Economic Pressures Split the Generations as Each Rethinks the Basics

As tariffs on many imports drive up the cost of living, consumers are feeling strain from multiple economic stressors. Half of all United States consumers now say they are struggling to keep up with rising daily expenses. As they seek ways to stretch their dollars further, financial trade-offs are becoming unavoidable. As a result, consumers are making significant changes, holding off on big purchases and cutting out nonessentials.

Many consumers are finding they can’t handle the pressure alone. With rising housing and utilities costs, individuals are turning to friends and family for financial assistance, borrowing money just to make ends meet.

These are just some of the findings detailed in “Economic Pressures Split the Generations as Each Rethinks the Basics,” the latest edition of “Generational Pulse,” a PYMNTS Intelligence exclusive series. This installment examines the financial challenges consumers face and the actions they are taking to address the difficulties. It draws on insights from a survey of 2,368 U.S. adult consumers conducted from Sept. 10, 2025, to Sept. 29, 2025. Notably, this survey asked different questions than the previous Generational Pulse, so the findings cannot be directly compared to prior reports in the series.

• Economic Pressures
• Key Stressors
• Dealing With Economic Pressures
• Read More
• Methodology

Economic Pressures

Half of all consumers are struggling to afford their daily living expenses.

As electricity costs climb far above inflation rates and 21 million households (half of all U.S. renter households) spend more than 30% of their income on housing costs, Americans are struggling to get by. One in two consumers report feeling challenged to meet their basic living expenses. That figure holds roughly constant across all age brackets.

Healthcare costs also pose concerns for all age groups. A nearly identical percentage of boomers (35%) and Gen Zers (34%) cite healthcare and wellness expenses as a current challenge of living and financial management.¹

Meanwhile, other financial challenges are falling more heavily on younger generations. Gen Z consumers disproportionately face difficulties with work and income instability and with transportation expenses. They are also the most likely to struggle with debt and rising credit card bills.

These challenges affect people’s spending priorities. Rising living costs directly impact how much people can save and invest for the future. Higher living expenses may also make it harder for consumers to manage their debt, deepening the pocketbook hole.

Key Stressors

Americans are struggling to manage the costs of basic necessities like heat and electricity.

Even amid the housing affordability crisis, consumers who report difficulties affording their housing costs aren’t necessarily referring to their rent or mortgage. In fact, 68% of individuals struggling in this area report that monthly utility bills are their top strain.

Basic food costs are also a key economic stressor. Among the 50% of consumers grappling with their daily living expenses, 84% say groceries and household essentials are the main challenge. In other words, 42% of Americans are having trouble affording their groceries. These challenges are especially acute among baby boomers, with 46% of these older consumers overall having trouble.

As utility and grocery bills rise, these pressures are only adding to the financial stress of paying credit card bills, health insurance bills and other monthly essentials.

Dealing With Economic Pressures

To cope with economic pressures, consumers are seeking lifelines.

The majority of consumers—62%—are reining in their spending to help manage increased living costs. Baby boomers and seniors are cutting back the most, at 70%, while only half of zillennials have done the same.

Additionally, many are finding they cannot manage these challenges on their own. Just over one in five (21%) consumers have borrowed money from friends or family to deal with rising expenses. That figure rises to one in three among zillennials and Gen Zers, perhaps because these consumers are the most likely to have working-age parents or other employed relatives they can turn to for help.

These younger consumers appear to be using this assistance primarily to manage the pressures of immediate costs, rather than to plan for the future. Nearly half of Gen Zers are avoiding making large purchases or investments. That share is greater than the 40% who have managed to increase their savings.

As consumers struggle to pay their bills, it’s not for lack of trying. Despite widespread efforts to manage expenses, these efforts are proving ineffective. Overall, only 34% of consumers say the actions they have taken to manage their pocketbook challenges have been highly effective. The majority say their moves have been only somewhat or slightly helpful.

Still, younger generations have had more success in this area compared to their older counterparts. Nearly half of millennials (47%) and zillennials (48%) say their actions have been very or extremely effective in mitigating pressures. Only 30% of Gen Xers and 19% of boomers and seniors say the same.

Unsurprisingly, higher-income consumers are seeing more results than lower-income individuals. Approximately half of those earning more than $150,000 a year report strong success rates, compared with just 23% of those earning less than $50,000. This disparity is likely because greater access to credit and use of financial experts enables them to act quickly and effectively.

Read More

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Methodology

“Economic Pressures Split the Generations as Each Rethinks the Basics” is based on a survey of 2,368 U.S. adult consumers conducted from Sept. 10, 2025, to Sept. 29, 2025. The report examines the financial challenges consumers face due to economic pressures and the actions they are taking to address them. Population weights based on the U.S. census are used to ensure the analysis is representative of the U.S. adult population.

^{1. PYMNTS Intelligence uses the following birth dates and approximate age ranges in 2025 for generational cohorts: baby boomers: born in 1964 or earlier and now aged 61 or older; Generation X: born between 1965 and 1980 and now aged 45–60; millennials: born between 1981 and 1996 and now aged 28–44; bridge millennials: born between 1978 and 1988 and now aged 37–47; zillennials: born between 1991 and 1999 and now aged 25–34; and Generation Z: born in 1997 or later and now aged 28 or younger.↩}