Although some members of Generation Z may still be working entry-level jobs while attending high school or college, most of this group have entered the workforce in earnest. But given their relative lack of experience, Gen Zers earn less than their older counterparts in 93% of U.S. cities, according to a recent study from SmartAsset.
In a handful of cities, the research also showed, young workers offer skills and expertise — and sometimes youth itself — that help them pull ahead against the odds and earn more than older workers.
For the study, SmartAsset sourced available data for 354 cities with a population of more than 100,000 from the U.S. Census Bureau 1-Year American Community Survey for 2024. Researchers compared the median income for households where the main householder is aged 15 to 24 against the median household income across all local households to determine the Gen Z earnings premium.
They found that young up-and-comers outperform older households for income in just 24 of the 354 cities studied. The median Gen Z income is less than $50,000 in more than half of cities. In fact, it is lower than the 2024 U.S. median household income in 91% of cities surveyed.
Even when Gen Zers earn big bucks in some cities, they may have a negative earnings premium.
Take Sunnyvale, California, where young earners’ median income is $162,486. That is 10.2% lower than the $181,022 median income across all households in that high-earning city. This negative earnings premium puts Sunnyvale at 37th best overall for Gen Zers’ earnings in SmartAsset’s ranking.
See the accompanying gallery for the 15 U.S. cities where Gen Zers have the highest earnings premium, according to the research.
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