Gen Z art buyers outspend older collectors, Art Basel and UBS survey finds

Gen Z outspends older collectors

The Art Basel and UBS Survey of Global Collecting 2026, released on Thursday, found that wealthy Gen Z collectors spent more on fine art in 2025 and the first half of 2026 than any other age group surveyed. Their spending was more than double that of older generations, although the survey does not publish exact figures. The study defines Gen Z as people born between 1995 and 2010. Arts Economics conducted the survey in collaboration with UBS, drawing on responses from 3,100 high-net-worth individuals in ten markets: the United States, the United Kingdom, mainland China, Hong Kong, France, Australia, Germany, Japan, Brazil and Singapore.

Gen Z also accounted for almost half of buyers of artworks worth more than $1 million in 2026. Family remains an important route into collecting: 40% of Gen Z respondents named their family circle as their starting point, compared with 28% of all respondents. Paul Donovan, chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, summarised the findings this way:

Gen Z reported the highest average spending on art, 40% entered collecting through family influence and almost 90% retained inherited works.

Donovan added that younger collectors still favour painting and sculpture, which suggests that aesthetic preferences remain more consistent across generations than is often assumed.

What collectors buy first

Painting was the most common first purchase category. According to ARTnews, 43% of respondents said a painting was among their first three purchases, followed by sculpture at 25%, photography at 17%, and works on paper and digital art at 15% each. ARTnews noted that antiques, jewellery and gems trailed behind, so buying other luxury collectibles did not appear to lead these collectors into art.

Research before buying

The share of collectors who carried out moderate or significant independent research before buying art rose to 72%, from 62% in 2025, and reached 80% among Gen Z. Some 58% use online resources for advice and recommendations. The use of AI apps and tools climbed to 22%, from 4% in 2024. NZZ reports that advice appears to be becoming less important for younger buyers, who increasingly rely on AI-supported tools and digital sources.

Privacy, loans and giving

Nearly two-thirds of respondents keep their collections mostly under wraps, sharing them only within family or a closed circle, according to ARTnews, while 10% seek wide recognition. The same pattern shows up in museum loans: 30% kept loans private, 47% requested discreet acknowledgement and only 17% required full public credit.

Gen Z collectors were the least likely to share details of their collections publicly online, and the youngest collectors were the most private, both in person and online. Clare McAndrew, founder of Arts Economics, linked this to how buyers build social bonds:

Many purchases are driven less by the conspicuous consumption traditionally linked to the market than by a desire to build connections within close networks, where status comes less from price than from rarity, provenance, originality, and discovery.

The survey also found that 23% of collectors plan to donate works to museums in the coming twelve months. Many others want to support artist prizes, foundations, residency programmes or private museums.