As many Americans continue to feel pinched by an uneven economy, new data highlight the toll of higher costs on planned shopping habits this holiday season.
Nearly 80 percent of Americans say things are more expensive this year and four in ten plan to spend less as a result, according to the CNBC|SurveyMonkey 2025 Small Business Saturday Survey. Among those planning to spend less, the deepest cutbacks will be in purchasing gifts for others, with 60 percent of these respondents citing these plans. In addition, nearly half say they plan to dine out less and spend less on gifts for themselves, big-ticket purchases, and entertainment.
Tariffs, which have been a key concern for many retailers, had nearly a breakeven effect on respondents, with 40% of Americans saying they plan to spend less for the holidays due to tariffs and 39% citing no impact.
The study was conducted Nov. 14-Nov. 17 among more than 2,000 adults in the U.S. using the SurveyMonkey platform.
In the face of higher expenses, the vast majority of Americans say they still plan to shop this holiday season (82%), but much of the spending will take place outside the big deal days. An equal 82% of respondents say they plan to do their holiday shopping outside of the busy Thanksgiving weekend.
