Advertising and marketing to Generation Z in the United States – statistics & facts

In the United States, Generation Z – people born between the second half of the 1990s and the early 2010s – has expressed preferences and aversions that deviate from the national average throughout the past few years. The emerging patterns also impact that age group's relationship with advertising and marketing. A 2023 survey revealed that Gen Zers' favorite advertisement types are creative, entertaining, and funny. Meanwhile, the same study indicated that commercials interrupting content or sounding too loud are the main ad features Gen Z cringes at. These consumers' ongoing experiences entering adulthood in the 21st century also inform their attitudes towards companies. Comparisons between U.S. 21-year-olds' milestones in the early 1980s and the early 2020s can be very telling. In 1980, about two-thirds of them had a full-time job; in 2021, less than 40 percent did. Nearly one-third were married in 1980, while only six percent were wedded four decades later.

Gen Z on social and retail media

Mid-2023 data showed that Gen Zers' top channels for learning about new products are social media (including influencers and display ads) and word-of-mouth and in-store marketing, both of which are key for retail media activities, primarily online. Older age groups tended to rely more on TV. During another survey published earlier that year, about three out of 10 adult Gen Z consumers reported paying the most attention to social media ads. Less than two out of 10 mentioned the television. A third 2023 study ranked the leading platforms for product research among Gen Zers. Amazon topped the list, mentioned by almost 60 percent of respondents, while Walmart.com, TikTok, and YouTube were each cited by little more than 40 percent – a tier Instagram and Facebook failed to reach.

Do Gen Zers mistrust ads?

Compared to older age groups, Generation Z expressed significantly less trust in brands during a 2023 poll in the U.S. That analysis excluded aerospace, defense, chemicals, energy, health, medical devices, military, nonprofit, pharmaceutical, and semiconductor sectors. Still, Gen Z adults reported roughly half of Millennials, Gen Xers, and baby boomers net trust in companies. As of late 2022, Gen Zers were also less likely to believe in brands' sustainability claims, perhaps due to climate change-related concerns exerting a higher pressure on a younger age group than on Generation Y and older. Similarly, more than its senior peers, almost half of Gen Z consumers surveyed in mid-2023 saw a company being referred to as "woke" as something positive. For comparison, one-third of responding baby boomers said that was "very negative."

This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.

Number of Gen Zers living in the U.S.: 70m

U.S. Gen Zers' mean annual household expenditure: 48k USD

Top medium among U.S. Gen Zers: Social media

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Most popular brands among Generation Z consumers in the United States as of August 2022

Brands & Leaders

Favorite brands among Gen Z consumers in the U.S. 2022

Advertising

Most influential ad channels for Gen Z in the U.S. 2021

Advertising

Attitudes towards advertising among Gen Z in the U.S. 2021

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Demographic profile

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Share of respondents who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender in the United States from 2012 to 2023, by generation

Media consumption

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Internet usage

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News consumption

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Consumption frequency of news from social media in the U.S. 2022, by generation
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Trust in selected news sources in the U.S. 2022, by generation
Most trusted news sources in the United States as of February 2022, by generation

Attitudes toward advertising & marketing

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Brand perception

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Shopping behavior

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Share of Gen Z consumers in the United States who discovered new brands and products via selected sources in 2022
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Options that would most increase the likelihood of Gen Z consumers buying a product online in the United States in 2022

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