Gen X Is the 'Forgotten Generation' for a Reason

For all the research we’ve conducted on Gen Z and millennials — and even Gen Alpha — we have written very little about Gen X. Our data suggests it's called the "Forgotten Generation" for a reason, as there are very few elements that distinguish the group from the general population.

The data we pulled for this memo is from Morning Consult Audience, which draws on millions of survey interviews about demographics, psychographics, and user habits collected every day in more than 40 countries. We zeroed in on domestic data for the purposes of this memo, and found it was quite difficult to suss out the defining characteristics of Gen X — those born 1965-1980 — compared to all U.S. adults.

On standard demographics, Gen X doesn’t stand out much

Gen Xers are more likely to be divorced (17% vs. 12%) or married (43% vs. 40%) than the general population, which shakes out considering their lifestage. They’re also less likely than the average U.S. adult to have children under the age of 2 in the household: 33% vs. 51%.

Their income is slightly higher compared to all U.S. adults, with 1 in 5 reporting an annual household income of $100,000 or more. But they’re less likely to have strong investment funds, with just a quarter reporting investments of at least $500,000, compared with 30% of the overall population.

These differences might seem small to those familiar with survey research, but our large sample size — 342,926 responses gathered between March 2023 and March 2024 — mean the margin of error is +/- 0.2 percentage points.

Another category that sees just small differences compared with the general population is eating and drinking habits. They’re not leading the Dry January charge, like millennials are. That said, it’s when we start to contrast these figures to millennials where we start to see some key differences. Millennials, for example, are 16 points more likely to use a meal delivery service than Gen Xers. 

They’re also using technology to shop in a nearly identical manner as the average U.S. adult. There are minimal differences between the two groups in frequency of shopping via mobile app and purchasing an item via social media. This is not the generation that’s looking to adjust their shopping habits via new tech.

Two other data points stuck out in our analysis of Morning Consult Audience data. Gen X are more likely to drive several times a day than the average U.S. adult, and they’re more likely to receive all or most of their phone calls on their cell phone. In fact, Gen Xers are more likely than digitally native Gen Zers and millennials to say they receive at least most of their phone calls on cell phones.

On media usage, Gen X’s preferences start to emerge

Gen X, who came of age before the dot-com bubble, isn’t trying to keep up with the latest technology. The group sticks with their tried-and-true platforms such as Facebook, Pandora and LinkedIn. They’re power users of Facebook Messenger. Newer platforms such as Snapchat and Twitch aren’t capturing Gen X’s attention.

The generation is also more likely to rely on cable news compared to the general population, and are slightly less likely to turn to The New York Times and The Washington Post for their news consumption. 

On psychological drivers, Gen X isn’t looking to impress their peers

We start to learn more about the generation when we look at some of our psychographic drivers, which offers a more contextual perspective on consumer data. There are a few drivers that Gen X over indexes on: For example, they’re 3 points more likely than all U.S. adults to relate to the statement “I frequently consider 'previously owned' products as opposed to new” and 2 points more likely to agree that “I would rather do things myself than rely on or ask for the help of others.”

But overall, Gen X is more likely to under index, compared to the general population, on a variety of questions that investigate decision drivers and motivators, and questions on identity and values. 

The general vibe of Gen X is that they’re not trying to impress anyone. They’re not trying to stand out — and, from a data-perspective, they are achieving that goal. 

This memo utilizes data from Morning Consult Audience, our new product that makes it easy to explore and build thousands of custom audience profiles to better understand your target customers. To learn more about Morning Consult Audience, request a demo here.