Gen Z’s money perspectives took a hit in the pandemic.
COVID happened just as they were entering college or launching their careers.
Then they were met with sky-high inflation rates post-pandemic.
(Source: Rappler survey, Q4 2023)
Post pandemic = more financial stress 😅
& the more financially stressed employees are,
the less likely they are to make smart decisions when it comes to spending and saving.
Gen Z Money Mentality #1:
For Gen Z, saving > spending!
COVID has given Gen Z:
✅ A better and realistic perspective of society’s financial inequity
✅ A mindset of frugality as a core value, with a renewed interest in saving, budgeting, and investing
✅ A need to change their spending habits as a result (70% of Gen Z agree!)
(Source: Research by Capital One & The Decision Lab, Gen Z: Building a Better Normal by Wunderman Thompson Intelligence)
Gen Z Money Habits:
Gen Z Money Mentality #2:
Move over, “quiet luxury”—saving is cool!
Shifting from “quiet luxury” to account for higher cost of living and inflation, Gen Z’s latest trend promotes:
✅ Being vocal and transparent about finances, including saving & spending habits
✅ Setting more mindful savings goals
✅ Actively aiming for financial literacy
💡 Fun fact:
The term “loud budgeting” was coined by TikToker @lukasbattle in Dec. 2023!
(c) @lukasbattle on TikTok
How “loud budgeting” manifests in
Gen Z’s day-to-day lives:
✅ Telling friends they’re on a budget when they go out for dinner and drinks
✅ Being vocal about not wanting to spend
✅ Preferring to stay in during weekends & turning down invites because they’re saving up for a goal (like a big trip!)
✅ Shopping at thrift stores or ukay-ukay to be more sustainable and save money
✅ Opting for less expensive cafes for meet-ups
✅ Cutting back on mindless spending
✅ Sticking to a budget plan aligned with their needs & lifestyle
(c) @stephandden on TikTok
(c) @lillianzhang_ on TikTok
Loud Budgeting vs. Quiet Luxury
(according to Gen Z)
Loud Budgeting:
🤑 Regularly reviewing & adjusting finances
🤑 Making intentional choices for financial well-being and goal prioritization
🤑 Setting & prioritizing financial goals
🤑 Proactively planning/budgeting for short/long term
🤑 Holding oneself accountable for spending decisions
🤑 Seeing financial mistakes as learning opportunities
Quiet Luxury:
💸 Valuing items for personal meaning/well-being rather than trendiness or expense
💸 Saving: investing & planning for a stable lifestyle with sustainable luxury
💸 Making purchases aligned with values, not influenced by advertising/social pressures
💸 Preferring to spend on memorable experiences over material items
Gen Z Money Mentality #3:
The importance of credit & lending tools
for Filipino Gen Z
97% of Gen Z believe it’s important to have access to credit and lending products,
but only 37% think they have sufficient access (vs. 42% millennials)
54% plan to apply for new credit or refinance existing credit within 2024:
💳 52% new personal loan
💳33% new credit card
💳 32% buy now, pay later
💳24% refinance personal loan
💳 18% new car loan or lease
💳 16% new mortgage, home loan, or bond payment
(Source: TransUnion’s Q4 2023 Consumer Pulse Report)
The Rise of the Finfluencer
#FinTok is Gen Z’s gateway
to financial education
45% of Gen Z look for financial advice online, largely due to:
- lack of financial education
- limited interaction or access to financial experts and advisors
Enter the “finfluencers”—financial influencers who are popping up all over social media. For Gen Z, these content creators provide more helpful info about financial management than their parents or teachers.
#FinTok has also been a growing community, with 107k posts and 4.8B views as of April 2024. Social posts on FinTok cover a wide range of topics for Gen Z to learn from in snackable formats:
✅ Money-saving and budgeting
✅ Ways to earn and grow money (actively and passively)
✅ Debt management
✅ Investments and stocks
✅ Credit card usage
✅ Digital and traditional banks
✅ Online lending apps
@ivybermejo on TikTok
(187.4K followers, 1.5M likes)
@jaxreyes_ on TikTok
(250.2K followers, 4.4M likes)
Financial Habits to Learn from Gen Z
1. Be a saver, not a spender
✔️ Set mindful and achievable savings goals based on needs and lifestyle: Set an amount to save every month and stick to a budget for expenses.
✔️ Make meaningful purchases and cut back on mindless spending.
✔️ Gen Z have proven that it’s never too early to save and think about the future, especially in this economy. Emergency funds, retirement funds, investments—educate yourself on ways to save and even grow your money.
2. Loud Budgeting > Quiet Luxury
✔️ It’s about communication and transparency. Let friends or family know about your savings goals, or how you’re sticking to a budget the next time they invite you to go out for dinner and drinks.
✔️ It’s easy to get FOMO from social media, but be careful because it can lead to unnecessary expenses. Be wary of lifestyle creep!
✔️ Don’t forget to treat yourself too—but don’t go overboard! Remember to stick to a budget.
3. Invest in learning!
✔️ Gen Z are turning more towards social media to educate themselves on money matters, and with good reason:
– friendlier and easier to understand, especially when the topics get a bit too technical and challenging
– more engaging, so it can make learning about things like filing taxes, interest rates, or loans more fun
– more helpful and practical when you get tips and learn from other people’s actual experiences
✔️ Of course, make sure to still err on the side of caution so you don’t fall for scams or fraud schemes!
💡 Thought Starters 💡
