Catalina Espinosa
Research expert covering society, economy, and politics for Europe and the EU
Millennials and Generation Zs in Thailand - statistics & facts
Millennials or Generation Ys are those who were born between 1981 and 1996 while Generation Zs were born between 1997 and 2012. These two groups combined make up the majority of the Thai population. The two generations both grew up in a fast-paced world of rapid technological progress which has continuously shaped their values, trends, and personal habits, leading to a shift in consumer behavior compared to the older generations. This transition has triggered changes in how businesses market themselves as well as changes in how governments respond to most of the population in Thailand today.
Attitudes and future expectations
Millennials and Generation Zs in Thailand have become much more aware of the current world through greater internet accessibility. As ideas flow more freely, freedom of speech has become extremely important and has influenced millennials and Generation Zs to be more politically involved. In recent years, youth-led protests in Thailand became a major catalyst for ongoing critical political discussion on many controversial topics in the country. Apart from socio-political concerns, this spark in political involvement is also partially due to worries and future expectations, especially for their family since family members are deeply respected and admired among the younger generation.Millennials and Generation Zs as consumers
The combination of family, self-expression, and fast-paced consumption describes what a typical millennial and Generation Z in Thailand is like as a consumer. For the older millennials, owning a house comes first on their list of things they aspire to have in life. However, millennials in Thailand are swayed from these goals as they tend to spend more than what they plan to save in order to keep up with modern standards of living, as seen from the lower levels of savings compared to what they expected to save each month. Combining this with a slow improvement of financial literacy in the country, debt levels among millennials are also rising. For Generation Zs, their attitude towards finances seems to be more updated than the older generation by showing an interest in saving and wanting to become more educated in financial literacy.Driven by technology
Technology has undoubtedly become prominent in the daily lives of millennials and Generation Zs. In general, Thais spend an average of 11 hours and 25 minutes online while also using multiple smart devices per day. Despite being so engaged with technology and the online world, Generation Zs admit that there are disadvantages of using smart devices almost all the time and plan to disconnect occasionally, in hopes of a healthier and happier way of living.
