Holiday shopping tips: How to give more and spend less

LOS ANGELES – The average consumer in the United States is projected to spend about $833 on presents this holiday season, according to WalletHub.

Plus, the average household already owes nearly $9,000 in credit card debt, and many people’s budgets have been affected by the rising prices associated with inflation this year. So it will be very important to keep a watchful eye on your wallet during this expensive time of year.

WalletHub provides six  holiday shopping tips to help you give more, spend less and worry about money as little as possible.

A woman carries shopping bags during the holiday season in New York City, U.S., December 21, 2022. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

Make a budget and payback plan. Figure out exactly how much you can afford, whom you have to buy gifts for and what other expenses you’re likely to incur. Then, allocate your available funds accordingly. But you should still make plans for how to use it wisely if you want to make everyone, including your wallet, happy.

After all, it’s easy to get so swept up in the holiday spirit that your wallet wakes up with a nasty New Year’s hangover. That’s one reason why we typically rack up more credit card debt during the last three months of the year than any other time.

Make a gift-buying schedule. Figuring out when to buy gifts is an often-overlooked way to save over the holidays. If you’re doing some of your shopping online, it’s best to do it as early as you can to avoid last-minute rush shipping costs, and even potential shipping delays.

Additionally, last-minute shopping can increase stress levels and reduce availability. If you wait until the last minute to buy presents, you might be stuck paying more for something you could’ve gotten cheaper elsewhere if you had bought it sooner.

Outside of saving money, some of your gifts may be for people you won’t actually see over the holidays – co-workers or teachers, for example – and those gifts should be bought early.

Avoid retailers’ special financing offers. If you expect your holiday expenses to lead to a balance that you can’t repay right away, don’t use your normal credit card or accept a retailer’s financing offer.

Credit cards typically charge high interest rates – the average is about 19 percent – and if you didn’t get one specifically for financing, it’s probably not up to the task.

Furthermore, most of the store credit cards that offer 0% introductory rates use a dangerous feature called deferred interest, which can lead to major unexpected costs.

Wallethub recommends finding a general-purpose credit card with no annual fee and the longest possible 0% intro period.

Have a credit card rewards strategy. There is historic value available from credit cards right now. The average rewards credit card is now offering an initial bonus of $233 in cash or 30,719 points/miles, according to Wallethub’s latest Credit Card Landscape Report. The right card could cut the average person’s holiday budget in half, or more.

Plus, wouldn’t you be excited for a 10 to 30 percent off sale at one of your favorite stores? Well, that’s the discount some of the best store credit cards give you on your first purchase. Even the best cash back credit cards can save you 2 percent on everything. You just need to apply soon enough to have your new card by the time you do your shopping.

Look Into Rewards Apps. Lots of apps and browser extensions offer rewards when you’re shopping online – Rakuten, BeFrugal and Honey are just a few. If you pair one of these apps with a rewards credit card, you can stack your rewards earnings, giving you a deeper holiday discount.

Hunt For Deals. Retailers also hold more impromptu sales this time of year, and you can often find big-time savings online from sites such as eBay.

Furthermore, shoppers have more tools at their disposal to cut holiday costs than ever before. “Daily deal” and coupon code sites are plentiful and free to use, and deal-finding browser extensions like Honey and Capital One Shopping do the work for you.

It’s also worth utilizing price-tracking services like Amazon’s price-change alerts, or manually comparing prices from multiple retailers, to make sure you’re getting the best deal.

Give Cash. It might seem impersonal, but cash is also much simpler and infinitely more versatile than any other present you could give. Gift cards are another good option, especially since the most popular offers have decent resale value. You can also give gift cards for shares of companies’ stock.

It’s worth noting, however, that options such as Visa and Mastercard gift cards may have fees associated with them. So, you should either buy gift cards affiliated with specific retailers or just give people cash.

Give Back. Roughly one-third of the year’s charitable giving occurs during the month of December, according to various reports. So why not join the merry crew spreading holiday cheer to those in need?

There are plenty of great causes to choose from if you’re feeling generous, and your donations will help you out when tax season rolls around if you itemize your deductions.

This time of year clearly is quite expensive, but the holidays shouldn’t be about money.

There are far more important things to focus on, from family and friends to health and happiness.

So try to get your shopping done both early and affordably in order to have more time for the finer things in life.

Most presents aren’t worth paying interest on, after all, particularly when your mere presence is likely all that’s needed to bring someone holiday cheer.