In 2015, there are 25 million teens aged 12-17 in the US. Teens represent roughly 8% of the population yet their buying power is significant as teens not only shop with their own wallets, but with their parents’ wallets as well. It has been estimated that teens control $75 billion in discretionary spending. Like Millennials, teens divvy up their spending money across possessions (like clothing and media) and experiences (like concerts and dining out).

Marketing to teens can be tricky as brands must sometimes win the approval of both teens and their parents. However, compared to kids, teens are far more independent, so parental approval is somewhat less important and teens’ preferences are often given more weight and consideration.

This report builds on the analysis presented in Mintel’s Marketing to Kids and Tweens – US, May 2014 and Marketing to Teens – US, November 2012. Readers of this report may also be interested in Activities of Kids and Teens – US, November 2013 and Teen and Tween Beauty and Personal Care Consumer – US, August 2013.

For the purposes of this report, Mintel has used the following definitions:

Teens are defined as those aged 12-17 (typically in the fifth through twelfth grades).

This group has been further broken down into younger teens (aged 12-14) and older teens (aged 15-17).

Value figures throughout this report are at rsp (retail selling prices) excluding sales tax unless otherwise stated.

For the purposes of this report, Mintel commissioned exclusive consumer research through C+R Research YouthBeat™. YouthBeat fieldwork was conducted between January and December 2014 among a sample of 3,264 teens aged 12-17 with internet access. YouthBeat conducts more than 75,000 online interviews annually among first through twelfth grade students with the sample proportionally balanced based on age/grade and gender. The data is weighted to mirror the US Census of online households. Surveys are fielded throughout the year with each interview topic covered monthly.

Mintel has also analyzed data from Experian Marketing Services. The Experian Marketing Services, Simmons NCS Teens Study was conducted during April 2013-June 2014 and based on a sample of 1,692 teens aged 12-17, with results weighted to represent the US teen population.

Note: Due to weighting, there may be some instances when the sum of the subsegments may not add up to the total for YouthBeat data.

While race and Hispanic origin are separate demographic characteristics, Mintel often compares them to each other. Please note that the responses for race (White, Black, Asian, Native American, or other race) will overlap those that also are Hispanic, because Hispanics can be of any race.

The following is a list of abbreviations used in this report:

Generations are discussed within this report, and they are defined as:

* also known as Generation Y or Echo Boomers