Nearly a third of Gen Z said technology is making them lonelier — and it's making many spend more

• Around 29% of Gen Z respondents to a recent survey said technology is making them lonelier.
• This is in contrast to 35% of Gen Z respondents who said it makes them less lonely.
• Loneliness is pushing all generations — and Gen Z in particular — to spend more to be social.

Technology is making millions of Americans, and Gen Z in particular, lonelier — and it's leading many to spend more.

Nearly a third of Gen Z said technology and social media have made them either somewhat or much more lonely, a slightly higher percentage than millennials — and the highest of any generation. This is according to a July survey by Business Insider in partnership with YouGov of more than 1,800 Americans across five generations.

Among Gen Z, 29% are lonelier because of technology, according to the survey. The survey found that technology and social media makes fewer people lonelier among older generations. Just 13% of boomers and 20% of Gen X said technology has made them feel lonelier. In fact, for nearly a third of the Silent Generation, meaning those aged 78 to 95, technology made them feel less lonely.

Among older generations, the survey also found technology has less of an impact, as around two thirds of boomers and those from the Silent Generation said technology makes them neither more nor less lonely.

While Gen Z respondents had the highest rate of loneliness from technology, Gen Z also had the highest percentage of respondents reporting technology and social media made them much less or somewhat less lonely at 35%. By comparison, this statistic was 27% for millennials and 22% for both Gen X and boomers. Millennials are evenly split over whether technology makes them more or less lonely.

US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has called the last few years an"epidemic of loneliness," and it has particularly impacted Gen Z. Over a third of Americans aged 18 to 25 — more than any other generation — felt lonely frequently, almost all the time, or all the time in the 30 days preceding a December 2022 survey conducted by the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Technology is among the factors contributing to loneliness, as for many, the constant stream of seeing people's lives can make people feel more distant or isolated. Still, for the over one third of Gen Zers who said technology makes them feel less lonely, social media has been a tool for staying connected with people as many workplaces remain hybrid.

For many Gen Z, maintaining relationships and avoiding loneliness comes at a cost. Business Insider previously interviewed two dozen Gen Zers, nearly all of whom said they're spending more money now than they were before the pandemic on everything from gym memberships to social clubs — some costing in the thousands of dollars a year.

Younger Americans is also spending considerably more on dating — in a 2022 LendingTree survey of consumers, one in five said they're going on fewer dates because of inflation, which has pushed up the price of a dinner and movie.