Bankrate’s 2023 annual emergency savings report painted a bleak picture — particularly for millennials and members of Generation X. Their credit card debt to savings ratio is far worse than the general population, of whom roughly 36% said they had more credit card debt than savings.Roughly 45% of millennials and 44% of Gen Xers said they had more credit card debt than savings. That's a massive increase from the previous year when they answered with 32% and 24%, respectively.
All generations reported a major increase in the proportion of those who had more credit card debt than savings this year compared to last year.Baby boomers were found to be the best off, with just one-quarter having more credit card debt than savings, although that was still 10 percentage points higher than last year. Roughly 38% of Gen Zers were in this category as well, compared to 23% last year.
"It’s clear that the less-than-optimal economy, including historically high inflation coupled with rising interest rates, has taken a double-edged toll on Americans. Many have resorted to tapping their emergency savings if they have it, or have taken on credit card debt, or some combination," Mark Hamrick, a Bankrate senior economic analyst, explained.
Maybe they can use their credit cards to pay off their student loans.
How could fiat money exist without this debt?
But think of all the Starbucks and new iPhones they enjoyed.
Oy veyy