Millennials were the largest generation group in the United States in 2024, with an estimated population of ***** million. Born between 1981 and 1996, Millennials recently surpassed Baby Boomers as the biggest group, and they will continue to be a major part of the population for many years. The rise of Generation Alpha Generation Alpha is the most recent to have been named, and many group members will not be able to remember a time before smartphones and social media. As of 2024, the oldest Generation Alpha members were still only aging into adolescents. However, the group already makes up around ***** percent of the U.S. population, and they are said to be the most racially and ethnically diverse of all the generation groups. Boomers vs. Millennials The number of Baby Boomers, whose generation was defined by the boom in births following the Second World War, has fallen by around ***** million since 2010. However, they remain the second-largest generation group, and aging Boomers are contributing to steady increases in the median age of the population. Meanwhile, the Millennial generation continues to grow, and one reason for this is the increasing number of young immigrants arriving in the United States.

In 2024, Millennials were the largest generation group in the United States, making up about 21.81 percent of the population. However, Generation Z was not far behind, with Gen Z accounting for around 20.81 percent of the population in that year.

This map layer shows the prevalent generations that make up the population of the United States using multiple scales. As of 2018, the most predominant generations in the U.S. are Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964), Millennials (born 1981-1998), and Generation Z (born 1999-2016). Currently, Millennials are the most predominant population in the U.S.A generation represents a group of people who are born around the same time and experience world events and trends during the same stage of life through similar mediums (for example, online, television, print, or radio). Because of this, people born in the same generation are expected to have been exposed to similar values and developmental experiences, which may cause them to exhibit similar traits or behaviors over their lifetimes. Generations provide scientists and government officials the opportunity to measure public attitudes on important issues by people’s current position in life and document those differences across demographic groups and geographic regions. Generational cohorts also give researchers the ability to understand how different developmental experiences, such as technological, political, economic, and social changes, influence people’s opinions and personalities. Studying people in generational groups is significant because an individual’s age is a conventional predictor for understanding cultural and political gaps within the U.S. population.Though there is no exact equation to determine generational cutoff points, it is understood that we designate generational spans based on a 15- to 20-year gap. The only generational period officially designated by the U.S. Census Bureau is based on the surge of births after World War II in 1946 and a significant decline in birth rates after 1964 (Baby Boomers). From that point, generational gaps have been determined by significant political, economic, and social changes that define one’s formative years (for example, Generation Z is considered to be marked by children who were directly affected by the al Qaeda attacks of September 11, 2001).In this map layer, we visualize six active generations in the U.S., each marked by significant changes in American history:The Greatest Generation (born 1901-1924): Tom Brokaw’s 1998 book, The Greatest Generation, coined the term ‘the Greatest Generation” to describe Americans who lived through the Great Depression and later fought in WWII. This generation had significant job and education opportunities as the war ended and the postwar economic booms impacted America.The Silent Generation (born 1925-1945): The title “Silent Generation” originated from a 1951 essay published in Time magazine that proposed the idea that people born during this period were more cautious than their parents. Conflict from the Cold War and the potential for nuclear war led to widespread levels of discomfort and uncertainty throughout the generation.Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964): Baby Boomers were named after a significant increase in births after World War II. During this 20-year span, life was dramatically different for those born at the beginning of the generation than those born at the tail end of the generation. The first 10 years of Baby Boomers (Baby Boomers I) grew up in an era defined by the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War, in which a lot of this generation either fought in or protested against the war. Baby Boomers I tended to have great economic opportunities and were optimistic about the future of America. In contrast, the last 10 years of Baby Boomers (Baby Boomers II) had fewer job opportunities and available housing than their Boomer I counterparts. The effects of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal led a lot of second-wave boomers to lose trust in the American government. Generation X (born 1965-1980): The label “Generation X” comes from Douglas Coupland’s 1991 book, Generation X: Tales for An Accelerated Culture. This generation was notoriously exposed to more hands-off parenting, out-of-home childcare, and higher rates of divorce than other generations. As a result, many Gen X parents today are concerned about avoiding broken homes with their own kids.Millennials (born 1981-1998): During the adolescence of Millennials, America underwent a technological revolution with the emergence of the internet. Because of this, Millennials are generally characterized by older generations to be technologically savvy.Generation Z (born 1999-2016): Generation Z or “Zoomers” represent a generation raised on the internet and social media. Gen Z makes up the most ethnically diverse and largest generation in American history. Like Millennials, Gen Z is recognized by older generations to be very familiar with and/or addicted to technology.Questions to ask when you look at this mapDo you notice any trends with the predominant generations located in big cities? Suburbs? Rural areas?Where do you see big clusters of the same generation living in the same area?Which areas do you see the most diversity in generations?Look on the map for where you, your parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents live. Do they live in areas where their generation is the most predominant?

In 2023, half of Generation Z in the United States were white. In comparison, 48 percent of Gen Alpha were white in that year, making it the first generation that does not have a majority white population in the United States.

This map contains NYC administrative boundaries enriched with various demographics datasets.Learn more about Esri's Enrich Layer / Geoenrichment analysis tool.Learn more about Esri's Demographics, Psychographic, and Socioeconomic datasets.Search for a specific location or site using the search bar. Toggle layer visibility with the layer list. Click on a layer to see more information about the feature.

The statistic shows the number of people in the U.S. in 2011 and 2030, by generation. By 2030, the Millennial generation will have 78 million people whereas the Boomer generation will only have 56 million people in the United States.

In 2023, there were about 72.7 million Millennials estimated to be living in the United States, making them the largest generation group in the country. In comparison, there were 69.31 million Gen Z and 65.35 million Gen X estimated to be in the United States in that year.

Continuous Population Statistics: Resident population by date, sex and generation (age as at 31 December). Quarterly. Provinces.

In 2024, Generation Z represented 24.6 percent of the global population, making them the largest generation group in the world, according to the source. In 2030, Millennials were forecast to represent 21.6 percent of the population worldwide.

Population Figures: Resident population by date, sex and generation (age on 31 December). Semi-annual. Autonomous Communities and Cities.

Layer references: Predominant Generations in the United States in 2018-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This layer shows the predominant generations that make up the population of the United States using country to block group geographies. The vintage of the data is 2018. The top 3 predominant generations are Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964), Millennials (born 1981-1998), and Generation Z (born 1999-2016). Of these three, the predominant generation of the United States is Millennials. The popup is configured to show the predominant generation and population counts for each of the six generations. Size represents the total sum of categories (i.e. total population). Web Map: Predominant Generations in the United StatesFor more information, visit the Updated Demographics documentation. For a full list of variables, click the Data tab. Note: This layer will not being continuously updated or maintained.

Introduction

Gen X Statistics: Considered the generation in-between generations, it stands poised in 2024, with people from Generation X being in their prime, aged between 44 and 59, while managing peak career years, family duties, and retirement planning. Typically referred to as the Sandwich Generation, Gen Xers are both caring for ageing parents and dependent kids. This generation, often ignored in consideration with Baby Boomers and Millennials, holds an ultra-important position in the workforce, economy, and technology adoption. This article examines the latest Gen X statistics to piece together in 2024.

Utilizing Esri Updated Demographics Categories (boundaries from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau Data). This layer was created using Esri's Enrich tool to display some of the categories below at a Block Group level for Idaho. Esri Updated Demographics categories include the following:PopulationAge—By Generations, Age Dependency RatiosRace and Ethnicity—Diversity IndexSchool-Educational attainmentWork—Labor Force, Economic Dependency RatiosIncome—Total Income, Income by AgeHouseholds—Total Households, Tenure, FamiliesFamiliesHousing and Wealth—Total Housing Units, Housing Affordability Index, Percent of Income for Mortgage, Wealth Index, Contract RentHistorical Time Series—Population, Households, and Housing Units for each year between 2010 and current yearMethodology 2023/2028 Demographics2023-2028 Data Catalog

Utilizing Esri Updated Demographics Categories (boundaries from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau Data). This layer was created using Esri's Enrich tool to display some of the categories below at a Block Group level for Idaho. Esri Updated Demographics categories include the following:PopulationAge—By Generations, Age Dependency RatiosRace and Ethnicity—Diversity IndexSchool-Educational attainmentWork—Labor Force, Economic Dependency RatiosIncome—Total Income, Income by AgeHouseholds—Total Households, Tenure, FamiliesFamiliesHousing and Wealth—Total Housing Units, Housing Affordability Index, Percent of Income for Mortgage, Wealth Index, Contract RentHistorical Time Series—Population, Households, and Housing Units for each year between 2010 and current yearMethodology 2023/2028 Demographics2023-2028 Data Catalog

As of December 2023, Generation X was the most represented group among the generations in Germany, at almost **** million people. The second-largest group, Generation Y, comprised around ***** million people.

Income quintiles are assigned based on equivalized household disposable income, which takes into account differences in household size and composition using a method proposed by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The OECD-modified" equivalence scale assigns a value of 1 to the first adult Age groups refer to the age group of the major income earner. Housing tenure of household Refers to the main source of income for the household, either from wages and salaries, self-employment income, net property income, current transfers received related to pension benefits, or from other current transfers received from non-pension related sources (others). Distributions by generation are defined as follows and are based on the birth year of the major income earner : pre-1946 for those born before 1946, baby boom for those born between 1946 and 1964, generation X for those born between 1965 and 1980 and millennials for those born after 1980. Note that generation Z has been combined with the millennial generation as their sample size is relatively small.

In the Pakistan, the male population aged between 20 and 24 amounted to about **** percent of the total male population in 2023. In contrast, the male population aged between 20 and 24 in Hong Kong amounted to about *** percent of the total male population in 2023. The female Gen Z population in the Asia-Pacific region took up a smaller share among the female population overall compared to their male counterparts.

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the United States population distribution across 18 age groups. It lists the population in each age group along with the percentage population relative of the total population for United States. The dataset can be utilized to understand the population distribution of United States by age. For example, using this dataset, we can identify the largest age group in United States.

Key observations

The largest age group in United States was for the group of age 25-29 years with a population of 22,854,328 (6.93%), according to the 2021 American Community Survey. At the same time, the smallest age group in United States was the 80-84 years with a population of 5,932,196 (1.80%). Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2017-2021 5-Year Estimates.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2017-2021 5-Year Estimates.

Age groups:

• Under 5 years
• 5 to 9 years
• 10 to 14 years
• 15 to 19 years
• 20 to 24 years
• 25 to 29 years
• 30 to 34 years
• 35 to 39 years
• 40 to 44 years
• 45 to 49 years
• 50 to 54 years
• 55 to 59 years
• 60 to 64 years
• 65 to 69 years
• 70 to 74 years
• 75 to 79 years
• 80 to 84 years
• 85 years and over

Variables / Data Columns

• Age Group: This column displays the age group in consideration
• Population: The population for the specific age group in the United States is shown in this column.
• % of Total Population: This column displays the population of each age group as a proportion of United States total population. Please note that the sum of all percentages may not equal one due to rounding of values.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for United States Population by Age. You can refer the same here

Population Projections: Immigration from abroad, by sex, generation and year. Annual. National.

Utilizing Esri Updated Demographics Categories (boundaries from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau Data). This layer was created using Esri's Enrich tool to display some of the categories below at a city level for Idaho. Esri Updated Demographics categories include the following:PopulationAge—By Generations, Age Dependency RatiosRace and Ethnicity—Diversity IndexSchool-Educational attainmentWork—Labor Force, Economic Dependency RatiosIncome—Total Income, Income by AgeHouseholds—Total Households, Tenure, FamiliesFamiliesHousing and Wealth—Total Housing Units, Housing Affordability Index, Percent of Income for Mortgage, Wealth Index, Contract RentHistorical Time Series—Population, Households, and Housing Units for each year between 2010 and current yearMethodology 2023/2028 Demographics2023-2028 Data Catalog