The Top 20 Holiday Gifts Gen Z & Millennials Want This Year

What’s at the top of Gen Z and Millennials’ holiday wishlists? As the shopping season officially kicks off, we’ve got a ranking of the things they want most…

It’s Black Friday week, and the official kick-off of holiday shopping season is here. We already know that young shoppers are planning to buy this weekend, but what will their loved ones be buying for them? Every year, YPulse’s holiday shopping survey asks Gen Z and Millennials to tell us the one thing at the top of their holiday wishlists. These are the top 20 things they told us they want to be gifted in 2019:

What’s At the Top of Their Holiday Wishlists

13-37-year-olds

1. 1. 1. Clothes / Accessories
      2. Cash
      3. Smartphone
      4. Shoes / Boots
      5. Gift cards
      6. Travel
      7. Jewelry / Watch
      8. AirPods / Earbuds / Headphones
      9. Laptop / Computer
      10. Apple Watch / Smartwatch
      11. Books
      12. Gaming Console
      13. Experience / Event Tickets
      14. Beauty Products
      15. Video Game
      16. Cooking Supplies
      17. Technology
      18. Home décor
      19. Tablet
      20. TV

For the second year in a row, clothing/accessories are at the top of the list of their most-wanted items. Apple features prominently on the wishlist ranking, with many young consumers naming their products specifically—especially Airpods and Apple watches, which the brand is counting on to be their star items now that the iPhone’s star has fallen slightly. Of course, the ranking is heavy on tech items overall, with some just saying they want “technology”—this is Gen Z and Millennials we’re talking about. But of course, travel and experiences/even tickets both make the top wishlist ranking as well.

Interestingly, clothing/accessories is actually only the 2^nd most wanted item among females, and cash is their number one dream gift. They are far more likely to say they want both cash and gift cards than males. This could be because they’re less financially confident, or because they don’t trust others to buy things they would like—or because they actually enjoy shopping and just want more to spend.

We of course also see differences between age groups’ wishlists, though clothing/accessories are at the top for each group:

Gen Z and Millennials would both want to see clothing and cash under the tree, but Gen Z 13-18-year-olds are more likely to have Airpods/earbuds/headphones on their wishlists, which 19-25-year-olds are more likely than other groups to want an Apple Watch or smartwatch, and 26-37-year-olds are more likely than younger groups to want travel to be gifted to them this season.

This year, video games and gaming consoles were in the top 20 ranking, but didn’t make the top five for any group, even teens. This could be an indicator that there isn’t a hot console or title on the market this year, or it could be a signifier of a larger shift in gaming.