About a third of holiday gift givers (30%) this year expect to go into debt, according to a new LendingTree survey


What You Need To Know

  • About a third of holiday gift givers (30%) this year expect to go into debt, according to a new LendingTree survey

  • Those who expect to overspend and go into debt said they are trying to make their children happy or attempting to impress the gift recipient

  • Of those who have previously gone into debt from buying presents, almost half say it’s due to inflation and the higher cost of gifts

  • Among this year's gift givers, 22% have gone into debt from holiday spending before and expect to repeat the pattern this year; another 7% said they expect to go into debt for the first time

Of those who have previously gone into debt from buying presents, nearly half say it’s due to inflation and the higher cost of gifts.

In its survey of 2,050 U.S. consumers, LendingTree found 69% of Americans plan to give gifts this year. Those who expect to overspend and go into debt said they are trying to make their children happy or attempting to impress the gift recipient.

Of those giving gifts, 19% plan to spend less than $100, 47% plan to spend a total of $100 to $499, 23% have budgeted $500 to $999, and 11% plan to spend at least $1,000. Gift givers spend the most on their kids (42%), followed by significant others (19%), parents or guardians (9%), siblings (9%), and friends (8%).

Among gift givers, 22% have gone into debt from holiday spending before and expect to repeat the pattern this year. Another 7% said they expect to go into debt for the first time for holiday gift giving this year.

Cash is the top gift preference this year. Almost half of gift recipients said they would like to receive cash for the holidays, and 39% said they’d trade their gifts for the cash equivalent if possible. About 27% of those participating in holiday gift giving said they will use a cash gift to pay bills.

For the 31% of Americans who said they will not give gifts this year, 52% said cost is the reason. Gen Zers, individuals who earn less than $30,000 annually and those without children are the most likely to opt out.