BirthdayAre you a Millennial or Gen Z? A Baby Boomer or Gen X? 'What generation am I?' is one of the most searched questions about age, and the answer depends on a single number: the year you were born. Here is a clear chart, with the ages of each generation today and the reasons the dates you find online sometimes disagree.
The generations and their birth years
Using the definitions from Pew Research Center, which are among the most widely cited: the Silent Generation was born from 1928 to 1945, Baby Boomers from 1946 to 1964, Generation X from 1965 to 1980, Millennials from 1981 to 1996, and Generation Z from 1997 to 2012. Generation Alpha starts in 2013.
How old is each generation in 2026?
In 2026, and depending on the exact birthday, the Silent Generation is about 81 to 98 years old, Baby Boomers about 62 to 80, Generation X about 46 to 61, Millennials about 30 to 45, Generation Z about 14 to 29, and Generation Alpha 13 and younger.
Why different sources give different dates
There is no official body that sets generation boundaries. Pew Research uses the cut-offs above, while other researchers and marketing firms shift them by a few years. For instance, some sources start Generation Z a little earlier, and some researchers end Generation Alpha in 2024 and call children born from 2025 'Generation Beta'. Treat the dates as a convention that makes comparisons easier, and check which definition a report or survey uses before comparing numbers.
What if you are on the cusp?
People born within a few years of a boundary, such as 1980 to 1982 or 1995 to 1998, are often called cuspers. Informal labels such as 'Xennial', used for people born roughly between the late 1970s and early 1980s, exist for exactly this reason. Which group you feel part of often depends on shared experiences, such as when you first used the internet, more than on the exact birth year.
Quick way to check
Enter your birth date in our Age Calculator to see your exact age and compare it with the chart above. If you want to know the age gap between two people, such as a parent and a child, the Date Difference Calculator gives it in years, months and days.
Why generations matter, and their limits
Generation labels are used in marketing, workplace research and polling because people who grew up in the same period share some experiences, such as technology or major events. But the differences within a generation are usually larger than the differences between generations, so avoid using a label to judge an individual.