How it works
Add up what the season will cost, subtract what you've already put aside, and spread the rest over the weeks until the day you need it. Saving a fixed amount each week, as a sinking fund, means the bills are paid when they arrive, not in January.
Weekly amount = (holiday total − already saved) ÷ whole weeks until you spend it
Worked example
Eight gifts at $75, $250 for food, $400 for travel, $80 of decorations and $100 for the rest come to $1,430. With $200 already saved, $1,230 is left. Starting on October 1 there are 12 weeks to Christmas: $102.50 a week.
Put the same $1,230 on a card at 22.15% and pay it off in six months, and it costs $80.67 in interest. Paying only the minimum would take 4 years 10 months and cost $772.
What people spend
In the National Retail Federation's 2025 survey, shoppers planned to spend $890.49 each on average on gifts, food, decorations and other seasonal items: $627.93 on gifts and $262.56 on the rest. It's a benchmark, not a target; your budget should come from what you can save.
Ways to keep it in budget
- Set the gift list first. A number per person is easier to stick to than a total.
- Give the money its own place. A separate savings account or envelope keeps holiday money from being spent on something else.
- Count the extras. Shipping, wrapping, travel and hosting often cost as much as the gifts.
- Be careful with buy now, pay later. Several small plans due at once in January are easy to lose track of.
- For the rest of the year, the savings goal calculator plans any other goal, and the 50/30/20 budget calculator shows where it fits in your pay.
Questions people ask
How much should I spend on Christmas?
What you can pay for in cash by the time you need it. If the weekly amount above doesn't fit your budget, trim the list until it does, rather than borrowing for it.
When should I start saving for the holidays?
As early as you can: the same total spread over more weeks is a smaller weekly amount. Starting in January makes it about a fiftieth of the total each week.
Is it okay to use a credit card for holiday shopping?
For convenience or rewards, yes, if you pay the balance in full when the statement comes. Carrying it at a typical card rate adds interest, as the table above shows.
Sources
- National Retail Federation: 2025 holiday spending survey (published October 16, 2025)
- Federal Reserve: consumer credit (G.19), credit card interest rates, 2026 Q2
Reviewed September 29, 2026 by The Dollars World team. How we build and check our calculators · Our data and formulas. This is general information, not financial advice.