The number of smartphone owners has reached 72 per cent in the UK, growing by 14 per cent in the last 10 months alone, according to research from Deloitte.

Generation Y – those aged around 25 to 30 – are the most likely to own a smartphone, at 89 per cent, and are considered a key target for mobile marketers. But Generation Z – those aged 16 to 24 – follow closely with 85 per cent smartphone ownership, and these people are the happiest group to use apps for shopping rather than going in store, at 48 per cent. More than half, 54 per cent, of 54 to 65-year olds now own a smartphone too.

Gen Z are also more likely to use their phone for search, 59 per cent compared to 34 per cent on average, and to prefer that their search is relevant to their location, at 52 per cent versus 40 per cent overall.

Half of the 1,000 people surveryed said they have used their handset to make a purchase, while 57 per cent have checked product availability. Mobile payments are increasingly perceived as more convenient by shoppers, Deloittes Consumer Review research found, as 31 per cent have already used an online wallet, with 12 per cent venturing into contactless payments.

The survey was carried out in May by TNS, on behalf of Deloitte, among people in the UK between the ages of 16 and 64.