Rising Costs Drive Sharp Decline in Gen Z Attendance at Burning Man

Gen Zers have cooled on Burning Man as the desert festival gets pricier

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 Bla...