German youth are strikingly optimistic about their future

Germany’s under-30s are growing up in an era of overlapping crises. War has returned to Europe, living costs and rents are soaring, and the climate emergency is only getting worse. Conventional wisdom might predict resignation. 

Instead, the eighth edition of Youth in Germany 2025 with Generational Comparison reveals a cohort that is strikingly optimistic and fiercely willing to shoulder responsibility, provided that politics delivers credible support in return. The study is led by youth researcher and economist Simon Schnetzer in cooperation with Hertie School Senior Professor of Public Health and Education Klaus Hurrelmann and Dr Kilian Hampel of the University of Konstanz.

The generation of high employment

The survey canvassed 6,034 people aged 14 to 29, including 2,027 adolescents and young adults. Its longitudinal design allows the team to track how attitudes shift from one edition to the next and to compare younger and older generations. The data collected challenges popular stereotypes about a “lazy” or “apathetic” youth: at 81%, the full-time employment rate among young workers is higher than that of any older cohort. And even though economic certainty is no longer a given, 60% of respondents under 30 describe their personal future as positive. However, one in three reports chronic exhaustion, and 75% believe they need professional mental-health support.

“We need a comprehensive digital-education strategy that strengthens resilience, critical thinking and media literacy.”

“Digital media, social media and artificial intelligence shape young people’s lives, for better and worse,” observes Professor Hurrelmann. “The study reveals clear links between digital use and mental strain. We need a comprehensive digital-education offensive that strengthens resilience, critical thinking and media literacy.”

A fair generational contract

The findings also expose a paradox: confidence in the political system has eroded, yet solidarity with older generations remains robust. Most young people are prepared to finance rising pension costs, even though only 11% believe their own retirement will be secure and one-fifth are already in debt. Their willingness to contribute rests on the expectation of a fair generational contract. They want the state to create conditions in which effort is rewarded: affordable housing, equal access to education, credible pension reforms, authentic political participation, and curricula that equip them with future-proof skills such as climate literacy and entrepreneurial thinking.

For policymakers, the study reads as both a warning siren and a roadmap. According to the results, the younger generation is not demanding less work or lower standards, they are asking for pathways that transform motivation into security.