Americans are holiday shopping early to save—and to stay out of debt: survey

Ahead of the Indigenous Peoples Day weekend, consumers were either shopping to save or still paying off debts from previous holiday shopping sprees.

An early holiday shopping survey of more than 200 respondents by Wallethub found that 47% of Americans tended to shop for the holidays in October or even before that. Why? Well, for starters, about 2 in 3 people thought shopping earlier helped them save money.

With tariffs and rising costs, budgets are tight; 4 in 5 shoppers said their spending capacity would either match or fall short of last year’s.

Shopping for holidays seems to come with a lot of anxiety for some who had lingering holiday debts. More than 1 in 4 Americans surveyed were still paying off debt from the previous season.

To keep their holiday debt (and stress levels) in check, some (28%) of consumers opted for “strict budgeting,” while others (24%) skipped the credit card and were choosing to pay for their wish lists with cash or debit cards instead.

However, 24% of those surveyed went for a different debt avoidance strategy altogether: scattering their purchases over several months.

Full circle: The findings track with Adobe Analytics’ recent data, which showed that shoppers aren’t just hunting for deals; they’re also relying on BNPL to subsidize their purchases. In fact, 80% of shoppers who’ve tried or considered BNPL say they’ll use it again this year.

So while shoppers may be cautious, the tills will still ring, especially when the price is right.

Per ICSC’s 2025 holiday shopping intentions survey, retail sales are predicted to rise 3.5% to 4.0% this year.

“It’s clear from our research that economic factors aren’t just shaping consumer sentiment—they’re directly impacting where and how consumers shop,” ICSC President and CEO Tom McGee said in a statement. “Convenience, competitive pricing, and attentive service are table stakes in this environment.”