How does Gen Z shop in 2025?

In 2024, we did a Data Story on zoomers.

And oh boy, does time fly. A year later, and it seems like a lot has changed. 

AI has become an extension of our day-to-day operations, the economy remains unstable, and zoomers…

Well, let’s just say that there’s a lot of new stuff to unpack about the youngest generation that’s allowed to shop on their own. 

So let’s start…

Zoomers like to hop on social media trends

From memes, to TikTok trends, to shopping—it seems like zoomers can add a spin to that ancient thought experiment and ask:

If it didn’t happen on social media, did it happen at all?

And you can use this to your advantage:

Zoomers are 40% likely to buy a trending product on social media.

Much more likely, in fact, compared to boomers (23%) Gen X (33%), but just slightly more likely than millennials (39%).

Makes sense, doesn’t it? Younger generations are more plugged into platforms where trends move fast and shopping is seamlessly integrated like TikTok and Instagram.

What can you do: Make your product trend-worthy. Collaborate with micro-influencers or create UGC challenges.

If you’re targeting zoomers and millennials, and you’re not on socials… you’re not even in the conversation.

But which social platforms are we talking about?

So… 66% of Gen Z is likely to buy directly from TikTok, making it the top social commerce platform for the generation.

Facebook (54%) and Instagram (50%) still hold ground, while YouTube (48%) and X (39%) trail behind.

The takeaway: TikTok may seem like a doomscroll hole. But it’s actually a stand-alone sales funnel for Gen Z.

Key tip: Optimize for TikTok Shop. Native, fast, and vibe-driven sells best.

Forget polished ads. Think lo-fi and shareable instead.

Youngsters want images to close the deal

How are zoomers shopping?

Well, for starters, Gen Z doesn’t want to read your reviews. 

They want to see them:

The first point is obvious. 

But the second point tells us something crucial: that zoomers are highly visual shoppers. If there’s no unboxing video, did the product even arrive?

What can you do: Make it easy and even incentivize customers to upload photos and videos with their reviews. Try to send an email where you offer gifts or discounts for UGC.

Repost that UGC in ads, use real customer photos in email campaigns, and build social proof into your retargeting creatives. Close the deal with images.

How will zoomers validate your product?

One thing that might be unique to Gen Z is how they’re shopping online.

When zoomers stumble on something sketchy, be it a bad review or content that feels off, they don’t just back away. They go deeper:

Rather than having to “hook” them once and convince them from a single-page funnel—or having to “acquire” them and then retarget, it’s best to just be omnipresent. 

And it’s not because 47% say they keep researching until they’re confident in their decision. After all, all generations will claim the same.

However, zoomers are more likely than anyone to do three additional things: 

• They will check other social platforms
• They will ask their trusted friends
• They will look for more negative reviews

What does it mean: Let’s call this “cross-referencing” the funnel. They will look at how you stand on other platforms, including reviews and UGC. 

And also seek out negative reviews to see what the worst-case scenario is.

What can you do: When targeting zoomers, you might want to stop thinking in silos. 

Create cohesive messaging, visuals, and social proof across all your touchpoints. Particularly Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, YouTube, or even comments sections.

Assume your product will be Googled, DMed, and dissected. Be ready for it. 

What content do zoomers prefer?

How to get to Gen Z? Serve them the right content.

We already know that zoomers love short-form content, but not all short content is the same. 

So let’s see what clicks:

So simple, eh? If you make them laugh, you’ll make them stay. And buy. 

66.3% of all male and 69% of female zoomers just enjoy comedy and memes. 

That’s why, no matter how serious your brand is, a more casual, relaxing tone might be just what you need to attract them. 

Educational content (44.5% on average) also works well for both demographics, while beauty, music, and personal stories are better targeted at the female Gen Z audience.
Males, however, prefer news stories and current events. 

What can you do: Simple, make your videos short, snappy, and funny. Collaborate with influencers if you must, or create it with your team—but make sure it’s not cringey.

If you want to target a younger female audience, partner with beauty or lifestyle influencers, while for male-only zoomers, you could try to tie a trend or a hot topic to your product.

…where possible, at least.

Also, here’s another interesting chart to supplement this:

It seems that zoomers are high on streaming video services (82%) and streaming music services (67.6%).

There’s something interesting about this. From a marketer’s perspective.

What can you do: Given that CTV ads are becoming more accessible to an everyday marketer, you might want to test this if you’re going for Gen Z. 

Plus, podcast ads might not be such a bad idea with zoomers actually paying for the likes of Spotify—so you might not have ads in between songs—but can throw them into the show itself.

Another thing to consider is video game ads, if you’re on the higher end of the marketing budget. 

How does Gen Z feel about influencers?

Reels, TikTok, Shorts… all primarily populated by Gen Z.

…and content creators.

Which is why influencer marketing is such an appealing channel if you’re targeting zoomers.

However, is there any data to back this up? Well, there’s in fact:

It seems zoomers like their creators so much, they often buy stuff they recommend. 

This report shows that people aged 35+ won’t jump to their wallet that quickly (37%), while 55+ shoppers can’t be persuaded by influencers almost at all (only 10%).

On the flip side, more than half of zoomers will buy influencers’ recommendations.

You know what this means. 

If you’re targeting Gen Zs primarily, you should also implement influencer marketing into your strategy. Look for creators that your Gen Z audience trusts, and try to make a deal.

Similarly, if you’re catering to an older audience, you might want to go a different route.

Gen Z and AI: Will it work?

Since we mentioned influencers, we must also mention a new emerging trend: AI influencers.

Even if it is still a tricky topic for many reasons, you’d expect youngsters to be more forgiving of this new tech.

However…

Most youngsters are still not okay with AI influencers (55.8%).

However, look at the chart again. It looks like male Zommers are more forgiving. While it’s close, male zoomers (51.5%) appear to be more okay with AI-generated models. 

This could be for many reasons: Male zoomers tend to engage more with gaming, tech, and virtual aesthetics, hence are comfortable with digital personas. Plus, they might view the entire thing as an exciting novelty, rather than a threat.

Women, who are more likely to be creators themselves—or follow creators who post about fashion, beauty, or health, might be more against this.

So if you experiment with virtual creators, try to tailor them more to a male audience. 

Also, let’s see where’s the biggest objection.

Apparently, authenticity (64%) still plays a major role in being against AI. Another thing is threat to jobs (57%), including creators themselves—and misleading imagery (55%). 

What does this say? Authenticity is still a big deal among zoomers.

The best thing you can do is complement your existing influencer marketing strategy with AI—either by enhancing productivity or generating new ideas. 

But replacing real humans with virtual influencers won’t bode well for your brand. Yet.

Webrooming is becoming hugely popular

There’s a trend we’d like to bring to notice: webrooming. 

What is it? Webrooming is a retail trend where users will look at the product online, but will come to the store to make a physical purchase. 

And guess who likes to “webroom” the most:

Who would’ve thought, huh?

While 67% of shoppers like to webroom—you might be guilty of it too—it’s actually zoomers who are above average in this regard.

This opens up a few possibilities if you have a physical store. Think about streamlining online-to-offline shopping experience for zoomers by adding stuff like:

• Buy online, pick up in store options
• Real time inventory status in nearby stores
• Store locators to help zoomers find you easily

Another tip is that you could retarget zoomers with store specific messages like “Available in your store” or even integrating location-based push notifications.

Zoomers are zooming in on finances

Remember 2018? 

Yep, that time when the world felt less on the edge, the economy wasn’t as bad, and zoomers still talked about TV and having fun on a night out?

Well, guess what? Those topics are slowly being phased out in favor of… money. 

Check out this chart:

It appears that in the previous 8 years, Gen Z have started prioritizing talking business and personal finance more. 

And while TV and socializing are still topics that are prioritised, the money talk is getting close.  

Are zoomers becoming more money-hungry? Doubt it.

They might be getting older. They are entering the age where it’s normal to think about your wallets a bit more, especially when you combine it with the current state of the world.

How can you leverage it: Since Gen Z is thinking about money more seriously, you might want to promote value, savings, and long-term benefits more.

Also, highlight financial independence, not just luxury. Think “invest in yourself” messaging.

The most ambitious zoomers will appreciate user success stories and storytelling that emphasizes success and inspiration. So try to make the most out of it for your brand.

The zoomer verdict

What we’ve learned? That zoomers are doing much more than scrolling.

They are searching and cross-checking. They are laughing, but they are also questioning your products. 

When they buy, they tend to do their research, despite being prone to hop on trendy stuff.

If you want their attention—and their wallet—in the coming months, you better be real, relatable, but even more important… try to be everywhere.

Yes, so simple.