You’re
Gen Z
1997 to 2012born 1998
Position: early Gen Z Cusp: Zillennial cusp
Never knew a world without the internet in it.
Born in 1998: Gen Z
Gen Z (1997 to 2012), early Gen Z, turning 28 in 2026. You’re also a Zillennial: the Millennials and Gen Z micro-generation, commonly cited as 1993 to 1998. Old enough for MSN, young enough for TikTok.
Your year, or any other
Born 1998: you’re Gen Z (1997 to 2012), early Gen Z. You’re also a Zillennial: the Millennials and Gen Z micro-generation, commonly cited as 1993 to 1998. Old enough for MSN, young enough for TikTok.
Read about Gen Zers Read about Zillennials
Where 1998 sits
1998 is early Gen Z: the early third of Gen Z runs 1997 to 2002. Pew Research Center range. Pew set the 1997 start in 2018 and the 2012 end later; a few sources still say 1995 to 2010.
1998 is also inside the Zillennials micro-generation, commonly cited as 1993 to 1998: Old enough for MSN, young enough for TikTok. It is not an official label, which is why the calculator gives Gen Z first and Zillennial as the extra identity.
Generation Z is the cohort born from 1997 to 2012 by the Pew Research Center definition. Pew drew the 1997 line for two reasons it stated plainly: anyone born that year or later was too young to remember 2001-09-11, and the iPhone launched in 2007 when the oldest were 10, which made Gen Z the first generation to go through adolescence with a smartphone. It is the most racially and ethnically diverse generation in US history so far, on track to be the best educated, and it was in school or early adulthood when the Covid-19 pandemic closed classrooms in 2020. Read the full Generation Z page.
How old you were when…
Shared reference points, dated, so the generation label has something concrete behind it.
- born the year Google is founded (1998)
- age 3 the 2001-09-11 attacks (2001)
- age 9 the first iPhone goes on sale (2007)
- age 10 the financial crisis, and Barack Obama is elected (2008)
- age 14 the Sandy Hook shooting (2012)
- age 18 the Brexit vote and Donald Trump’s election (2016)
- age 24 ChatGPT is released (2022)
- age 26 the hottest year on record (2024)
Milestone birthdays
Someone born in 1998 turned 18 in 2016 and 21 in 2019. Next up: 30 in 2028.
Near 1998
Born in 1998: quick answers
What generation is someone born in 1998?
Generation Z (1997 to 2012) by the Pew Research Center definition. 1998 is early Gen Z. It also falls in the Zillennials micro-generation (1993 to 1998, commonly cited).
Is 1998 a cusp year?
Yes. You’re also a Zillennial: the Millennials and Gen Z micro-generation, commonly cited as 1993 to 1998. Old enough for MSN, young enough for TikTok.
How old is someone born in 1998?
27 or 28 in 2026, depending on whether the birthday has passed. Type the full date into the calculator for the exact age in years, months and days.