Your card debt grows before your investments

There's a signal that seems more important to me than the percentage. Gen Z respondents say they feel uncomfortable with their credit card debt, and that discomfort has barely moved in four years. Other generations, by contrast, have been getting used to it.

That discomfort is information: something inside you knows that interest is working against you.

The new app and deferred payment

At the same time, Gen Z respondents plan to allocate more of their savings to stocks, mutual funds, and retirement plans than they did three years ago. Millennials, Generation X, and baby boomers are going the opposite way: they're moving toward cash.

Stephen Rogers, of the Deloitte Consumer Industry Center, describes that mix: the short term feels unstable, so many borrow; the long term still seems possible, so they buy. It doesn't sound like a contradiction. It sounds like young people trying not to be left behind.

"Gen Z spends, saves, and invests differently than other generations, in part because they grew up with a smartphone within reach," said Michelle Gauchat, Deloitte's US banking and capital markets leader (Sígueme translation).

Buy now, pay later also weighs in. The use of "buy now, pay later" among Gen Z respondents reached 22.8% in the first quarter of 2026, the highest level of any generation in three years of data. In the second quarter, it fell to 17.6%.

A Deloitte report on that payment method found that 27% of shoppers used it to buy something they would have postponed, and 15% chose something more expensive than planned. Installment payments feel free until they add up on your card, your phone, and your subscription.

Debt first, then the fund

"The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender" (Proverbs 22:7, ESV). Scripture does not forbid owing money. It warns what money does to you when it's in charge.

This week, sit down for ten minutes and make two lists: what you owe and what you have. If there's a credit card balance, that balance comes first. Investing has its place, but no one builds an emergency fund on debt that grows on its own.

Then, build a small fund, even if it's just a little each month, so you don't go back to the card when an unexpected expense comes. Tithing and generosity stay in place: they come from what you already have, not from what you owe.

And if the number overwhelms you, seek a certified professional; willpower alone doesn't pay interest. Your app will still be there tomorrow. Your statement will too. Which one do you open first?