{"id":127761,"date":"2025-08-08T01:08:10","date_gmt":"2025-08-08T01:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/127761\/"},"modified":"2025-08-08T01:08:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T01:08:10","slug":"gen-zs-financial-wake-up-call-budgeting-saving-and-struggling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/127761\/","title":{"rendered":"Gen Z’s financial wake up call: Budgeting, saving, and struggling"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"play\"<\/p>\n

Americans are spending more time thinking about money than ever<\/p>\n

Financial stress is rising. Here\u2019s how different generations are coping<\/p>\n

Members of Generation Z are becoming more financially independent, a likely welcome reprieve for the bank of mom and dad.<\/p>\n

Over the last 12 months, 72% of Gen Z took steps to improve their financial health, and fewer Zers are relying on monetary support from family, according to a new Bank of America survey<\/a> of 1,069 adults. Between rent and groceries,\u00a0young Americans aren\u2019t\u00a0happy with the high cost of living but they\u2019re reacting to it responsibly, according to Holly O\u2019Neill, Bank of America\u2019s president of retail, consumer and preferred banking.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While they may be known for challenging traditional workplace norms<\/a> and the Gen Z stare<\/a>, Zoomers are also leading the way in prioritizing income diversification<\/a>, entrepreneurship<\/a>, and values-based spending<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cGen Z is learning adulting is expensive, but the good news is they\u2019re taking it in stride\u201d O\u2019Neill said. \u201cThey\u2019re saving more and investing. I think they\u2019re feeling pretty good, given where they are.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

More: <\/strong>Is your student loan payment increasing? What to know about SAVE plan updates<\/a><\/p>\n

Progress toward financial independence<\/p>\n

While not all 18- to 28-year-olds have left their parents\u2019 payroll, the percentage of Gen Zers who rely on family financial support is now\u00a039%, down from 46% last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Taylor Price, a Gen Z personal finance expert and founder of Priceless Tay<\/a>, a platform and coaching program teaching young people how to thrive financially, said that decrease doesn\u2019t only reflect Gen Z growing up.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about us waking up financially, “Price told USA TODAY. \u201cToday, getting rich is a decision, not a dream. The tools and education are publicly available with no minimum net worth required.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gen Zers who are still financially dependent on family are also receiving less. The survey found 22% receive $1,000 or more per month, down from 32% a year ago, and 54% receive less than $500 monthly compared to 44% last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A separate savings.com report<\/a> found groceries, cell phone bills, and rent or mortgage payments top the list of costs parents help their adult children cover.<\/p>\n

Gen Z’s financial green flags<\/p>\n

Financial wellness may be a team sport for Gen Z. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Of those surveyed, 66% said they don\u2019t feel pressure from friends to spend beyond their means. The group values transparency, and 42% don\u2019t mind declining an invite and telling friends they can\u2019t afford an activity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A majority focused on reducing expenses in the last year, including 41% who cut back on dining out. More than half\u00a0put money toward savings and 24% paid down debt<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re overall inspired to put themselves on a path to financial independence,\u201d O\u2019Neill said. \u201cAs you can imagine, when you\u2019re starting out, things are a little more expensive than you thought.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although they\u2019re building good habits, a third are still stressed<\/a> \u2014 52% of whom cite economic instability as a reason why. But that anxiety leads 90% to take action, the survey found. A majority are checking their bank account balance and budgeting. Nearly half are getting ahead on paying bills.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gen Z’s ‘treat yourself’ mentality<\/p>\n

For some, money stress isn\u2019t motivating. In fact, about a third of Gen Zers surveyed said they\u2019re likely to avoid thinking about money and treat themselves to a purchase when they\u2019re worried about finances.\u00a0<\/p>\n

More than half buy themselves a small \u201ctreat\u201d at least once a week to celebrate an accomplishment or find a silver lining on a bad day. For 59%, those treat-yourself moments lead to overspending.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s less about the treat itself and more about the lack of boundaries around it,\u201d Price said. \u201cA $7 matcha isn\u2019t going to ruin your financial future, but daily impulse spending without a plan will.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is holding Gen Z back financially<\/p>\n

Gen Z lists the high cost of living as a barrier to financial success. Total monthly spending is higher than 35% of Gen Z thought it would be. Specifically, 63% were surprised by the cost of groceries, 47% were caught off guard by rent and utility bills, and 42% were not expecting the high price of dining out.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gen Z also isn\u2019t making as much money as they would like. Over half said they don\u2019t earn enough to live the life they want and 55% don\u2019t have adequate savings to cover three months of expenses.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While 42% of Gen Z view saving for retirement and 35% see investing as important steps to financial independence, only a quarter contributed to a retirement account in the last year. One in five invested in the stock market, up slightly from recent years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That said, a 2024 Transamerica Institute study<\/a> found that Gen Z started saving for retirement at the median age of 20. That\u2019s a 15-year head start compared to baby boomers, for whom the median age to begin was 35.<\/p>\n

Financial tips for Gen Z<\/p>\n

A detailed financial plan can go a long way in relieving money stress.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cFinancial stress can either paralyze you or push you. The key is finding a balance,\u201d Price told USA TODAY.\u00a0\u201cFor Gen Z, it\u2019s about building systems that run in the background.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

That\u2019s where Price\u2019s \u201cRich Routine\u201d comes in. She recommends automating savings, contributing to investments, and splitting paychecks across fixed bills, flexible spending, and future goals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

O\u2019Neill recommends the 50\/30\/20 budgeting method<\/a>, stacking up emergency cash, and limiting impulse purchases.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen your money has a plan, you don\u2019t have to think about it 24\/7,\u201d Price added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

When expenses feel unmanageable, Price says, income is how people can take back control. She recommends pursuing a side hustle<\/a> to create some financial breathing room and preparing for a raise, not waiting for one.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cTrack your wins at work, quantify your impact, and practice negotiating,\u201d she said. \u201cExplore roles or industries with growth potential. Sometimes the real unlock is making a strategic pivot.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Reach Rachel Barber at rbarber@usatoday.com<\/a> and follow her on X @rachelbarber_<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Americans are spending more time thinking about money than ever Financial stress is rising. Here\u2019s how different generations…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":127762,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[5229,27227,21866,64,18785,18217,39461,46267,46269,3628,942,1539,450,950,255,615,646,67,132,68,46268],"class_list":{"0":"post-127761","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-bank","10":"tag-bank-of-america","11":"tag-business","12":"tag-demographics","13":"tag-financial","14":"tag-financial-planning-u0026-management","15":"tag-generation","16":"tag-generation-z","17":"tag-management","18":"tag-neutral","19":"tag-of","20":"tag-overall","21":"tag-overall-neutral","22":"tag-personal-finance","23":"tag-planning","24":"tag-u0026","25":"tag-united-states","26":"tag-unitedstates","27":"tag-us","28":"tag-z"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114990475233284143","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127761","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127761"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127761\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127762"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127761"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127761"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127761"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}