 TITLE: Millennials Record Highest Credit Score Increase in 2020 CONTENT: Gen Z Increases Average Total Debt by 56%\n-----------------------------------------\nWhile younger consumers technically have the same access to credit that older generations do, they often lack the income and borrowing history needed to obtain larger loans and higher credit limits. As a result, members of Generation Z—consumers ages 18 to 23—tend to carry smaller balances across fewer accounts. During the pandemic, their total debt grew faster than any other generation.\n**_From Q3 2019 to Q3 2020_**:\n*   Generation Z's average total debt balance increased by 56%.\n*   Generation Z's average FICO® Score grew by six points.\n**_From Q1 2020 to Q3 2020_**:\n*   Generation Z's average total debt balance increased by 39%.\n*   Generation Z's average FICO® Score grew by four points.\nBy Q3 2020, Gen Zers' average total balance spiked to $16,043—a big jump from the same quarter the prior year but still just a fraction of the $140,643 average total balance held by Generation X, the most indebted generation. Though Gen Zers have a relatively small average total balance compared with other generations, they saw the largest increase in their overall debt since 2019—growing their average total balance 56% in 2020.\nAnd while the youngest generation's balance has been growing quickly—between 2018 and 2019, their total debt grew by 23%—2020's growth was more than double that, underscoring the difference of change recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic.\nSource: Experian\nZooming in, two-thirds of this dramatic increase occurred between Q1 and Q3 2020, during which time Gen Zers grew their total average debt by $4,500. Compared with other generations, Generation Z's growth in debt greatly outstripped everyone else's, including millennials'. The second-youngest generation in our analysis saw the second-highest increase in average total debt since last year, with a growth of 9% from Q3 2019 to Q3 2020.\nGeneration Z also saw high growth in their personal loan balances compared with other generations, with their average debt climbing by 26% between 2019 and 2020. On top of this change in debt balances, Gen Z consumers saw their average FICO® Score increase by six points year-over-year. END