Millennial’s Parents Are Paying These 10 Expenses for Them the Most
Written by
Jordan Rosenfeld
Edited by
Molly Sullivan
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Just fledging kids into college and beyond is no guarantee that parents will be done paying for them. In fact, as costs of living have risen and could keep rising steeply due to new tariff increases, parents may find themselves continuing to fund their adult children’s lives for longer than they ever imagined.
According to a 2025 study by Savings.com, interviewing 1,000 parents of adult children, the percentage of parents who are supporting these adults has actually reached a three-year high. That’s not just for Gen Zers, the youngest generation to fly the coop. In fact, a significant percentage of parents are still forking out some monthly cash to their millennial children. Here’s what they’re paying for now.
The Average Amount
If you think raising little kids is expensive, wait until you hear that some parents are handing over as much as $1,474 per month just to finance their adult children — which is 6% higher than the 2024 Savings.com report on the same topic.
The 2025 study did find that at least 40% of the parents still financing their children plan to cut off these funds in the next two years, though economic changes may affect those decisions.
Millennial Handouts by Category
Millennials are approximately ages 29 to 44. While it’s hard to imagine a parent paying for their 44-year-old’s expenses, it can happen. The average spend parents are making across the millennial age spread is $863 per month.
Here’s the percentage of parents who are helping their millennial kids across specific spending categories:
- Groceries or food: 78%, average amount: $220
- Healthcare or insurance: 58%, average amount: $165
- Car and transportation: 41%, average amount: $218
- Leisure and vacations: 39%, average amount: $190
- Tuition or school costs: 30%, average amount: $1,198
- Rent or mortgage: 24%, average amount: $653
- Cellphone: 21%, average amount: $63
- Student loans: 19%, average amount: $226
- Discretionary spending: 18%, average amount: $126
- Credit cards: 9%, average amount: $160
The Toll of Support
While it might seem just like parental love and generosity to support your kids, the study found that supporting adult children comes with a good deal of anxiety for parents. In fact, 79% of the people who reported that they are supporting their adult children are also worried they won’t have enough money for their own retirement.
And 47% of those who are supporting their adult children said that they have “sacrificed” some aspect of their own financial security to do so. However, just as many said they would undertake those sacrifices willingly and even take such steps as to live more frugally (62%), pull money from retirement or other savings accounts (50%), retire later (35%), take on debt (31%) and even refinance a home (13%) to help their adult kids out.
Conditions of Support
While supporting adult children is undeniably generous, many parents did say they put conditions on their offers of support. The following percentages of parents held these expectations of their adult children in order to receive support:
- Holding a job or seeking employment: 48%
- Pursuing education: 45%
- Contributing to household expenses: 26%
- Achieving financial behaviors or goals: 21%
- Attending counseling or therapy: 4%
As inflation, housing costs and now tariff-related expenses continue to climb, more parents may find themselves extending financial support well into their children’s adulthood — especially for millennials, many of whom are still navigating a challenging economic landscape.
While providing support is commendable, it’s important to ensure that you don’t sacrifice your own retirement. To do this, you should maintain open communication, clear expectations and a plan that considers everyone’s long-term financial stability.
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Sources
- Savings.com, “Percentage of Parents Financially Supporting Adult Children Reaches a Three-Year High”
