrificed (61%).
Sleep and health took a hit, too. More than half (57%) sacrificed sleep about 7 days a month, and 61% skipped workouts or other health routines on more than 5 days a month. Some even missed major life moments in the past year — 16% their own birthday, 8% their partner's, and 4% their child's — because of work.
The emotional toll is clear. Most employees (84%) said they want a better work-life balance, and 67% felt guilty for missing family events. Gen Z employees, who grew up in a hyper-connected world, were the most likely to desire a better work-life balance (87%), while British employees were the most likely to feel the guilt of missing family events (69%). Over 3 in 5 described themselves as "always on" for work, and more than half (57%) admitted that work negatively affects their relationships. Spanish employees were the most likely to be “always on” for work (69%). A third even confessed to hiding from their families that work was the reason why they missed events. Men were 24% more likely to do so than women.
There's a clear opportunity for technology to rewrite the modern work-life story. Employees who lean into automation and AI tools to optimize and streamline their workflows are already seeing benefits for their personal well-being and more.
Most employees (91%) said they now use AI, like generative AI chatbots and AI assistants, in their workflows. Among them, 17% use it at a high level, with AI accounting for over half (53%) of their team's total output. These employees reported gaining back nearly 10 hours of time each week.
Even more striking, those who use AI-driven apps and tools like ChatGPT at a high level said it translates to nearly 5 extra hours of time with their children or partner weekly, or about 11 additional days a year. By offloading manual or repetitive tasks to intelligent tools, teams can reclaim meaningful moments that might otherwise be lost to inefficiency.
For global and agile companies, this efficiency is multiplied by the need for speed. Automation in areas like localization, which typically takes hours of coordination, is one of the biggest time-savers for employees and employers alike.
Long hours and constant stress have become a regular part of life for many tech professionals, but there is real potential for change. The positive impact of AI is already clear. It is helping employees regain hours of personal and family time each year by reducing repetitive work, improving decision-making, and creating more efficient workflows.
Every hour saved through smarter tools supports employee well-being and overall wellness. With more balance, professionals can focus on skill development, career growth, and building a healthier work environment that values human intelligence alongside technology. Work will always be part of life, but it should not come at the cost of health or relationships.
At Lokalise, we believe technology should make life easier. By helping teams work smarter and communicate better, AI gives people the time and freedom to focus on what truly matters.
For this study, we surveyed 1,001 full-time employees who are technically skilled in the following domains:
In particular, we asked these employees about their work-life balance, sacrifices they make in their personal lives for work, and how AI usage plays a role. Among the respondents, 46% were based in the U.S., 10% were based in Italy, 10% were based in the UK, 10% were based in Portugal, 10% were based in Germany, 9% were based in Spain, and 5% were based in France.
The interactive quiz leverages work-life balance sentiments, trade-offs and sacrifices, and AI use at work to calculate the user's burnout risk and work-life balance score. The scoring metrics are additionally based on the averages from the survey.
Lokalise is the most intuitive localization platform designed to help teams ship global products faster. We make it simple to adapt content for every market and language through automation and AI. By modernizing localization workflows, Lokalise helps global teams save time, improve collaboration, and focus on what truly matters, creating experiences that connect.
We encourage journalists and content creators to use our data and graphics, with a link back to Lokalise. For full access to the data set or to interview a Lokalise expert, please contact kip@frac.tl or nicole.franco@frac.tl.
Author
With a background in brand and revenue marketing, Brittany helps global companies scale localization efforts that not only meet quality standards but also drive real business results.
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