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Gen Zers struggle to pay their monthly credit card bills, with 56% having missed a payment or making a late payment, says a study from CreditCards.com. In addition, some 9% of Gen Zers rely on parental support to pay their credit card bills.
Compounding these difficulties with credit card bills is that 25% of respondents say they max out their card most months, while 19% do not know their credit score. The latter indicates a financial literacy gap among Gen Zers when it comes to managing card debt, according to CreditCards.com.
Overall, 63% of Gen Zers have credit cards, one-third of whom revolve a balance, the survey says. Gen Z includes persons born between 1997 and 2012.
The survey, conducted online in September 2024 by Pollfish Inc., interviewed 1,261 full-time Gen Z workers with credit cards.
Other credit card issues revealed by the survey are that 41% of respondents say they have never used a budgeting app or financial-planning tool, and nearly one in five say they have little understanding of how their credit scores impact major purchases.
The survey also highlights the need for financial education among Gen Zers, with 69% of respondents saying they believe financial literacy courses should be mandatory in both high school and college.
In addition to their difficulty in managing credit card debt, Gen Zers also struggle to save for their future, the survey finds. Nearly half of Gen Zers have not begun saving for retirement, while three in 10 with credit cards have less than $100 in non-retirement account savings.
