Handbook of US Consumer Economics

Chapter 8

Are millennials different?^∗

Christopher J. Kurz, Geng Li, and Daniel J. Vine     Division of Research and Statistics, Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Washington, DC, United States

Abstract

The economic well-being of the millennial generation, which entered its working-age years around the time of the 2007–09 recession, has received considerable attention from economists and the popular press. This chapter compares the socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of millennials with those of earlier generations and compares their income, saving, and consumption expenditures. Relative to members of earlier generations, millennials are more racially diverse, more educated, and more likely to have deferred marriage; these comparisons are ...