Gen Zers have cooled on Burning Man as the desert festival gets pricier
Burning Man is seeing a significant decline in Gen Z attendance, with the share of participants in their 20s dropping to 10% in 2025. Rising ticket prices and the high cost of preparation are cited as the primary barriers for younger demographics.
Why it matters
The shift suggests that the festival is becoming increasingly inaccessible to younger generations, potentially threatening its long-term cultural relevance and demographic diversity.
According to a new survey, the share of burners in their 20s has plunged to 10% in 2025. Getty Images Gen Zers made up just 10% of Burning Man attendees in 2025. The share of burners in their 20s has plunged from more than 30% a decade earlier. The cost of attendance was cited in 2025 as the main obstacle to being at the festival. Burning Man is falling out of favor with Gen Zers. As the annual counterculture festival kicks off in the Black Rock Desert of northwestern Nevada, the annual Black Rock City census survey, which tracks the demographics of festival attendees, shows that burners in their 20s hit a record low in 2025. According to the survey, around 10% of surveyed burners in 2025 are in their 20s at the time of attendance, compared to more than 30% back in 2015.
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