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Gen Z Is Suddenly Debt-Free (Kind Of) on The Viral List

Gen Z “fully paying off” tiny purchases, Punch the Monkey stealing brands’ hearts, and Gen Z taking care of business on their phones are going viral…

Written and Edited by the YPulse Editorial Team

Feb 27 2026
North America, Western Europe

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Gen Z is joking about “fully paying off” everyday purchases
According to Gen Z, they’re not always just mindlessly scrolling on their phones, they’re “taking care of business”
Brands are jumping into internet culture, turning Punch the monkey’s viral moment into real-time marketing

On TikTok, Gen Z is sort of paying off their debt Gen Z’s latest financial trend is all about celebrating their milestones—just not the kind you’d expect. On TikTok, creators are going viral for proudly announcing they’ve “fully paid off” something all by themselves. But note: that “thing” can be as small as a frozen yogurt or a burrito. One TikTok with 2.3M views and 374K likes is captioned, “24 years old. Fully paid off chipotle bowl. It’s not ‘daddy’s money.’ It’s persistence. It’s grit. It’s discipline. I wake up every morning and grind to live this lifestyle.” Another TikTok...