Millennials vs. Gen Xers: A Time Use Study

How is daily time use different for today's younger adults versus those a generation ago? That is the question posed by Bureau of Labor Statistics' economist Michelle Freeman in the Monthly Labor Review. Analyzing data from the American Time Use Survey, Freeman compares the time use of Gen Xers in 2003, when they were aged 23 to 38, with the time use of Millennials aged 23 to 38 in 2019. 

Some things have not changed. Work, for example, took up just as much time on an average day for Millennials in 2019 as it did for Gen Xers in 2003. On an average day, 56 percent of Millennials and 55 percent of Gen Xers worked. On days worked, both Millennials and Gen Xers logged an average of 7.7 hours of labor. 

Some things changed in ways you might expect. Millennials in 2019 spent less time than Gen Xers did in 2003 caring for and helping household members. "This difference between the generations is driven by a decline in the share of women who spent time providing childcare—47 percent of millennial women spent time caring for household children on an average day, compared with 55 percent of Generation X women," Freeman explains. The reason for this difference: Millennials are less likely to live in households with children because of delayed marriage and childbearing. 

Here's another "makes sense" kind of change: Millennial men spend more time than Gen X men did playing games. Millennial men spend an average of 28 minutes a day playing video games versus the 10 minutes Gen X men devoted to the activity. "This increase in the time men spent playing games across generations mirrors the growth observed in the video gaming industry over time," Freeman notes. 

Some of the differences in time use are unexpected, such as the fact that Millennials are significantly more likely to care for animals and pets on an average day. In 2003, only 10 percent of Gen Xers cared for pets on an average day. In 2019, a larger 17 percent of Millennials cared for pets. The Millennial penchant for pets is one reason why overall pet spending soared in the past two decades. Households headed by 25-to-34-year-olds in 2003 spent $239 annually on pets, reports Freeman ($332 in 2019 dollars). Households headed by 25-to-34-year-olds in 2019 spent a much larger $522 on pets—a 57 percent increase, after adjusting for inflation. 

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Time Use of Millennials and Generation X: Differences Across Time

49% of U.S. Adults Have Tried Marijuana

Nearly half of U.S. adults have ever tried marijuana, according to a Gallup survey. Gallup has been tracking marijuana use for decades. A half century ago in 1971, just 4 percent of adults reported having ever used marijuana. The figure surged to 33 percent by 1985, reached 45 percent in 2017, and climbed to 49 percent in 2021. 

"The increase in the proportion of U.S. adults who have tried marijuana mainly reflects millennials replacing older traditionalists in the U.S. adult population," explains Gallup. 

There are no statistically significant differences in the percentages of Boomers, Gen Xers, or Millennials who have ever tried marijuana. Americans born before 1946, however, are much less likely to have tried it...

Percent who have ever tried marijuana by generation

Millennials: 51%

Gen Xers: 49%

Boomers: 50%

Older: 19%

When asked whether they currently use marijuana, differences by generation emerge. Among Millennials, 20 percent say they currently use marijuana. The figure is 11 percent among Gen Xers, 9 percent among Boomers, and 1 percent among older Americans.

Source: Gallup, Nearly Half of U.S. Adults Have Tried Marijuana

Membership in Religious Congregations Falls below 50%

The percentage of Americans who belong to a religious congregation fell below 50 percent in 2020, according to a Gallup survey. This is the first time the figure has fallen below 50 percent since Gallup started asking the question in 1937. In 2020, only 47 percent of Americans aged 18 or older answered "yes" when asked, "Do you happen to be a member of a church, synagogue or mosque?"

Membership in religious congregations peaked in the years following World War II, when 76 percent of Americans aged 18 or older were members. The figure remained near the 70 percent level until the 2000s when it began a steady decline. 

Gallup notes that the decline "appears largely tied to population change, with those in older generations who were likely to be church members being replaced in the U.S. adult population with people in younger generations who are less likely to belong." Gallup has aggregated three of the most recent years of data to show membership by generation...

Member of a church, synagogue, or mosque, 2018–20 

Millennials: 36% 

Gen Gers: 50% 

Boomers: 58%

Older Americans: 66% 

Source: Gallup, U.S. Church Membership Falls below Majority for First Time

Generations Differ in Experience of Coronavirus

The great majority of Americans know someone who has had Covid-19. Fully 77 percent of adults personally know someone who has been sick with coronavirus, according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist Poll fielded March 3-8. The figure does not vary much by demographic characteristic except for one—generation. 

Counter to what you might expect, the oldest Americans are the ones least likely to know someone who has been sick with Covid-19. Just 54 percent of people aged 75 or older know someone who has come down with coronavirus. At the other extreme, 85 percent of Gen Xers know someone who got Covid—more than any other generation. 

The pattern is the same for coronavirus deaths. Overall, more than one-third of Americans (36 percent) personally know someone who died from coronavirus. The figure ranges from a low of 29 percent among the oldest adults to a high of 41 percent among Gen Xers. 

Know someone	sick with Covid	died of Covid
Total adults (18-plus)	77%	36%
Gen Z/Millennials (18-39)	80	33
Generation X (40-55)	85	41
Baby Boomers (56-74)	75	39
Silent Generation (75-plus)	54	29

Source: NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist Poll Results, The Biden Administration and Covid-19

Boomers Still Have A Grip on Congress

The Baby-Boom generation dominates both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. According to an analysis of the 117th Congress by Pew Research Center, Boomers account for the 53 percent majority of the House and for an even larger 68 percent of the Senate...

House: number (and percent) of members of the 117th Congress by generation

Millennials: 31 (7%)

Gen Xers: 144 (33%)

Boomers: 230 (53%)

Silent: 27 (6%) 

Senate: number (and percent) of members of the 117th Congress by generation

Millennials: 1 (1%)

Gen Xers: 20 (20%)

Boomers: 68 (68%)

Silent: 11 (11%) 

Note: Pew defines Millennials as those born from 1981 to 1996; Gen X from 1965 to 1980; Boomers from 1946 to 1964; Silent generation from 1928 to 1945.

The ages of the 117th Congress range from a youthful 25.5 years to an ancient 87.7 years. The median age of the House is 58.9. The median age of the Senate is 64.8. 

Source: Pew Research Center, Boomers, Silents Still Have Most Seats in Congress, though Number of Millennials, Gen Xers Is Up Slightly