- Over half of the survey respondents intend to spend up to 1000 złoty on Christmas shopping;
- 46% of those surveyed admit that they save for Christmas expenses well in advance;
The most popular gifts this year will be clothes, toys, and books;
Aside from traditional gift ideas, Poles increasingly support the passions of their loved ones. - Christmas is a time of family gatherings, gifts, and travels to loved ones, which means additional purchases and increased expenses. Mastercard, in a survey conducted by Minds & Roses, checked how much money Poles plan to spend this Christmas, how they pay for related expenses and what they plan to give their loved ones.
Spontaneous or under control? Poles on Christmas spending
As the Mind & Roses survey for Mastercard shows, 2/3 of respondents admitted that they have a strictly defined budget for this Christmas, which they do not want to exceed. This approach is particularly important for the older age group of respondents (55-60 years old). 46% of respondents confirmed that they save money for Christmas in advance. Women and people aged 18-24 and 35-44 (49% each) are more likely to plan their Christmas budget than men (44%). In contrast, 54% of respondents think about holiday expenses at the last minute. Every third Pole is also not too concerned about how much the upcoming holidays will cost.
Even though over half of the respondents do not plan Christmas shopping in advance, most of them allocate a specific budget for them. The difference in the approach to financial planning at this time of year is certainly influenced by various factors such as the size of the household budget.
Tangible goods or experiences? What will be under the tree this year?
Poles do not spare expenses for gifts for their loved ones. 2/3 of respondents plan to spend up to 1000 złoty on gift purchases, and 17% plan to spend over a thousand złoty for this purpose. What can we expect under the tree this year? The top 3 most often chosen category of gifts are clothes and accessories (45%), toys (41%) and books (39%). Every fifth respondent (19%) does not plan to buy Christmas gifts this year.
29% of respondents plan to give their loved ones gifts directly related to their passion. 17% aim for event tickets, 12% plan to give gifts related to experiences such as dining out, and 8% will buy their loved ones trips and travels.
What we finance Christmas expenses with?
Mastercard also asked consumers how they cover increased expenses during the holiday period. 73% of respondents stated that they never borrow, and if they currently don’t have enough money, they give up some of the expenses. 27% admitted that they sometimes use loans from family or the bank to finance Christmas expenses.
These situations occur more often in men (30%) than in women (23%). Among many available methods of additional financing, if necessary to cover unexpected costs, the largest group of consumers is ready to use their savings (32%). 21% would pay with a credit card, and 18% would use the deferred payment option (Buy Now, Pay Later).
About the survey:
The CAWI survey by Minds & Roses was carried out in November 2023, on a group of 1071 respondents – bank clients aged 18-60.
