The commensal microbiota of the finger-skin before and after ethanol disinfection were characterized and compared with the microbes isolated from the surface of smartphone touchscreens. The number of bacteria on the smartphone touchscreens was low, similar to that on the fingers after ethanol disinfection, suggesting that the surface of the touchscreens may not be suitable for the growth of microorganisms, rather than the surface of the fingers. Furthermore, ethanol disinfection reduced the number of bacteria on the finger-skin to 1/13 of the original count before disinfection.