Black Friday is most popular with Gen Z

Black Friday is becoming more popular among younger consumers than older ones, according to a new report exclusively available to CNBC.

AT&T BusinessThe 2025 Holiday Shopping Survey conducted by Morning Consult found that 40% of Gen Zers and 32% of Millennials plan to do most of their shopping on Black Friday. According to the research, older generations prefer to shop later in the season, just a week or two before Christmas.

“Black Friday is always a big deal, and the pricing, offers and advertising during that time will likely attract Gen Zers, especially things done on social media,” said Angela Rutherford, AT&T’s vice president of mid-market sales.

Black Friday fervor comes even as Gen Z plans to pull back on spending.

Consulting firm PwC reported in September that Gen Z consumers plan to spend an average of 23% less this holiday season than they did a year ago; This is the sharpest decline of any generation and a significant change from the previous year, when Gen Z said they planned to spend 37% more.

As non-wealthy Americans face pressure from higher prices and economic uncertainty, some reports show signs of a “K-shaped” economy that could extend into the holiday season, with wealthier consumers spending more and lower-income consumers shopping more cautiously.

A new survey from Deloitte found that the vast majority of consumers plan to spend 4% less on Black Friday than last year, mainly due to financial constraints and higher cost of living concerns.

Still, Rutherford said consumers are being more “intentional and value-oriented” with their holiday shopping this year.

According to AT&T’s survey, 77% of consumers report they would do all their holiday shopping from small businesses if they could and the prices were the same. This spending means more support for small businesses rather than big legacy retailers.

Compared to last year, the number of survey respondents who said they shop from small businesses to boost their local economies increased by 8 percent.

“I think there’s a price consciousness out there, combined with a mentality of, ‘If I can still save money or get a good price, I’m still going to shop local,’” Rutherford said.

The AT&T survey also reported that 72% of people get their gift ideas from in-person shopping rather than social media.

Even as AI begins to reshape the way people shop, more than half of shoppers said they’re more likely to use traditional online search methods to give gifts this holiday season than AI. Only 9% of survey respondents said they were more likely to use AI to find gifts.

“Artificial intelligence has exploded in the last few years and is infiltrating every aspect of life,” Rutherford said. “I think as time goes on you will see a shift from traditional search to AI for shopping.”