People shop at a clothing store in Manhattan on November 7, 2025, in New York City.
Spencer Platt | fake images
Black Friday is proving more popular among younger consumers than older ones, according to a new report provided exclusively 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. Older generations, on the other hand, prefer to shop later in the season, just a week or two before Christmas, according to the survey.
“Black Friday is always a big deal, and the prices, deals and advertising that happens during that time is probably what would appeal to Gen Z, especially what's done on social media,” said Angela Rutherford, AT&T's vice president of mid-market sales.
The excitement over Black Friday comes even as Gen Z plans to cut back on spending.
Consulting firm PwC reported in September that Gen Z shoppers plan to spend 23% less on average this holiday season than they did a year ago — the steepest drop of any generation and a significant shift from the previous year, when Gen Z said they planned to spend 37% more.
And as non-wealthy Americans face higher price pressures 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 conservatively.
A new Deloitte survey found that consumers overall plan to spend 4% less on Black Friday than last year, mainly due to concerns about financial constraints and a higher cost of living.
Still, Rutherford said consumers are being more “intentional and value-oriented” in their holiday shopping this year.
That spending is translating into greater support for small businesses rather than traditional big box retailers: 77% of consumers reported they would do all their holiday shopping at small businesses if they could and if the price were the same, according to the AT&T survey.
Compared to last year, the number of respondents who said they shop with small businesses to boost their local economies grew by 8 percentage points.
“I think there's a price consciousness, combined with a 'if I can still save money or get a good price, I'll still buy local' mentality,” Rutherford said.
The AT&T survey also found that 72% of people reported getting their gift ideas from shopping in person rather than through social media.
And even as artificial intelligence begins to reshape the way people shop, more than half of shoppers said they were more likely to use traditional online search methods for their gifts this holiday season than AI; only 9% of respondents said they were more likely to use AI to find gifts.
“AI has exploded in the last two years and is infiltrating every aspect of life,” Rutherford said. “I think as time goes on, we'll see a shift from traditional search to AI for shopping.”
