WHAT THE DATA SAY: 49% of Gen Z don’t have enough friends to go out on weekends

By: Ray Day

CONTACT:

Ray Day
ray.day@stagwellglobal.com 

We wanted to share our latest consumer and business insights, based on research from Stagwell and Allison Worldwide. Among the highlights of our weekly consumer sentiment tracking:

GEN Z IS SKIPPING THE WEEKEND

Gen Z’s weekends are increasingly defined by staying home, dealing with financial stress and craving ways to connect, according to The Harris Poll’s new Gen Z Weekend Report.

• 51% of Gen Z say they feel lonely on a typical weekend – the highest of any generation and 37 points higher than Boomers.
• 74% stay home at least half of their weekends each month, and 73% say staying home has become their default weekend plan.
• 49% of Gen Z adults say they don’t have enough friends to spend time in-person.
• 47% stay home to recharge their physical and mental health.
• Young people’s social life is increasingly screen-based, with 65% saying they connect more through their phone than in person.
• 88% actively avoid at least one social setting, including large groups of near-strangers (39%), loud crowded spaces (38%) and spending a lot on a single night out (36%).
• 73% of young people want more social settings where alcohol isn’t the focus.
• See also: The brutal math behind Gen Z’s lonely weekends: $15 drinks are driving a generational ‘spending hangover’

INVESTORS ARE ANXIOUS YET STILL BUYING

Investors are increasingly worried about the economy. Yet, instead of sitting on the sidelines, many are moving more aggressively, according to our Harris Poll research with Nationwide.

• 77% of non-retired investors are concerned about a U.S. recession in the next 12 months.
• 33% say they plan to change their retirement savings approach to take advantage of investment opportunities now, up from 21% two years ago.
• Risk appetite is also rising: 22% say they plan to manage their investments more aggressively, up from 16% in 2024.
• 15% say they expect to retire later than planned, down from a 22% peak in 2024.
• 11% say they don’t know if they’ll ever be able to retire, down from 16% in 2024.

HIDDEN FEES KILL VACATION RENTALS

Vacation rental travelers care less about luxury and more about transparency, according to our Harris Poll research with Expedia Group.

• 42% of travelers say hidden or extra fees are their biggest anxiety before a vacation rental stay – ahead of host cancellations (36%) and a non-responsive host after booking (33%).
• Once they arrive, renters’ biggest worries are broken or unreliable amenities (41%), cleanliness issues (41%) and the property not matching the photos or description (39%).
• Travelers are most likely to walk away from a booking when the total price isn’t shown upfront, when cleaning fees feel high or unclear or when extra fees pop up for amenities.
• 54% say real traveler photos from past guests are an important trust signal before renting.
• 56% expect hosts to respond within an hour or less if something goes wrong during the stay.

AI ROI RECKONING

Executives no longer are asking whether to use AI, but rather where it delivers measurable returns, according to research from National Research Group and Google Cloud.

• 86% of executives agree that AI is driving cost-efficient growth.
• 55% say AI is measurably improving faster strategic decision-making, making it the top reported business outcome, ahead of increased workforce capacity (52%).
• 53% say AI already has caused a significant or transformational change to their operating model.
• 97% of executives say their organization plans to increase AI spending next year.
• See also: 73% of global consumers say AI is happening to me, not for me

ICYMI: In case you missed it, check out the thought-leadership and happenings around Stagwell making news:

• PRWeek Power List 2026: 41. Ray Day (Ray Day and PRWeek) 
• Stagwell’s communications segment posts 12.1% Q2 organic net revenue increase (Stagwell and PR Week)
• More than 1 in 4 Americans have already used a GLP-1 medication (HarrisX, Allison and Wendy Lund)
• 47% would leave their job if they weren’t worried about losing benefits (Harris Poll)
• More than one-third of streaming audiences say they’re currently learning a language, and many turn to streaming video to learn English (National Research Group)