The charts present developments in the percentage of households owning electrical appliances and the number of hours spent on housework in one country from 1920 to 2019.
Overall, the ownership of electrical appliances increased considerably over the period, with the most appliances becoming common in households by 2019. In contrast, the amount of time spent doing homework decreased substantially.
In 1920, ownership of the three appliances was relatively low, although the vacuum cleaner and washing machine were already found in a propotion of households. Refrigerator ownership was particularly low at almost 0%. By 1960, ownership of refrigerators had risen dramatically to around 90%, while the figures for washing machines and vacuum cleaners were approximately 70%. From 1980 onwards, refrigerator ownership reached 100% and remained at this level. Vacuum cleaner ownership also continued to increase, reaching 100% by 2000. Washing machine ownership flactuated slightly, falling in 1980 before gradually increasing again to around 75% in 2019.
In contrast, the amount of time spent doing housework fell steadily throughout the period. In 1920, households spent approximately 50 hours per week on housework. This figure declined to around 35 hours in 1940 and 20 hours in 1960. It also fell further to about 15 hours in 1980 and remained relatively stable until 2000, before reaching approximately 10 hours per week in 2019.