Baby Boomers UK: born 1946 to 1964 and how they communicate

Alastair Greener FPSA Generational communication expert, author and President of the PSA UK and Ireland 2026 Published 5 September 2026 · 11 min read

Baby Boomers were born between 1946 and 1964, so they are aged 62 to 80 in 2026. They were the largest group in our 2024 UK survey of 4,067 people, with 911 respondents, and the data shows a generation that emails, texts and uses WhatsApp as much as Generation X while still preferring a phone call. This guide covers who they are, how they communicate, how they work, and which stereotypes fail.

89%of Baby Boomers use a smartphone to communicate, and 98% send emailsCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

49%like talking on the phone and do it a lot, against 32% of Generation ZCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

17%of Baby Boomer workers would prefer performance feedback only once a yearCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

33%of HR managers find retention easiest among over-60s, against 10% for under-25sGenerations in the Workplace Study 2023

The oldest Baby Boomers turned 80 in 2026 and the youngest are 62. Between those ages sits a generation that is retiring, working on, sitting on boards, minding grandchildren and often still caring for parents in their nineties. Baby Boomers were the largest group in our 2024 survey of 4,067 people, with 911 respondents, so we know more about how they communicate than almost any other UK source.

Who are the Baby Boomers?

Baby Boomers were born between 1946 and 1964, which makes them 62 to 80 in 2026. They are the children of the Silent Generation and the parents of Generation X and the older Millennials. The name refers to the rise in births after the Second World War, and the birth years follow the Pew Research Center cut-offs used throughout this site, which line up with the age bands in our 2024 survey.

The boundaries are conventions rather than facts. Someone born in 1964 or 1965 is a cusper, and a Baby Boomer born in 1946 grew up in a very different Britain from one born in 1964. The full year table is on our generations explained page.

What shaped Baby Boomers in the UK?

They were born into a country still rationing food until 1954 but building at speed. The NHS was there from their first day, along with free school milk and, for many, a new council house. They sat the 11-plus and were sorted into grammar schools and secondary moderns until comprehensive schools began to replace both from 1965. No Baby Boomer was called up for National Service: the call-ups ended in 1960, before the oldest of them turned 18.

Their teenage years were the 1960s, and their working lives ran through 1970s inflation, two recessions and a long boom in house prices. 83% of the Baby Boomers in our survey own their home, and many who worked for large employers retired on final salary pensions their children will never see. That is the root of much of the "generation bashing" aimed at them, a topic we covered in why are Baby Boomers flying high.

They were also the first generation to have technology arrive mid-career rather than at school. A Baby Boomer born in 1950 was 40 when the World Wide Web was invented and 57 when the first iPhone appeared.

How do Baby Boomers communicate?

Baby Boomers use almost everything, but they still like to talk. 89% use a smartphone, 98% send emails, 96% send texts and 72% use WhatsApp, and yet 49% say they like phoning people and do it a lot, second only to the Silent Generation. WhatsApp (34%) and the phone (33%) are neck and neck as their first choice for reaching family and friends. The table compares them with the Silent Generation, Generation X and Millennials.

Communication habit (2024 survey)	Baby Boomers	Silent Generation	Generation X	Millennials (Gen Y)
Use a smartphone to communicate	89%	79%	95%	97%
Use a landline	52%	73%	27%	16%
Use WhatsApp	72%	61%	80%	91%
Like phoning people and do it a lot	49%	62%	35%	35%
Would phone first to contact friends or family	33%	47%	21%	22%
Would leave a voicemail if a call went unanswered	46%	49%	28%	16%
Send birthday cards in the post	68%	79%	45%	23%
Ever leave voicenotes	45%	40%	56%	75%
Use social media much	44%	32%	69%	86%
Have ever used an AI platform such as ChatGPT	13%	4%	29%	48%

Email and text are universal

98% of Baby Boomers send emails, the same proportion as Generation X, and 96% send text messages. Email is where the generations overlap most, with only Generation Z (Gen Z) and Gen Alpha lagging. 9% of Baby Boomers would email first to contact family, more than double the 4% average.

The phone is still welcome

49% of Baby Boomers like talking on the phone and do it a lot, 29% will do it though it is not their preference, 21% only if they have to and 2% hate it. If a call goes unanswered, 46% would leave a voicemail and only 15% would send a message instead; among Gen Z it is 12% and 53%. 28% would answer a call from an unknown number, below the 31% average.

The post is not dead

68% of Baby Boomers put a card in the post as one of their top three ways of saying happy birthday, second only to the Silent Generation's 79% and well ahead of Generation X (45%). 85% have posted a personal card or letter in the last year and 24% in the last week. Only 1% have never done so.

44% of Baby Boomers say they use social media much, compared with 69% of Generation X and 86% of Millennials. Those who do use it lightly: 37% spend five to 30 minutes a day and only 3% spend four to six hours. 82% of Baby Boomer social media users post their own content, mostly places they have been (51%), and their reasons are about connection: 77% post to maintain relationships with friends and family, 76% to share information and 64% to make people smile.

Where Baby Boomers trail is the newest technology. 87% have never used an AI platform, 98% have never communicated with friends through an online game, 4% use TikTok and 13% use Instagram. Only 1% describe themselves as the first to try new things and 14% as one of the first.

Baby Boomers at work

Baby Boomers are the generation in transition. 68% of the Baby Boomers in our 2024 survey were retired, but 15% were working full time and 11% part time, and the youngest will not reach State Pension age for several years. Those still working are, according to HR managers, among the easiest people to keep.

What HR managers say about over-60s

The Generations in the Workplace Study 2023 asked HR managers in which age groups they found aspects of their job easier. For over-60s, 33% said retention and 35% said commitment, compared with 10% and 13% for under-25s. Where over-60s scored lowest was recruitment: only 9% found it easier to recruit in that age group, against 34% for 26 to 40 year olds. Employers find older workers hard to hire and easy to keep, which suggests the difficulty is in the hiring process rather than the workers.

How Baby Boomers work day to day

51% of working Baby Boomers either mainly work from home (29%) or do so sometimes (22%). Asked where they feel more productive, 55% say it makes no difference, 23% say at home and 22% at work. 47% use video calls for work and, of those, 40% like it and do it a lot, the highest of any generation, although 5% hate it, also the highest.

38% of Baby Boomer workers have jobs that involve networking in person, and they are the generation most likely to enjoy it (44% quite like it). To get hold of colleagues they favour email (51% among Gen Y and older) and going to see someone (42% among Gen X and older).

Feedback, ambition and formality

Baby Boomers want feedback less often than anyone else. 17% would prefer it once a year, 15% every six months and 6% never; among Gen Z, 45% want it at least weekly. 20% of Baby Boomer workers say they are ambitious to move up in their career and 49% disagree, which is what you would expect within a few years of retirement, not evidence of a poor work ethic.

They are also the least formal generation at work. 31% say they have distant, rather formal relationships with colleagues, against 50% of 18 to 21 year olds. 41% prefer to work by themselves, the lowest of any generation, and only 18% agree they do not mind hurting people's feelings a bit to get the job done. 77% say the way people think and behave at work varies with age. More on managing this mix is in our multigenerational workplace guide.

Stereotypes versus the data

The stereotype says Baby Boomers are out of touch with technology, closed-minded and coasting to retirement. The data contradicts the first two and complicates the third.

"Out of touch with technology." 89% use a smartphone, 98% send emails, 96% send texts and 72% use WhatsApp. What they have not taken up is the latest layer: AI (13% have tried it), TikTok (4%) and voicenotes (55% never). Being late to TikTok is not the same as being unable to use a phone.

"OK Boomer: they will not listen." 71% say they are always interested to find out what other people think. 39% say they are careful not to jump to conclusions and only 6% say that is not them, against 17% of Gen Z. Only 36% find it easier to connect with people close to their own age; among Gen Z it is 71%.

"Coasting." 20% say they are ambitious to move up, which is true and unsurprising. But HR managers find over-60s easier to retain (33%) and keep committed (35%) than under-25s (10% and 13%), 40% like work video calls and do them a lot, and 44% quite like in-person networking. Low ambition for promotion is not low engagement.

"Rigid and formal." The reverse. 31% describe their work relationships as distant and formal, the lowest of any generation, and 61% disagree that hurting feelings is acceptable to get the job done. The most formal generation at work is the youngest, not the oldest.

Where the data does back a stereotype is the pace of change. 26% describe themselves as one of the last to try new things and only 1% as the first. They adopt, but after watching someone else go first.

How to communicate with Baby Boomers

Pick up the phone. 49% like talking on the phone and do it a lot, and 33% phone first. If they do not answer, leave a voicemail: 46% would.
Email properly. 98% use it and it is their main work channel. Write full sentences with a greeting and a sign-off, and keep emojis out of anything formal: 14% never use them.
Use WhatsApp, but not only WhatsApp. 72% use it, but 52% still have a landline and 68% send birthday cards. A channel mix that includes paper and voice loses nobody.
Do not overload them with feedback. 17% want it once a year and 15% every six months. Agree a rhythm rather than defaulting to the weekly check-in Gen Z prefer, but do ask: 41% of all workers get less feedback than they would like.
Video calls are fine. 40% like work video calls and do them a lot, the highest of any generation, but keep them purposeful, because 5% hate them.
Invite them to host and network. 44% quite like in-person networking, more than any other generation. They are natural connectors at events, which is worth remembering when designing conferences for a multigenerational audience.
Show them someone who has gone first. Only 15% are early adopters. New tools land better when a peer has already used them.
Do not assume retirement ends the relationship. 15% still work full time and 11% part time, and Karen Krawczyk told the podcast how she left the NHS at 60 and built a portfolio life of work, volunteering and purpose.

For principles that apply to every generation, see our guide to generational communication styles.

Karen Krawczyk, retirement, reinvention and the search for purpose: a retirement coach and former NHS speech and language therapist on leaving at 60 and building a portfolio life.
Carole Spiers, how stress affects every generation differently: a stress management expert on her own Boomer upbringing, technology overload and talking across the generations.
Rob Davidson, reinventing conferences for a multigenerational audience: the managing director of MICE Knowledge on why business events cannot be one-size-fits-all.
Shelley Bridgman, the art of listening across generations: psychotherapy, comedy and listening to young people without judgement or assumption.
Anthony Stears, generational communication in a changing world: "The Telephone Assassin" on how phone communication has evolved.

Frequently asked questions

What years are Baby Boomers born?

Baby Boomers were born between 1946 and 1964, using the Pew Research Center cut-offs adopted across this site, so in 2026 they are aged 62 to 80. The name refers to the rise in births after the Second World War. Our 2024 survey included 911 Baby Boomers aged 60 to 78, the largest group in the sample.

Are Baby Boomers bad with technology?

No. In Communication Habits and Preferences 2024, 89% of Baby Boomers used a smartphone to communicate, 98% sent emails, 96% sent texts and 72% used WhatsApp. They are slower with the newest tools: only 13% have used an AI platform such as ChatGPT and 4% use TikTok. Most learned all of this in mid-career, since the web arrived when the oldest were in their forties.

How do Baby Boomers prefer to be contacted?

By phone or WhatsApp, almost equally. 34% would send a WhatsApp message first to contact friends or family and 33% would phone. 49% like talking on the phone and do it a lot, and 46% would leave a voicemail if a call went unanswered. For work, email is the main channel. 68% still send birthday cards in the post.

Are Baby Boomers still working?

Many are. In our 2024 survey 68% of Baby Boomers were retired, but 15% were working full time and 11% part time. In the Generations in the Workplace Study 2023, HR managers rated over-60s easier to retain (33%) and keep committed (35%) than under-25s (10% and 13%), but only 9% found them easier to recruit.

How often do Baby Boomers want feedback at work?

Less often than younger colleagues. 17% of Baby Boomer workers would prefer feedback once a year, 15% every six months and 6% never, whereas 45% of Gen Z want it at least weekly. Agree a rhythm with each person rather than assuming: across all workers, 41% get feedback less often than they would like.

Book Alastair to speak about Baby Boomers, retirement and communicating across five generations at your next event.

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Baby Boomers UK: born 1946 to 1964 and how they communicate