Holiday Shopping by the Numbers: Trends for the 2023 Season

With Black Friday a month away, it’s officially the holiday shopping season. To get a read on how consumers re shopping, spending and strategizing for the holidays, RetailMeNot has conducted another survey (see our early holiday trends data here) of 1,089 consumers (see methodology).

Among our top findings:

The majority of consumers are planning to participate in holiday gift shopping this year.
Inflation is still affecting shoppers, causing many to focus on looking for deals and less expensive items.
Holiday shopping budgets are higher this year than last year.

Inflation Is Putting a Damper on Holiday Spending, Leading Shoppers to Deal-Hunt

Although inflation continues to impact consumers’ holiday shopping plans and budgets this year, RetailMeNot found that shoppers are planning to spend more this year compared to last year ($932 on average this year vs. $725 in 2022), most likely due to having to combat today’s rising prices across all shopping categories. Of the $932 consumers plan to spend, about $732 will be spent on gifts and $200 on themselves.

infographic showing top categories holiday shoppers are looking for deals on

With so many holiday shoppers still feeling the effects of inflation, it’s clear that looking for deals and getting the best bang for their buck remains a top priority. Our survey revealed that shoppers are more than ready to save across numerous shopping categories this year, with electronics (83%), makeup & skincare (79%), and toys & games (77%) coming in as the top product categories consumers are searching for deals and discounts on. The other products that consumers are likely to search for deals on this holiday season include:

Clothing (including shoes and accessories): 77%
Home appliances (e.g., slow cooker, grill): 76%
Travel (e.g., plane tickets, hotel room, luggage): 75%
Jewelry: 75%
Home improvement (e.g., drills, tool set, gardening supplies): 72%
Media to own (e.g., books, movies, video games): 72%
Home furniture (e.g., a table, a bed: 71%
Sports and outdoor recreation (e.g., baseball gloves, fishing gear): 71%
Home goods and décor (e.g., dinner plates, pillows, wall art, rug): 71%
High-end products: 71%

Gift Cards Top Shopping Holiday Lists for 2023

Despite the major role rising prices are playing in this year’s holiday shopping season, the majority (79%) of shoppers are still planning to participate in holiday gift shopping this year and 72% of consumers are planning to shop holiday sales events (October to December). But what are they buying and who are they shopping for?

We asked what gifts/services consumers are most likely to buy this holiday season and according to RetailMeNot insights, these are the products that top shopping lists:

Gift cards: 54%
Clothing, including shoes and accessories: 47%
Toys and games: 42%
Money: 33%
Food and beverage (e.g., food baskets, wine, liquor): 30%
Restaurants (e.g., restaurant gift cards, treating the giftee out to a restaurant meal): 27%
Electronics (e.g., laptops, gaming consoles, smartphones): 24%
Makeup and skincare: 24%
Jewelry: 23%

When it comes to prioritizing their gift recipients, kids are number one. However, more than half of shoppers (52%) plan to do some self-gifting this year (up from 45% last year).

Children or Grandchildren: 59%
Self: 52%
Spouse/significant other: 47%
Friends: 41%
My parents or stepparents: 40%
My siblings or stepsiblings: 33%

With more consumers planning to shop for themselves this year, we wanted to find out the reason for the increase ($200 average spend on themselves in 2023 vs. $160 in 2022). Our survey revealed that most are choosing to self-gift as a way to not only take advantage of the great deals during this time of year, but also to treat themselves and boost their mood. The top reasons for consumers buying more gifts for themselves this year include:

Taking advantage of holiday sales and discounts: 54%
Self-gifting/treating myself: 45%
To boost my mood and well-being: 41%
Buying seasonal products (e.g., decorations, food, clothing): 30%
Taking advantage of time off work to shop: 13%
To establish a tradition for myself: 13%
To initiate the upcoming year with a fresh start: 13%
Taking advantage of time off work to use the products or services I buy: 11%

Most self-gifting is concentrated around fashion and self-care items. These are the top items shoppers are planning to buy for themselves this year:

Clothing, including shoes and accessories: 47%
Makeup and skincare: 30%
Electronics (e.g., laptops, gaming consoles, smartphones): 24%
Food and beverage (e.g., food baskets, wine, liquor): 24%
Restaurants (e.g., treating myself to a restaurant meal): 22%
Household supplies (e.g., stocking up on household necessities): 19%
Jewelry, 19%
Home goods and décor (e.g., dinner plates, pillows, wall art, rug): 17%
Media to own (e.g., books, movies, video games): 17%

When will consumers find time to do all this shopping? Our survey found that 60% of shoppers say they actually plan to do their holiday shopping online (browsing or purchasing) during work hours this season.

Post-Holiday Shopping Trends

Shoppers have some post-holiday shopping strategies and savings plans, with many planning to take advantage of after-holiday deals and seek out a more leisurely shopping experience. Others will even utilize their own gift returns to get funds for shopping.

Our survey found that 49% will shop the post-Christmas shopping period to take advantage of clearance sales and discounts. Others plan to shop these sales to:

Shop with fewer crowds in stores: 27%
Treat themselves/gift themselves a present: 25%
Exchange a gift they received or shop with store credit from an exchange: 18%
Enjoy more free time to shop: 17%

The top products shoppers are planning to purchase post-holidays include:

Clothing: 37%
Makeup & skincare: 21%
Food & beverage: 21%
Electronics: 20%
Gift cards: 20%
Toys and games: 17%
Restaurant gift cards or a meal at a restaurant (alone or treating someone) they normally wouldn’t visit: 17%
Home goods and décor (e.g., dinner plates, pillows, wall art, rug): 16%
Household supplies (e.g., gifting household necessities, stocking up to start the year): 15%