Xin Ou
Research expert covering Greater China
U.S. Christmas season shopping - Statistics & Facts
Christmas is arguably the peak point of what is known as the golden quarter in retail. It is also a civil holiday that is enjoyed by an increasing number of non-Christians and is an integral part of the holiday season. In 2025, eight out of every 10 people in the United States stated they were planning to celebrate the holiday, with less than one in 10 declaring that they would not be joining in with the festivities. Christmas is typically the largest economic stimulus for many nations around the world, as sales increase dramatically in almost all retail areas during this time. According to Statista estimates, in 2025 total holiday retail sales were projected to have reached a new high of nearly one trillion U.S. dollars.
Christmas shopping: in-store or online?
Online sales during the holiday season increased by a much higher margin compared to previous years during the COVID-19 pandemic. This trend in the popularity of online shopping is set to continue in 2025, with U.S. online sales made during the holiday sales predicted to grow to a record 312 billion U.S. dollars. Among shopping channels, most respondents to a 2025 survey indicated that they planned to do their holiday shopping at online-only retailers. Given this, it is unsurprising that Amazon was the top website consumers planned to use when shopping.
Consumer shopping plans
The Christmas shopping season can start as early as September, and some consumers begin even earlier than that. In 2025, nearly one-third of Christmas shoppers in the United States stated they were intending to start their shopping in October, while only six percent of respondents were planning to start in December. The average amount people in the United States believed they would spend in 2025 amounted to over 1,000 U.S. dollars, which is more than the previous year’s budget.
Among consumer expectations and concerns around the holiday season, economic factors played a role this year again, despite subdued inflation and consumer prices. In a survey that looked into holiday season gifting behavior, one third of consumers said the most important factor for them while shopping during the holiday season was the price of gift purchases. This year, nearly two-thirds of consumers also said they were going to look for sales more than usual during the upcoming holiday season.
