Generation X will be the highest-spending generation in 2025, according to data from NielsenIQ.
Gen Xers — people born between 1965 and 1980 — are projected to spend $15.2 trillion this year. That’s $500 billion more than millennials, who take second place. Boomers, meanwhile, come in third at $13.5 trillion.
And the spending power of Gen X hasn’t peaked yet, with NielsenIQ projecting it will reach $23 trillion by 2035.
The X Factor report, analysing Gen X behaviour and spending patterns using NielsenIQ and World Data Lab (WDL) data, warns that firms can’t afford to ignore this ‘forgotten generation’ in its prime earning and spending years.
‘Gen X isn’t a transitional generation — it’s your present-day profit center. This cohort is in its prime earning and spending years, wielding outsized influence despite its smaller population size.
‘If you fail to prioritise them now, you’re not just missing a moment—you’re risking a decade of loyalty and lifetime value.’
NielsenIQ predicts Gen X will hold the top-spending spot until 2033, when millennials finally overtake them. Gen Z — the fixation of so much ad attention — won’t take the crown for another 15 years, with projected 2025 spend at $10.9 trillion.
Marketers keen to tap Gen Xers for some cash can find some gems of insight in the report. It dubs Gen X the ‘caretaker generation’, due to them being at the stage of life where they are looking after aging parents while raising children, and navigating the most lucrative years of their careers.
Their biggest priorities, according to the research, are ‘maintaining homes, supporting familial well-being and safeguarding their valuable time.’
Thanks to their influence over their older and younger relatives, they’re also described as the ‘CFOs of their households’, meaning even campaigns aimed at other generations may need to resonate with Gen Xers.
‘Gen X will respond well to products that offer clear functional benefits, like time savings or improved performance — particularly if they clearly demonstrate value for this cohort’s busy, dynamic lifestyle,’ the report notes.
Brands chasing Gen X might want to pair this generational insight with a broader approach though. A recent Amazon Ads study, Beyond the Generational Divide: The New Rules for Consumer Connection, found people are more united by shared behaviours, values and communities than by age alone.
Campaigns that combine age-based targeting with audience signals — such as values, interests and behaviours — deliver significantly better results, the study found.
Gen X consists of 1.4 billion people after all, and even the NielsenIQ report, which comes across as a call to arms at most points, suggests a more nuanced reading. For example Boomers are still the wealthiest generation and Gen X is less of a lucrative market in low-income countries due to lower life expectancy.
Main image by Lorenzo Herrera on Unsplash.
