25+ Worldwide Christmas Spending Statistics [Holiday Sales & Shopping Trends]


Worldwide Christmas Spending Statistics

Contents

We all know that Christmas is considered the most popular and important festival/holiday worldwide when people spend a huge amount of their income on shopping and gifts, especially in countries like the USA. But do you know how much Americans or people worldwide spend on Christmas? According to the National Retail Federation’s (NRF) survey, the overall US spending on holidays has increased every year, despite the Covid-19 pandemic. Due to the pandemic, online shopping has witnessed a huge growth in the last two years compared to retail shopping. So, as a brand or individual, if you are planning a Christmas shopping campaign, these interesting Christmas statistics will help you to understand the shoppers’ behavior and spending budget worldwide.

25+ Interesting Christmas Spending Statistics Worldwide

US Christmas Spending Facts

  1. The Christmas price index in the US grew in 2021 ($41,205.58) by 5.7% as compared to 2019 ($38,993.59).
In 2019, the US’s Christmas price index (CPI) accounted for about $38,993.59, which later grew to $41,205.58 in 2021. Among this growth, the largest price increases were for Gold (8.5%) and exotic pets (more than 50%) like two turtle doves and three french hens. [Source: CNN]
  1. On average, Americans spent around $886 on Christmas gifts in 2021.
In 2021, Americans planned to spend more money on Christmas gifts (around $886) than they had ever spent in the last 20 years. Around 56% of them did their Christmas shopping through online stores, while the rest, 29%, preferred discount stores, 24% preferred departmental stores, 18% opted for specialty stores, and only 6% chose mail-order catalogs. [Source: Statista] Average US spending on Christmas in 2021
  1. In 2020, US households spent around $1,387 on retail shopping during the Christmas holiday season – down -7% YoY.
As compared to the average Christmas holiday spending in the US in 2019, the shoppers spent 7% less than in 2020 as per the Deloitte survey. The major reason behind this drop was financial anxiety and the reduction in social outings & traveling. [Source: Deloitte]
  1. 1 out of 5 Americans planned to spend less money on Christmas shopping and gifts in 2021.
While around 21% of Americans (mainly low-income earners) planned to spend less on Christmas holiday gifts in 2021, 48% continued with the same spending they did every other year. Only 13% of Americans preferred to spend more on Christmas holiday shopping and gifts than in 2020. [Source: Bloomberg] 1 out of 5 americans planning to spend less on Christmas
  1. In 2021, online and non-store sales increased unexpectedly by 11-15% ($218.3 billion to $226.2 billion) from $196.7 billion in 2020.As an impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, Americans preferred online and non-store shopping over traditional retail shopping to increase the overall sales growth of online stores. According to a Deloitte survey, more than 60% of people in the USA have preferred to buy holiday gifts online in the past few years. [Source: Investopedia]
  2.  Americans planned to spend an average of $997.79 in 2021 during the winter holiday sales.
The expected breakdown of American Winter Holiday Spending is as follows: $648 – To spend on gifts for coworkers, families, and friends. $231 – Spend on non-gift items like holiday decorations and food $118 – The rest of the budget is spent on other non-gift items. [Source: Investopedia]
  1. As per Deloitte Survey, the projected retail shopping spending per household in the US was around $922 for 2020.
The projected breakdown of the per house spending on retail categories was as follows:
  • $487 – to spend on gifts and gift cards
  • $435 – to spend on clothing, furnishings, etc. (non-gift items)
  • $260 – to spend on traveling and other socializing activities away from the home
  • $205 – to spend on entertainment and other fun activities at home
[Source: Deloitte] Average retail holiday shopping spend 2020  
  1. In 2018, the US holiday retail sale crossed the $1 trillion mark, which increased in 2019 by about 4.9%
In 2014, the overall Christmas holiday spending in the US was about $842.37 billion. This figure grew by $160 billion in four years to surpass the record-breaking figure of $1.002 trillion. Brick and Mortar stores got the major chunk of this growth, representing around 87.7% of Christmas sales in 2018. However, this number is declining slowly as more people prefer online stores to spend their holiday shopping budget. [Source: CNBC]
  1. 58% of US customers prefer social media channels to decide what to buy or make their shopping decisions.
After the Covid-19 pandemic, US customers’ dependency on social media channels increased massively. According to a McKinsey 2021 survey, around 58% of US customers believe that Social media ads or recommendations influence their holiday gift-buying decisions. Around 87% of GenZ prefer to use Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, etc., to get gift recommendations for Christmas and other major holidays. [Source: McKinsey] Share of consumers whose purchasing decisions were influenced by social media in US
  1. More than half of US customers don’t prefer to buy Christmas trees or decorations.
According to a survey conducted on around 1025 US citizens in 2017, only about 49% prefer to buy Christmas decorations. While the rest of them either avoid it or like to get them (around 14%) as a gift from their loved ones. [Source: Statista] Also Check: How Much Does the Average American Make?

Global Christmas Spending Statistics

Want to know how much people spend on Christmas worldwide every year? Let’s check out these global Christmas shopping statistics.
  1. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, online retail sales in Brazil increased by 44.6% in 2020 than in 2019.
In 2020, Brazilians spent around 3.76 billion Brazilian reals on Christmas retail shopping. The average amount per checkout during that period was around 462 Brazilian reals, while in 2019, it was around 408 Brazilian reals only. [Source: Statista]
  1. In 2020, around 57% of South African and 37% of European customers had cut their Christmas shopping budget.
Due to the impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic, customers in countries like India, Europe, South Africa, etc., planned to cut their Christmas budget for 2020. While in India, around 47% of customers decided to cut their Christmas spending, in South Africa, it was 56%, followed by the Philippines (52%), New Zealand (39%), and the US (40%). [Source: Finder]
  1. Each year, an average UK household spends around £740 ((around $1,021) as an additional amount in their existing budget during December.
The average budget of a UK household is around £2,500 (about $3,289 roughly) per month. However, this budget increased by £740 during the Christmas holiday season when people prefer to spend this additional amount on alcohol, gifts, and other shopping items. [Source: Segmentify] Average UK spending in Christmas Month
  1. In December 2020, Pre-Christmas sales in the UK dropped by 2.3%.
This was the biggest decline in Prec-Christmas sales since June 2020. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, people started visiting retail stores less and preferred online shopping instead. As a result, online shopping grew by 52.2% and accounted for 46.8% of retail sales in December 2020 in the UK. [Source: The Drum]
  1. In Hungary, only 5.9% of people preferred to buy all their Christmas gifts online in 2021, while around 44% preferred buying from offline stores.
As of 2021, very few Hungarians decided to buy Christmas gifts online entirely, while the majority (around 49.25%) preferred to buy Christmas gifts both online and offline. [Source: Statista] How people prefer to buy Christmas gifts in Hungary

Average Christmas Spending Statistics

  1. In 2021, people living in Australia plan to spend an average of $1,232 on Christmas shopping and gifts.
The highest amount was spent by the residents of Victoria (around $1,373) on Christmas-related shopping and experiences. In the rest of the states, the figure was as follows: South Wales – Around $1,361 Queensland – Around $1,146 South Australia – Around $1,112 Western Australia – Around $1,037 The majority of the amount was spent on Christmas gifts (around $374 per person), food (about $308), and travel ($269 or so). [Source: Finder] Average australians Christmas spend in 2021
  1. Compared to 2020, British adults planned to spend more on Christmas gifts & shopping in 2021, on average, around £548.
In 2020, British adults spent on average £476 on Christmas gifts, which grew by £72 in 2021. The average combined spending in the UK in 2021 was £25.6 billion, less than the combined spending of 2019, i.e., £26.9, but more than the combined spending of 2020, i.e., £24.2. [Source: Finder]    18. The average amount spent by US households in 2019 dropped to $1,496, which in 2018 was around $1536. In the last ten years, the highest average amount was spent on Christmas gifts and gift cars (around $525, while in 2019, it was around $511). The majority of the amount (around $985) was allocated for Christmas outings, entertainment, and clothes. [Source: Deloitte]
  1. Statistics show that, on average, Americans spend around $123 on their better halves for Christmas gifts and shopping.
If we compare men’s and women’s spending on their partners, men tend to spend around $20 more on their women for Christmas gifts. About 12.5% of high-income Americans spend around $300 on their spouses during Christmas. [Source: NewsWeek]

Christmas Gifts Ideas and Giving Statistics

  1. In Italy, the most desirable and popular Christmas gifts are Clothes, Accessories, and Shoes.
As per the 2020 Christmas statistics, 42% of Italians preferred clothes, accessories, and shoes as Christmas gifts from their loved ones. While the other 22% chose books and magazines. Toys for children were the third most popular Christmas gifting category in Italy for 2020 (around 20%). [Source: Statista] Most desired gifts in Italy on Christmas 2020
  1. According to Deloitte Survey 2021, In America, Gift cards are the most common Christmas gift type after Clothing, Electronics, and Accessories.
The average category spend on clothing during Christmas is around $304 and for electronics is about $243. With a $235 average category spend, gift cards are the second-largest gift category for Christmas, followed by Food ($187). Popular gift card options include streaming services, restaurant vouchers, grocery store coupons, etc. [Source: Deloitte]
  1. In America, around 71% of Women prefer Clothes as a Christmas gift, while 49% prefer getting jewelry as a gift.
What could be a better gift for women than clothes and jewelry? According to a recent survey, Americans spend more money on gifts than they receive. The favorite Christmas gift categories for women are clothing, electronics, jewelry, gift cards and handmade gifts. While for men, electronics, gift cards, clothing, and books are their Christmas gifts priorities. [Source: CreditDonkey] What women prefer to get as christmas gifts

Shoppers’ Behavior and Buying Habits

  1. On average, Women spend around 20 hours shopping for Christmas gifts, while men spend around half the time.
As per the Christmas shopping stats, women spend more time searching and shopping for Christmas gifts, while men make shopping decisions more quickly. On average, together, they spend around 15 hours shopping for Christmas gifts, out of which 2-3 hours go by standing in queue to checkout and another three hours for gift wrapping. [Source: PWSH Blueprints]
  1. In the US, around 43% of customers prefer to do their Christmas shopping before October end.
According to the survey conducted in 2021, more than 40% of US customers start their Christmas shopping in September or before October end. 25% of people prefer to shop for Christmas gifts before Thanksgiving and 19% prefer to shop after Thanksgiving. [Source: Statista] When people start their christmas shopping
  1. Around 23% of people believe that their friends are the worst shoppers and major sources of unwanted Christmas gifts, accounting for the total estimate to be around $15.2 billion.
According to recent stats, almost one out of three friends are the source of unwanted gifts on Christmas (around 30.63%), followed by relatives (18.65%), partners (9.87%), their own kids (7%), and their bosses (4.64%). In the list of unwanted gifts, Clothing & accessories come on top (25.03%), and then fragrances ((17.63%), household items (11.49%), food and drink (8.07%). [Source: Finder]
  1. Around 57% of self-loving shoppers love to buy gifts for themselves on Christmas.
According to a recent Bankrate survey, around 56-57% of self-loving shoppers like to spend their money on themselves by shopping for Christmas gifts or planning holiday trips, especially the Millennial generation. Around 61% of GenZ people plan holidays to spoil themselves during Christmas compared to Gen X (54%) and baby boomers (55%). Among these self-loving shoppers, the majority are men rather than women. [Source: Bankrate]
  1. Around 22% of Americans revealed that Christmas shopping left them in debt, while in Europe, the figure is around 10%.
According to the LendEDU survey, around one-quarter of Americans go into debt during the Christmas month to shop for gifts. The average debt for such shoppers in America is around $554. While in Europe, approximately 20-30% of people feel the pressure of gifting their loved ones on Christmas. In Romania, the figure is about 19%, while in the Netherlands, it is around 5%. [Source: LendEdu] Percentage of people go in debt for Christmas shopping

Conclusion

All these interesting Christmas shopping and spending statistics for different countries indicate that this festival is indeed a big holiday for people. Apart from spending money on Christmas gifts, people also spend a huge chunk of their income on holiday travel packages and decorations. Some of them even take debts to pay for gifts. We hope this data will help you make your Christmas shopping decisions and buying campaigns smartly. Happy holidays! Sources:

Eleanor Martinez is someone who understands statistics in and out. She has been a student and researcher who has worked with statistics for over six years now. She took up this role at AirServer App as it would give her the perfect opportunity to do two things she loves the most: statistics and writing.

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