Silent Generation: born 1928 to 1945 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

The Silent Generation were born between 1928 and 1945, so they are aged 81 to 98 in 2026. Our 2024 UK survey of 4,067 people included 235 of them, and they were the only generation to put the phone ahead of WhatsApp for contacting family and friends. This guide covers what shaped them, how they communicate, which stereotypes the data contradicts, and how organisations should reach them.

73%of the Silent Generation use a landline to communicate, against 11% of Generation ZCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

62%like talking on the phone and do it a lot, the highest of any generationCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

79%send birthday cards in the post, and 88% posted a personal card or letter in the last yearCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

61%use WhatsApp, and 79% use a smartphone to communicateCommunication Habits and Preferences 2024

Ask most people under 50 to list the generations and they stop at Baby Boomers. The Silent Generation, born between 1928 and 1945, is the one that guides leave out. That is a mistake for any organisation with customers, patients, members, donors or relatives over 80, and our 2024 survey of 4,067 people is one of very few UK studies to include them properly, with 235 respondents aged over 78. The data shows a generation more connected, more sociable and more open-minded than its name suggests.

Who are the Silent Generation?

The Silent Generation were born between 1928 and 1945, which makes them 81 to 98 in 2026. They are the parents of the Baby Boomers, the grandparents of Millennials and often the great-grandparents of Generation Alpha. In the UK they are the last generation with first-hand memories of the Second World War and the first to reach adulthood with the NHS in place.

The birth years follow the Pew Research Center cut-offs, the convention used across this site and one that the age bands in our 2024 survey line up with. Boundaries are conventions rather than facts: someone born in 1945 or 1946 is a cusper who may recognise themselves in either description. The full year table is on our generations explained page.

The name comes from a 1951 essay in Time magazine, which described the young Americans of the day as cautious, conformist and quiet compared with the generation that had fought the war. The label stuck, though it never fitted Britain well and, as the data shows, it describes them poorly today.

What shaped the Silent Generation in the UK?

Their childhoods were defined by scarcity and disruption. The oldest were children in the Depression of the 1930s and teenagers during the war. Many were evacuated, lost fathers or brothers, and went to school with the windows taped against blast. Food rationing began in 1940 and did not end completely until 1954, so even the youngest of them spent their early years with a ration book.

Then came the rebuilding. The NHS opened in July 1948, when the youngest of this generation were toddlers and the oldest were 20. The 1944 Education Act had created free secondary education for all, and council housing, new towns and full employment followed. Men born before October 1939 were called up for National Service, two years in uniform between school and work, and the last conscripts were not discharged until 1963.

Those experiences left habits that show up in the data seventy years later: thrift, making things last, speaking rather than typing, and respect for the written word on paper. They also left a generation more comfortable with formality and hierarchy than any that followed, because that was how organisations ran for most of their working lives.

How does the Silent Generation communicate?

The Silent Generation are the only generation in our 2024 survey for whom the phone, not WhatsApp, is the first choice for reaching family and friends: 47% would phone first. 62% say they like speaking on the phone and do it a lot. Yet 79% use a smartphone, 61% use WhatsApp and 98% send emails, so "offline" is the wrong word for them. The table compares them with Baby Boomers, Generation X and Generation Z (Gen Z).

Communication habit (2024 survey)	Silent Generation	Baby Boomers	Generation X	Gen Z
Use a smartphone to communicate	79%	89%	95%	95%
Use a landline	73%	52%	27%	11%
Use WhatsApp	61%	72%	80%	87%
Like phoning people and do it a lot	62%	49%	35%	32%
Would phone first to contact friends or family	47%	33%	21%	19%
Would leave a voicemail if a call went unanswered	49%	46%	28%	12%
Send birthday cards in the post	79%	68%	45%	13%
Posted a personal card or letter in the last year	88%	85%	72%	57%
Have ever used an AI platform such as ChatGPT	4%	13%	29%	59%
Communicate with friends through online games	0%	2%	14%	59%

The phone is the default, and voicemail still works

For this generation a ringing phone is a welcome thing. 62% like talking on the phone and do it a lot, 23% will do it although it is not their preference, and only 14% do it only if they have to.

Voicemail is dying out among younger people, but not here. 49% of the Silent Generation would leave a voicemail if a call went unanswered, against 12% of Gen Z, 53% of whom would send a message instead. 33% would accept a call from a number they do not recognise, above the 24% of Gen X, the most wary generation.

Paper still matters

79% of the Silent Generation say a card in the post is one of their top three ways of saying happy birthday, and 56% would phone. Only 29% would send a WhatsApp message. 88% have posted a personal card or letter in the last year, 62% in the last month and 35% in the last week. Not a single respondent said they had never sent one; 13% of Gen Z said exactly that.

Email is the surprise. 36% of the Silent Generation send birthday emails, more than three times the 11% average, and 98% send emails at all.

Digital, but on their own terms

61% use WhatsApp, 40% use Messenger and 13% use FaceTime. Instagram (5%), TikTok (3%) and Snapchat (1%) barely register. 32% say they use social media much, and among those who post, 86% do so to share information and 79% to maintain relationships with friends and family, the highest scores of any generation.

96% have never used an AI platform such as ChatGPT, and 0% communicate with friends through online games. Emojis split them: 26% never use them, 26% rarely, 42% sometimes and 6% all the time.

The Silent Generation as customers and colleagues

95% of the Silent Generation respondents in our 2024 survey were retired, so for most organisations they are customers, patients, members, donors and volunteers rather than employees. 86% own their home, 32% describe themselves as living comfortably and 48% as doing all right. Only 2% say they are finding it quite difficult financially and 1% very difficult, the lowest figures of any generation asked.

That makes them a valuable audience, and one that is often served badly. A bank that closes its branch and its phone line, a GP surgery that only takes bookings through an app, a charity that emails a newsletter rather than posting one: each makes a rational cost decision that quietly excludes the over-78s who do not use WhatsApp (61% do) or do not have a smartphone (79% do).

37% live alone, more than any other generation, and 33% live in a village or rural area. That combination makes the telephone, the post and the doorstep matter more than any channel a marketing team is likely to be measuring. It is also why isolation is a live issue for this group, a theme Val Corbett takes on in her episode about networking, isolation and creating the connection.

In families they are often the hub. 42% of respondents in Gen X and older have grandchildren, and a great-grandparent in their eighties can sit at the centre of four or five generations. Claudette Dawson told the podcast what it is like to live with five generations under one roof, and how each has to adapt its style to the others.

In the workplace they are rare but not absent: 1% still work full time and 3% part time, often as trustees, non-executive directors, volunteers or in family businesses. Our guide to the multigenerational workplace covers how to make that mix work.

Stereotypes versus the data

The stereotype says the Silent Generation are technophobic, set in their ways and withdrawn. The 2024 data says they use technology selectively, and are more sociable and open-minded than the label implies.

"They cannot use technology." 79% use a smartphone, 49% a laptop, 41% a desktop computer and 35% a tablet. 61% use WhatsApp and 98% send emails. What they avoid is the newest layer: AI platforms (4%), online games (0%) and TikTok (3%). That is selective adoption, not incapacity.

"They are set in their ways." 11% describe themselves as one of the first to try new things, 31% as one of the last and 5% as the last. That is real, and it is the widest gap between them and Gen Z, 45% of whom are early adopters. But 42% say they are careful not to jump to conclusions, the highest of any generation, and 86% like to reach decisions carefully after weighing up alternatives. Slow to adopt is not the same as closed.

"They are withdrawn." 42% say they enjoy meeting new people, the highest score of any generation, and only 6% say that is not them. 71% are always interested to find out what other people think. Silent is an odd word for a generation that would rather talk to you on the phone than send a text.

"They only mix with their own age." 37% agree they find it easier to connect with people close to their own age, and 20% disagree. Gen Z agree at 71%. The oldest generation is far less age-bound than the youngest.

The stereotype gets one thing right. 26% never use emojis and 60% never leave voicenotes. If you want to reach them, use words, spoken or written out in full.

How to communicate with the Silent Generation

Offer a phone number, and staff it. 62% like phoning and 47% phone first. A line answered by a person is the most inclusive channel for this group, and a voicemail they can leave (49% would) is the next best thing.
Keep the post alive. 88% posted something personal in the last year and 79% send birthday cards. A printed letter or newsletter is not a legacy cost; for this generation it is a primary channel.
Make email your digital default. 98% send emails, more than use WhatsApp (61%). Write it as a letter: a greeting, full sentences, a sign-off and no emojis, which 26% never use.
Do not assume "no app" means "no smartphone". 79% have one. WhatsApp reaches a majority at 61%, but build in an alternative for the people it misses.
Skip the video call unless they ask. Only 13% use FaceTime. Speak on the phone or visit; 23% would visit in person to say happy birthday.
Write in full and allow time. This generation values a carefully weighed decision (86%). Rushed, abbreviated or jargon-heavy messages read as careless.
Ask what they think. 71% are interested in what others think and 42% enjoy meeting new people. Treat them as an audience to talk with, not a segment to talk at.
Do not make the technology the story. Maurice Collins, who told the podcast at 90 about the discipline of hand-setting printing type and his collection of Victorian gadgets, is a reminder that a generation's tools are its frame, not its limit.

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

Maurice Collins, 90 years young: lessons from a Silent Generation trailblazer: a 90-year-old inventor, entrepreneur and author on wartime Britain, hand-setting printing type and eccentric Victorian gadgets.
Claudette Dawson, five generations under one roof: a soft skills facilitator on living with five generations and adapting communication styles for each of them.
Anthony Stears, generational communication in a changing world: "The Telephone Assassin" on how phone communication has evolved and its generational nuances.
Val Corbett, networking, isolation and creating the connection: decades of experience applied to a deceptively simple question, how do we get people talking again?
Karen Krawczyk, retirement, reinvention and the search for purpose: a retirement coach who left the NHS at 60 and built a portfolio life of work, volunteering and personal interests.

Frequently asked questions

What years is the Silent Generation?

The Silent Generation were born between 1928 and 1945, using the Pew Research Center cut-offs adopted across this site. In 2026 they are aged 81 to 98, between the generation that fought the Second World War as adults and the Baby Boomers born from 1946. Our 2024 survey included 235 respondents aged over 78, the Silent Generation of that year.

Why is it called the Silent Generation?

The name comes from a 1951 Time magazine essay that described the young adults of the day as cautious and conformist compared with the war generation before them. It was an American label that never described Britain well, and our 2024 data suggests it is wrong today: 62% like talking on the phone and do it a lot, and 42% enjoy meeting new people, both the highest of any generation.

Does the Silent Generation use smartphones and WhatsApp?

Yes, more than most people expect. In Communication Habits and Preferences 2024, 79% of respondents over 78 used a smartphone to communicate, 61% used WhatsApp, 40% used Messenger and 98% sent emails. What they avoid is the newest technology: 96% have never used an AI platform such as ChatGPT and none communicate with friends through online games.

What is the best way to contact someone in the Silent Generation?

Phone them. 47% of the Silent Generation would phone first to reach friends or family, the only generation to put the phone ahead of WhatsApp, and 62% enjoy phone calls. If they do not answer, leave a voicemail: 49% would do the same. For anything that matters, follow up by email, which 98% use, or by post, which 88% have used in the last year.

Why do the Silent Generation matter to businesses?

Because they are customers, patients, members, donors, volunteers and family decision-makers with time and, on the whole, stable finances. 86% own their home and 32% describe themselves as living comfortably. Organisations that remove phone lines, branches and printed correspondence exclude them, and often the Baby Boomers behind them. Designing for the oldest customer usually improves the experience for everyone.

Book Alastair to speak about communicating with every generation, from the Silent Generation to Generation Alpha.

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Listen: related podcast episodes

Episode 1 · 7 January 2025 · 30 min

Silent Generation: born 1928 to 1945 and how they communicate

Who are the Silent Generation?

What shaped the Silent Generation in the UK?

How does the Silent Generation communicate?