Couples who collect mostly collect different things
The Ipsos Consumer Tracker asks Americans questions about culture, the economy and the forces that shape our lives. Here's one thing we learned this week.
Why we asked: Was introduced to Pudgy Penguins at SXSW. It’s a web3-backed toy company, with its own NFTs and meme coins (and yes, I just said those things in 2026) that spreads memes about adorable penguins. It’s also a game, an online world, a community of collectors and more. But the question came up, just how many couples collect things together.
What we found: Fandom is a favorite topic around here, since nine in ten Americans consider themselves a fan of something, according to the Ipsos Future of Fandom survey.
Fandom is a way to build community. But is collection (an expression of fandom) also a way for couples to bond? A plurality of people in couples (47% of people who said they are married or “other”) say that neither one of them collect anything. Only one in ten (9%) say they collect the same things together as a shared hobby. Another 6% say they have parallel interests in collecting the same things, but that they do so separately. Younger couples (ages 18 to 34) are nearly four times as likely (22%) to collect the same things together as a shared hobby compared to Boomer couples (55+, 6%).
New parents (yes, likely to be younger) with very young children (ages 0-4) are twice as likely (19% vs 9%) to engage in a shared collecting hobby. Couples making more than $100k+ are the most likely to collect different things as separate hobbies (21%), suggesting that financial flexibility allows for more independent leisure pursuits.
Perhaps the most interesting segment are the 18% who collect different things but share the experience (e.g., shop together, display together). Finding ways to bond as a couple through fandom, but through different fandoms, is a fascinating way to grow a relationship as well as a stockpile of stuff.
More insights from this wave of the Ipsos Consumer Tracker:
Americans think they need to keep up with AI, but AI needs to slow down
Americans think AI is already having a profound effect on society
Americans' private label purchases are rising amid the gas price crunch
Most women think phones have gotten too big
The Ipsos Care-o-Meter: What does America know about vs. what does America care about?
