With the Help of Family Wealth and Instagram, Gen Z Is Spending Big in the Art Market

A new survey about trends and participation in global art collecting has yielded a surprising finding: Wealthy members of Generation Z, defined by the report as those between the ages of 20 and 29, are now the art market’s biggest spenders. According to the latest Survey of Global Collecting, which is jointly published by Art Basel and the bank UBS, high-net-worth Gen Z collectors outspent every other generation on fine art in 2025 and the first half of 2026. The margin wasn’t particularly close.

Individual average spending by Gen Z during that 18-month span was more than double that of individuals from every other age bracket. The survey only measured the spending of what it calls “high-net-worth individuals … who are currently active in the art market.” Family wealth and inherited art-buying habits clearly influenced the younger generation. But the unexpected result still challenges the impression that younger people are detached from the world of art.

Those with money, at least, appear willing to spend. She adds: “So many people are saying that younger collectors are not so engaged or not really interested, and they’re not focusing on art, or they’re just buying a load of other stuff. Whereas this survey showed very much a different picture, that they were among the most engaged of all the different age brackets, and the spending levels were pretty amazing.” A post shared by UBS Art (@ubsglobalart) The report shows that Gen Z collectors’ willingness to open their wallets has gained significant momentum in recent years.

Their average spending on fine art jumped 19 percent from 2024 (around $292,000) to 2025 ($347,000). Average spending in the first half of 2026 has already reached $329,000. High-net-worth baby boomers, the next-closest spenders, were left in Gen Z’s dust over those same years.

Boomers spent an average of just $158,000 in 2024, $165,000 in 2025 and $156,000 so far in 2026. Crucially, the report flags two major qualifiers regarding its findings. The first is sample size.

Of the 3,100 high net-worth-individuals who participated in the survey, just 9 percent were Gen Z. Forty-four percent were millennials, 25 percent were Gen X and 22 percent were baby boomers. The second caveat is that average spending figures were likely skewed by the small percentage of collectors, across all generations, who shelled out significantly more money on art than their peers.