While the youngest Gen Zers are age 10 today, the oldest of the generation are reaching their mid-20s and are growing their careers. By 2025, Gen Zers are expected to account for a quarter of the workforce in the U.S. Additionally, a recent survey by McKinsey shows that Gen Z workers are more likely to work multiple jobs (9% more than older generations) and do independent work (15% more than older generations). However, the Gen Z growth rate in the workplace differs from city to city.
To uncover the cities with the largest Gen Z workforce, we studied data on the 100 largest cities in the U.S., analyzing the number of workers born between 1997 and 2005 as a percentage of total workers. For details on our data sources and how we put all the information together to create our final rankings, read the Data and Methodology section below.
Key Findings
- Gen Z makes up more than a fifth of the workforce in the top five cities. These include Tucson, Arizona; Madison, Wisconsin; Lincoln, Nebraska; Norfolk, Virginia and Lubbock, Texas. Additionally, the labor force participation rate for this demographic is 63% or higher for all top five cities.
- The highest concentration of Gen Z workers can be found in Lubbock, Texas. 25.60% of the city’s workforce are Gen Z workers. By comparison, the lowest concentration is found in Fremont, California (6.36%).
- Midwestern cities dominate the top 10. There are four cities for the region that belong to Nebraska, Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana. Gen Z workers make up more than 17% of the workforce in these places and labor force participation exceeds 63%.
1. Lubbock, TX
Home to Texas Tech, Lubbock, Texas claims the No. 1 spot for having the largest population of Gen Z workers (25.60%), with roughly 35,500 workers of this age. This college town’s youngest eligible working population has a labor force participation rate of 62.9%, which ranks in the top third study-wide.
2. Norfolk, VA
Roughly 24% of the workforce in Norfolk, Virginia belong to Gen Z and the city has the third-largest labor force participation rate for this demographic (71.9%). Also within Norfolk’s borders resides the largest U.S. naval base in the world and as expected, the armed forces employs the most workers in Norfolk (22.77%).
3. Lincoln, NE
The home of the University of Nebraska also has the third-largest Gen Z workforce relative to workers of all ages (24.24%). Additionally, Lincoln, Nebraska has the largest labor force participation rate for these younger workers (74.4%). Like the No. 1 ranking city overall, the educational services & health care and social assistance industry employs the most workers in Lincoln.
4. Madison, WI
Perhaps due to the presence of the University of Wisconsin, Gen Z workers comprise roughly 23% of the workforce in Madison. The labor force participation rate in the state capital is just under 64% for this demographic. Additionally, Madison as a whole is dominated by workers in the education services & health care and social assistance industry (31.73%, seventh-largest concentration).
5. Tucson, AZ
Tucson, Arizona is the last of five states where Gen Z workers make up more than 20% of the total workforce. The city has the largest workforce of the top 10 (roughly 279,000 workers) and has more than 61,000 workers who belong to Gen Z. Additionally, Tucson’s labor force participation rate for Gen Z is 64.9%.
6. Cincinnati, OH
With roughly 160,900 workers in the city, those who belong to the Gen Z population make up 19.39% of the workforce in Cincinnati, Ohio. For this demographic of residents, the labor force participation rate for the city is 64.5%.
7. Lexington, KY
The city with the largest Gen Z workforce in Kentucky (Lexington) claims the No. 7 spot overall. In Lexington, roughly 18% of the workforce are Gen Z workers (or 32,673 employees in gross numbers). Of eligible workers, labor force participation for this demographic is 61.0%.
8. Riverside, CA
The only California city in the top 10 is Riverside, where Gen Z workers make up 18.11% of the workforce. This equates to roughly 30,800 workers, with a labor force participation rate of 55.7% - a rate that ranks in the bottom third of cities considered. While not the largest industry in the city, construction jobs account for 11.38% of workers (third-highest study-wide).
9. Fort Wayne, IN
Roughly 17% of the workforce in Fort Wayne, Indiana is made up of Gen Z workers (23,208 workers in gross numbers). Just over 70% of Fort Wayne’s Gen Z workers are working or actively looking for work, which is the fifth-highest across the study. Additionally, the manufacturing industry accounts for 17.40% of workers in the city - the highest when comparing the same industry in other cities.
10. Pittsburgh, PA
In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, there are roughly 28,700 Gen Z workers who make up just over 17% of the workforce. Labor force participation in the city by this demographic is about 52%. When doing an industry breakdown, the educational services & health care and social assistance industry employs the most workers in Pittsburgh and is the second-highest for this industry compared to other cities.
Data and Methodology
To find the cities with the largest Gen Z workforce, we examined data on the 100 largest U.S. cities. Using population data and labor force participation rates from the Census Bureau’s 2021 1-year American Community Survey, we found the percentage of the workforce that belong to Gen Z in each city. Cities with the highest percentages of Gen Z workers ranked at the top of the list, and those with the lowest percentages of Gen Z workers ranked at the bottom of the list.
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Questions about our study? Contact us at press@smartasset.com
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