Generation X is quietly drowning in debt.
Often called the “sandwich generation,” these 40- and 50-somethings are financially squeezed by the burden of caring for their aging Baby Boomer and Silent Generation parents and simultaneously covering their Gen Z children’s college tuition, all while still paying off their own mortgages, credit cards, and particularly student loans.
Gen Xers are by far the most indebted group of Americans, in large part because they have some of the highest student loan balances. The average Gen Xer with outstanding student loans owed over $38,000 in 2025 — considerably more than the roughly $33,000 owed by the average Millennial borrower and the nearly $22,000 owed by the average Gen Z borrower,…