- 43% of Americans actively seek financial advice or information online or through social media platforms, increasing to 77% of Gen Z and 61% of millennials.
- 37% of Gen Z and 25% of millennials have gotten into trouble (i.e. IRS audit) after taking financial advice from social media/online.
- A quarter (25%) of Gen Z and 23% of millennials say they’ve been scammed by a bad actor portraying to offer financial advice or guidance on social media/online.
When TikTok exploded in popularity during the pandemic, many Americans started posting and consuming content around choreographed dances, baking bread and “get ready with me” videos. But over time, social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube have become go-to destinations young people turn to for information about more serious topics like mental health, foreign affairs and financial advice.
According to a recent study conducted by Qualtrics on behalf of Intuit Credit Karma, 77% of Gen Z and 61% of millennials actively seek financial advice or information online or through social media platforms, with a majority of Gen Z seeking this information on YouTube (71%), Instagram (50%) and TikTok (49%). And, millennials mainly seek this kind of information and advice on YouTube (67%), Facebook (61%) and Instagram (43%).
Here is a breakdown of the top online platforms Gen Z and millennials turn to for information and financial advice:
| Top social platforms sought out for financial advice | Gen Z | Millennials |
| YouTube | 71% | 67% |
| 50% | 43% | |
| TikTok | 49% | 42% |
| 31% | 61% | |
| X (formerly Twitter) | 36% | 31% |
| Snapchat | 30% | 21% |
| 25% | 31% | |
| Banking or financial institution blogs (i.e. Wells Fargo, Chase, American Express) | 21% | 32% |
| Podcasts (i.e. NPR Planet Money, The Ramsey Show, Joe Rogan) | 21% | 27% |
| News publications (i.e. Fox Business, CNBC, CBS) | 16% | 28% |
| Fintech companies (i.e. Credit Karma, NerdWallet, Bankrate) | 15%` | 24% |
| Threads | 11% | 12% |
*Among respondents who actively seek financial advice online/from social media
We know where they’re turning, but what type of personal finance advice are young people seeking online? Here’s a look at the topics Gen Z and millennials have sought out advice for on social media or online:
| Personal Finance Topics | Gen Z | Millennials |
| Credit card debt | 29% | 47% |
| Budgeting | 42% | 39% |
| Credit card rewards/points | 23% | 37% |
| Investing in the stock market | 28% | 36% |
| Taxes | 34% | 33% |
| Wealth building | 28% | 32% |
| Building / improving credit | 27% | 33% |
| Opening a credit card / bank account | 28% | 33% |
| Shopping for a car / car insurance | 21% | 31% |
| Investing in bitcoin / crypto | 21% | 27% |
| Home buying | 21% | 22% |
| Paying down student loans | 18% | 18% |
| Retirement | 14% | 21% |
| Government aid / unemployment | 10% | 19% |
| Disputing errors on credit reports | 12% | 16% |
| Applying for student loans | 12% | 9% |
*Among respondents who actively seek financial advice online/from social media
FinTok drives a mixed bag of experiences
It’s one thing to ingest financial advice on social media, but the stakes become much higher when taking action on said information. According to the study, 60% of Gen Z and 54% of millennials have acted on financial advice they received online or on social media, and interestingly, men tend to be more trusting than women. Nearly half (48%) of American men have acted on financial advice they got online or on social media, compared to 29% of women.
For many young people, doing so has served them well. In fact, 67% of Gen Z and 60% of millennials say they’ve improved their financial situations after taking financial advice they received online or on social media, and similarly, 64% of Gen Z and 63% of millennials say that the financial advice they received from an influencer on social media made a positive impact on their lives. It’s possible that those who have struck luck participating in the FinTok movement are also doing their due diligence. Roughly three-quarters of Gen Z (72%) and millennials (74%) say that they research and validate financial advice they receive on social media or online before taking any action.
However, the FinTok movement hasn’t treated everyone equally. For 39% of Gen Z and one-third (33%) of millennials – they say they will never take financial advice from social media or online ever again. Why so? Not only have 40% of Gen Z and 30% of millennials made poor financial decisions or mistakes based on information they received on social media or online, but a whopping 37% of Gen Z and a quarter (25%) of millennials admit they have gotten into trouble (i.e. IRS audit) after taking action on financial advice from social media or online. It’s no surprise then that 43% of Gen Z and one-third (33%) of millennials say doing so has negatively impacted their lives.
Social media can be a hotbed for scams
As scams become more prevalent and scammers become more sophisticated with their tactics, social media users could be easy targets. In fact, a quarter of Gen Z (25%) and roughly a quarter (23%) of millennials say they’ve been scammed by a bad actor portraying to offer financial advice or guidance on social media or online. And, among those who have been scammed, a majority of Gen Z (77%) and millennials (72%) say that it has negatively impacted their financial standing.
Family, friends & financial institutions remain trusted sources
No matter how trusting young people are of social media and the internet when it comes to their finances, many still prioritize their inner circles and financial institutions as their most trusted sources for financial advice.
Here is a breakdown of those that young Americans trust the most when it comes to seeking out financial advice of information:
| Who or where do you trust the most to get financial advice/information from? | Gen Z | Millennials |
| Parents or other family members | 35% | 38% |
| Banking / financial institutions | 33% | 39% |
| Friends | 31% | 31% |
| Online resources (i.e. websites, articles) | 26% | 32% |
| Social media financial influencers | 29% | 23% |
| Personal finance apps | 21% | 21% |
| Partner | 19% | 20% |
| Podcasts | 21% | 15% |
| Employer | 17% | 18% |
| Books | 15% | 18% |
| News sources | 15% | 17% |
| School | 16% | 9% |
| Community workshops | 7% | 8% |
“While social media platforms, and the internet at large, offer easy access to a ton of useful information people can adopt in their day-to-day lives, consumers should always do their research and verify the information they find online before taking action, especially when it comes to their finances,” said Courtney Alev, consumer financial advocate at Credit Karma. “As our study shows, there are a lot of bad actors and information out there that can end up causing a lot of harm to peoples’ financial lives, so it’s imperative that consumers do their due diligence. It’s also important to remember how personal “personal finance” is. No two people have the exact same financial profile or situation, so seeking out generic, one-size-fits-all financial advice online often isn’t going to be all that useful, generally speaking. In fact, almost half (45%) of respondents from our study admit that online financial advice is typically too generic or doesn’t apply to their unique financial situations. It’s important for consumers to keep that top of mind when consuming financial content online.”
Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the United States by Qualtrics on behalf of Intuit Credit Karma between September 30, 2024 and October 9, 2024 among 1,510 adults ages 18 and older.