This is the age adulthood starts, according to Gen Z

While we achieve life milestones within our own timelines, the age that is widely seen as the start of adulthood is 18 years old

However, Gen Z disagrees and says becoming an adult starts just under a decade later, research has revealed.

A survey from Life Happens surveyed 2,000 Americans - split into 500 from each generation (Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers, where they were quizzed on what achievements or events signify adulthood.

The most popular answer was when you can pay your own bills (56 per cent), be financially independent (45 per cent), and prioritise responsibilities (38 per cent) while moving out and getting a job were also mentioned.

Though nowadays it is hard to become financially independent due to inflation, and rising living costs, as a result, these kinds of milestones such as buying a home and having children feel more difficult to attain for the younger generation.

Gen Z believe adulthood begins at the age of 27, a survey has revealediStockphoto by Getty Images

The latest data for 2022–23 show 39% of 25- to 34-year-olds owned their home, 20 percentage points lower than the peak (59%) seen in the year 2000, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

This is reflected in the survey where just 11 per cent of Gen Z say they feel like adults, with some millennials and Gen X'ers even similarly feeling this way - almost half of young people not having life insurance.

In fact, more widely 40 per cent of participants admitted they don’t think they’ll ever achieve financial stability.

With all of this in mind, Gen Z believes that adulthood starts at the age of 27.

Overall most agree that being an adult is harder than ever as 71 per cent of survey participants believe being an adult is more difficult than it was 30 years ago.

Meanwhile, experts have previously said people don't become fully "adult" until they're in their 30s.

Professor Peter Jones, from Cambridge University, told the BBCback in 2019: "What we're really saying is that to have a definition of when you move from childhood to adulthood looks increasingly absurd.

"It's a much more nuanced transition that takes place over three decades."

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