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What is Middle Age and What Age is Officially Old?
The ‘official‘ definitions of middle age are all over the map — or at least very open to interpretation.
No one can avoid aging, but aging well and with purpose is something else.
But first things first: Who gets to decide when you’re officially old? We’ve all heard that age is just a number — I’ll plus-one that — but I’m also open-minded about medical research and data.
Not surprisingly, the answer to this age-old age question seems to be “it depends on who you ask.” A 2017 study by U.S. Trust reports that American millennials defined old starting at age 59. Gen Xers said old age begins at 65, while baby boomers and the silent generation agreed that you’re not really old until you hit age 73.
But that was several years go. According to a 2020 survey of 2,000 Americans conducted by Let’s Get Checked, 57 is commonly thought of as “officially old.”
Looking back, when I was 20 I probably would have agreed with the numbers in both of these studies. I realize this is cliche, but now that I’m in my 40s and 57 isn’t that far off, 57 seems like middle age to me.
How old are Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, and Boomers anyway?
Once again, sources vary a bit, but in general, here’s how the books define our generations:
- Gen Z: born between 1997–2012
- Millennials: born between 1981 and 1996 or 1980–1995 (the oldest Millennials turned 40 in 2021.)
- Gen X: born between 1965–1980 (some sources cut off Gen Xers at 1976)
- Baby Boomers: born between 1946–1964
- The Silent Generation: 1928 to 1945
- The Greatest Generation: born between 1901–1927
What about midlife — when are you officially middle age?
According to a 2021 Harris Poll conducted exclusively for Fast Company, the period of time between youth and old age is in flux. The study found that younger millennials consider median middle age to be between 35 and 50 years old. That’s a contrast to Generation X’s…
