Survey: 90% of U.S. Consumers Celebrate Christmas

Merry Christmas. Numerator tracked purchase data of U.S. shoppers and discovered that 90% planned to celebrate Christmas. Here are some other holiday stats:

• 82% of celebrators said they typically started planning for Christmas more than a month in advance, including 33% who planned more than three months in advance of the holiday.
• Gathering with family and friends was the top celebration plan for Christmas celebrators (74%), followed by giving gifts (70%), decorating the house (62%), cooking or baking at home (61%), and hosting others at home (33%).
• Gen Z & Millennials were more likely to travel for Christmas than other generations (25% vs. 18% for all celebrators).
• The top planned Christmas purchases are gifts (80%), food (79%), decorations (43%), candy (42%), and alcoholic beverages (36%). Gen X was more likely to purchase alcoholic beverages (43% vs. 36%) while Gen Z & Millennials were nearly twice as likely to purchase holiday apparel compared to all celebrators (35% vs. 19%).
• Among alcohol purchasers, wine was the top choice (65% planned to purchase) followed by spirits (58%), beer (55%), and champagne or sparkling wine (37%).
• Among gift shoppers, the top category was gift cards (71% planned to purchase). Boomers were the most likely generation to opt for gift cards (77%) while Gen Z & Millennials were the least likely (59%). The other top gifting categories among all shoppers were apparel (55%), toys or games (49%), home goods (33%), food or beverages (29%), pet products (27%), accessories (27%), books (24%), and spa or beauty products (24%).
• 44% of Christmas shoppers said they would shop half online and half in-store for their holiday items, and 33% said they expected to do mostly or all online while 23% said they planned to do mostly or all in-store.
• 79% of Christmas celebrators expected to spend $200+ on Christmas, including 35% that planned to spend more than $500.
• 57% of shoppers said they would spend the same as 2023 while 26% say they planned to spend less, and 17% planned to spend more.