Published quarterly, the Ad Age-Harris Poll rankings are sourced from The Harris Poll’s daily brand tracking tool, QuestBrand, to identify companies with the greatest quarter-over-quarter increase in equity among specific age cohorts. Read the last edition of the Gen Z poll here and the last boomer poll here.

Apple tops the newest Ad Age-Harris Poll Boomer brand tracker, which ranks brands that made significant progress in gaining attention from boomers in the third quarter of 2024. The poll focuses on brands gaining notice from people ages 59 to 77. 

Other brands cracking the top five are Shutterlfy, The Wall Street Journal, Mattress Firm and Hyatt Hotels.

Published quarterly, the Ad Age-Harris Poll rankings are sourced from The Harris Poll’s daily brand tracking tool, QuestBrand, to identify companies with the greatest quarter-over-quarter increase in equity among specific age cohorts—that is, how much a generation’s perception of these brands is changing from quarter to quarter.

Apple’s popularity with boomers comes after the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro debuted in the third quarter. The phones have a new camera control button on the side, making it easier to zoom and capture photos, and a suite of Apple AI tools that can help re-write emails or transcribe and summarize audio notes.

Apple also rolled out its Series 10 watch and more Airpod options. Its WatchOS 11 allows updated watches to track potential sleep apnea symptoms and if the wearer’s heart rate is abnormal when sleeping.

It also seems that boomers were keen on Apple for its stock performance, according to Harris Poll CEO Will Johnson.

“Apple’s third-quarter surge in brand equity seems to match quite closely with the stock’s performance,” he said. “As you’ll see with several financial brands performing highly among boomers, they may be driven by the returns they’re seeing in their portfolios.”

Apple’s stock price surged 11% to $233 on the final day of the third quarter, up from the second quarter.

Below, a closer look at some of the other brands that made attention gains with boomers.

Financial services

Cash App ranked 15th, showing digital payments are gaining more acceptance across generations. While baby boomers are the least likely generation to use a digital payment app, a recent Motley Fool survey shows the generation gaining confidence in them, with 55% of boomers stated they trust digital payment apps as much as traditional payment methods. Of the boomers who are using Cash App, 68% use it to transact between friends and family.

Discover (16th) and Capital One (20th) both gained ground, even as Capital One’s $35 billion acquisition of Discover, announced earlier this year, is currently under scrutiny. In July, Capital One announced a five-year, $265 billion community benefits plan aimed at underserved consumers if the deal closes. (A community benefits plan is a non-binding plan for how a company will engage with or help communities and organizations.) Capital One has also been investing in AI, hiring Google Cloud alumna Aparna Sinha as senior VP and head of AI product earlier this year. Discover this week released its latest ads starring Jennifer Coolidge, who is a boomer.

Fidelity Investments (18th) rolled out two new technology bundles aimed at small and mid-sized wealth management firms. E-Trade (7th) also made the list.

Social media

Facebook Marketplace (8th) announced in August that users could browse the platform without needing a Facebook account, though they will need one to start messaging a seller. A Pew Research Center report from January found that 69% of people ages 50 to 64 and 58% of those over 65 use Facebook. 

Facebook owner Meta (14th) also gained ground with boomers. The platform has added more AI features, including voice listening and response in multiple languages and help with photo editing. 

Boomers are also fans of YouTube (9th). That same Research Center report found that 83% of those ages 50 to 64 and 60% of those 65 and up use YouTube. YouTube has also run several ads to promote its “NFL Sunday Ticket” offering, including one that brought together the NFL mascots and another that pranked folks by having football players burst through the wall.

X (12th), which topped the third quarter Gen Z list, seems to have benefited from the Olympics and the presidential election.

“While X was the top-performing brand among Gen Z, it also improved its brand equity scores among Boomers in the third quarter,” said Johnson, who attributed the rise to “increases in its upper-funnel scores—particularly familiarity. Its perceived quality also shot up, as the platform gained increased levels of notoriety during the Olympics and 2024 election cycle.”

Check out the latest Gen Z tracker here

Groceries

While Costco (6th) is known for its bulk goods, Costco’s magazine has the third-largest distribution in the country, according to the New York Times. In September, the retailer raised its membership fees by $5 or $10, depending on the tier, but it seems unlikely to deter many shoppers. Last quarter, renewal rates for memberships were 93% in the U.S. and Canada. Analysts say that e-commerce could be the next frontier for the retailer. It also announced a partnership with Invisalign that gives members a steep discount.

Walmart (11th) supported relief efforts after Hurricane Helene, including matching donations and working with nonprofits and suppliers to provide free meals, WiFi and laundry services. Walmart was also the first to try Fubo’s new CTV ad product, The Triple Play, in which users are served an interactive home screen that shows a branded banner, a content carousel and a branded content video. Walmart.com also launched a new digital campaign focusing on the role of farmers in its supply chain.  

Sargento (17th) celebrated its 70th anniversary in August. The brand is benefiting from the growing snack market with its “Balanced Break” snack packs of cheese and crackers, cheese and dried fruit—even cheese and Chips Ahoy mini cookies. The packs, originally released in 2015, have helped Sargento reach nearly $2 billion in annual sales. The cheesemaker also released its annual environmental impact report in July highlighting food donations and product packaging recyclability.

Travel

Hyatt Hotels has been investing in its loyalty program, allowing travelers more rewards and stay choices, even letting top members gift a hotel stay to someone else. Hyatt also recently bought the Standard International portfolio, which includes The Standard Hotel, The Standard Biergarten and The Boom Boom Room.

Uber (10th) launched a global campaign during the opening ceremonies for the Paris Olympics. “On Our Way” focused on the joy of showing up, a nod to fans tuning in or traveling to see their country’s athletes. In August, Uber partnered with Wonderful Pistachios on its shelled nuts for an on-the-go snack by wrapping cars in green.

Alaska Airlines (19th) rolled out 18 new “sun and ski” routes for the winter travel season, including to Vail, Colorado, Bozeman, Montana and Monterrey, Mexico. It also retrofitted part of its fleet to have more first class and premium seats and completed its acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines in September. The airline has also invested more in AI to find more efficient routes with fewer carbon emissions and better fuel mileage.

Below, more on other brands that made this quarter’s list.

Shutterfly has been running ads for a 40% off deal to encourage users to buy meaningful gifts.

The Wall Street Journal launched a proprietary AI tool, Thematic AI, to match campaigns to specific readers in the Journal’s audience. In May, the Journal laid off journalists despite a surge in paid subscribers, strong profits and a nine-figure licensing deal with OpenAI that will give the platform access to the Journal’s publications for five years, NPR reported.

Mattress Firm partnered with DoorDash for two-hour mattress delivery. It also offered to give U.S. Olympic athletes a free memory foam mattress. In related news, the FTC blocked Tempur Sealy’s attempted acquisition of Mattress Firm.

Apparel retailer Wrangler (13) has started advertising on national TV again for the first time since 2021. The brand’s “Good Mornings Make for Better Days” campaign includes a 30-second ad that shows customers and employees outfitted in vintage Wrangler gear while enjoying breakfast at an old-school diner.

The campaign comes as cowboy culture and fashion have been on the rise, partly fueled by Beyonce’s “Cowboy Carter” country album and subsequent ad for Levi’s jeans and Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour fashion. Wrangler has been inking partnerships of its own, releasing a collection with country singer Lainey Wilson, Pacsun and Coors Banquet beer for beer washed jeans.