HNWIs still splurging on art, collectibles amid economic uncertainty

High-net-worth investors (HNWIs) are continuing to spend robustly on art and collectibles, even as the global art market faces persistent headwinds from economic and geopolitical uncertainty.

The latest UBS and Art Basel Survey of Global Collecting, one of the largest studies of its kind, offers a detailed look at how wealthy individuals are allocating their assets and shaping trends in the art world.

The report, which surveyed 3,100 HNWIs across 10 major markets – including the US, UK, France, and China – finds that collectors are not only maintaining but increasing their exposure to art. In 2025, respondents allocated an average of 20% of their wealth to art, up from 15% the previous year. That figure rose to 28% among those with more than $50 million in assets, and to 26% for Gen Z collectors, who are emerging as a particularly active segment.

Despite a 12% drop in aggregate art sales in 2024, which brought the global total to $57.5 billion, and a further 7% decline in major auction house sales in early 2025, the appetite among wealthy buyers has not waned.

The report notes that “high-net-worth wealth maintained strong growth, and collectors continued spending across a range of art and collectible categories.”  This resilience is particularly notable given the broader market’s stagnation at the top end, where sales have thinned significantly over the past two years.

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The survey highlights a generational shift, with nearly three-quarters of respondents belonging to the millennial and Gen Z cohorts. These younger collectors are not only more likely to allocate a larger share of their wealth to art, but also to embrace new formats. Digital art, for example, saw a surge in both participation and spending, with 51% of HNWIs reporting a digital art purchase in 2024 or 2025 – making it the third most popular medium after paintings and sculptures.

Women are also playing a larger role in shaping the market. The report finds that female collectors spent 46% more than their male counterparts on average in 2024, and were more likely to buy works by newly discovered artists. “A higher share of women were open to buying newly discovered artists (69%) than men (63%),” the report states.

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Inheritance remains a significant factor in building collections, with 84% of HNWIs having inherited artworks – accounting for nearly one-third of the pieces they own. Among Gen Z collectors who inherited art, almost 90% kept those works, underscoring the importance of family tradition .

Spending levels remain high despite the uncertain environment. The average outlay on art in 2024 was $438,990 across 14 works, with 10% of respondents spending more than $500,000 and 7% exceeding $1 million. Boomers, though a small segment, reported the highest average spending at nearly $993,000, followed by millennials at $523,000 .

Looking ahead, the report suggests that the transfer of wealth and art to younger generations could reshape the market further.

“[T]he transfer of both wealth and art through generations of HNWIs could affect supply on the market … and demand, should heirs choose to use their inheritances or the proceeds of the sales to purchase more art, including some that may be unlike that bought by previous generations,” the report said. 

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