Holiday Shoppers Plan to Spend Less

Amid concerns over inflation and a potential recession, just over half (51 percent) of shoppers in the United States plan to spend less this holiday season compared to last year, according to SurveyMonkey research from Momentive.

Ahead of the holiday season, more than 3,000 U.S. adults were surveyed to better understand how Americans are planning to change their holiday spending habits this year, if at all. With continued economic turbulence and supply chain delays, many reported planning on cutting back spending compared to years prior. In fact, consumers planning to spend less money this holiday season said the rising cost of food (64 percent), energy (49 percent), and housing (39 percent) are to blame. In addition, the majority of U.S. adults (68 percent) stated that they are very concerned about inflation, with 23 percent being somewhat concerned.

While some shoppers plan on cutting back costs, others are fully prepared to go into debt this year. Almost a quarter (24 percent) of parents with children under 18 years old expect to go into debt this holiday season; their top shopping categories are clothing, toys & games, home goods, and technology. Parents specifically are more likely than those without children under 18 to use “buy now, pay later” options (38 percent vs. 26 percent).

Overall, the majority of U.S. adults are very or somewhat worried about being able to purchase the items they want for the upcoming holiday season (66 percent). Whether their concern is due to supply chain issues (55 percent) or inflation (91 percent) – or both – there is no doubt that holiday shopping in the United States will be impacted this year, and retailers are going to see the effects. Seventeen percent of consumers do not plan on holiday shopping at all this year, an increase from 14 percent in 2021. Additionally, fewer people who plan to holiday shop have started earlier this year in October (17 percent compared with 22 percent in 2021), with many waiting to start between Thanksgiving, Black Friday and early December (27 percent compared with 21 percent in 2021) instead.

“It’s make-or-break time for many retailers and Americans are feeling the squeeze of rising costs,” said Jon Cohen, chief research officer at Momentive. “Between sky-high inflation, fears of a potential recession, and soaring housing costs, it’s no wonder shoppers are feeling cautious and many are holding their wallets more closely this holiday season. It’s also a grim reality that some holiday shoppers are considering taking on even more debt to buy gifts.”

Methodology: This study was conducted between Oct. 5-12, 2022 among a national sample of 3,183 US adults 18+. Respondents for this survey were selected from the more than 2 million people who take surveys on the platform each day. The modelled error estimate for this survey is plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. Data were weighted for age, race, sex, education, and geography using the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey to reflect the demographic composition of the United States.