It’s no secret that every generation has its weird stuff, but Gen Z has really leaned into niche internet trends & turned them into entire lifestyles. Some of it’s fun and some of it’s confusing—so much so that Gen Z will probably regret them by 2035. Here are twelve Gen Z fads that will age like milk. There’s no shame in doing any of these, although you might want to make sure that you’ll feel the same way about them in 10 years.
Featured Image Credit: yacobchuk1 /Depositphotos.com.
Face Tattoos For The Aesthetic
There was a phase when Gen Z would casually get the word “baby” or other words tattooed on their cheekbones—not for deep reasons, just because it looked cool on TikTok. Those tiny hearts may look cute now, but someday, someone’s going to wish they didn’t have to wear concealer to parent-teacher night. It’s also not great for your job opportunities, as most employers will turn the other way.
Posting “Finstas” With Zero Filters
Finstas (short for “fake Instagram account”) are where Gen Z dumps all their drama & ugly crying—it’s a “private” account, followed by 80 friends and one ex. However, nothing online is ever completely private and, somewhere out there, those rants are just waiting to be screenshotted. It doesn’t matter if you abandon those accounts years later because the content sticks around, regardless of whether you want it to or not.
Sticking “Core” On Everything
When Gen Z wants to live like a medieval mushroom witch, they’ll call it “cottagecore”—when they want to wear baggy jeans & look like their parents in 1994, they’ll call it “normcore.” This generation has built entire identities around these labels, but in the future, they might start wondering why they spent $90 on a ceramic frog mug. There’s really no point in switching from one to the next depending on the algorithm.
Embracing “Cluttercore” As A Lifestyle
Speaking of “cores,” some Gen Zers decided less is not more and filled every inch of space with plushies, trinkets, vintage toys & random shiny things, which is part of something known as “cluttercore.” It’s chaos on purpose and is cute when you’re 22 without kids—less cute when you’re 40 and still dusting off an old Pez dispenser collection. A lot of younger people buy stuff just because it looks cute for a photo, but it eventually turns into a mess that doesn’t get used.
TikTok-Viral Skincare Routines With 10+ Steps
Many teens have turned their bathrooms into mini Sephoras, with entire collections of skincare products and “glow hacks” that came from influencers, not dermatologists. But mixing acids & retinol without any idea of what you’re doing isn’t so great, and a lot of Gen Zers learned the hard way that skin has limits. Most of them don’t even need half of it, but the hype made it seem like using less was lazy and using more meant your skin looked good.
Filming Strangers In Public “For The Plot”
It’s become the norm to record strangers in public and post it on social media and while it might be funny, recording random people without asking just isn’t on. People turned whole TikToks into drama shows by using background characters who had no clue they were even in the spotlight. That kind of thing doesn’t always age well once people catch on, so Gen Zers shouldn’t be surprised if they have to deal with issues in the future.
Hyper-Customizing Keyboards For The Aesthetic
You’ve probably seen how many Gen Zers have turned their keyboards into mood boards—think pink jelly switches, cat paw keycaps & rainbow LED underglow. It all looks good until they realize they dropped $400 on typing equipment and still couldn’t finish that essay. Now the keyboard just sits there and Gen Z has a setup that looks great on camera, but collects dust off-screen.
Wearing Depop Clothes That Fell Apart After One Wash
Depop is a fashion goldmine for Gen Z, although most users are flipping fast fashion with a price bump and calling it “vintage.” Lots of younger people have spent good money on secondhand Shein & wrinkled mini skirts, as well as shirts with no labels. A lot of those clothes don’t last long and the regret isn’t necessarily the money—it’s the closet full of stuff nobody wants to wear anymore.
Turning Graduation Caps Into Meme Boards
High school and college grads have started decorating their caps with TikTok quotes and memes, with stuff like “Catch Flights Not Feelings” or whatever sound was trending that month. While it feels hilarious at the time, those photos are forever and by 2045, people are going to look back in confusion. They’ll probably wish their big academic moment didn’t include a quote from a viral squirrel video or something nobody remembers anymore.
Using AI To Make “Perfect” Dating Profiles
Gen Z is no secret to using AI and they’ll generate bios & select photos for dating apps—some even asked AI to write flirty messages or answer prompts to get more matches. It may look more polished, but it often comes off as fake when it’s time for them to actually talk to people. In a few decades, some Gen Zers are probably going to cringe thinking about how they outsourced flirting to a robot instead of doing it themselves.
Getting Microbangs During a Breakdown
There was a trend where Gen Z would get microbangs after a breakup or a bad day—sometimes, they just did because they were bored. The trend exploded on TikTok with people filming the snip in real time, yet these weren’t always salon-done. Instead, Gen Z got crooked, choppy cuts with craft scissors in a dorm bathroom and became a major regret for anyone who thought they could cut hair based on one viral tutorial.
Turning Entire Friendships Into Podcast Content
Too many Gen Zers have turned their friend groups into podcasts where they just hang out & talk. The problem is that every story, joke, or fight ends up on the internet, with personal stuff becoming “content,” and the lines between friendship & branding blurring. People shared way too much without thinking it through and by 2045, they might wish they’d just kept those late-night conversations off Spotify.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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