As the holiday season approaches, many Americans are feeling the strain of an uneven economy, and new data reveals the impact of higher costs on planned shopping habits. According to the CNBC|SurveyMonkey 2025 Small Business Saturday Survey, nearly 80% of Americans say things are more expensive this year, and four in ten plan to spend less as a result. The survey, conducted among over 2,000 adults in the U.S. using the SurveyMonkey platform, highlights the toll of higher costs on consumer spending.<\/p>\n
The deepest cutbacks will be in purchasing gifts for others, with 60% of respondents citing these plans. Additionally, 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 a nearly 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.<\/p>\n
Despite higher expenses, the vast majority of Americans (82%) say they still plan to shop this holiday season, 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. While only 15% said they do most of their shopping on major dates like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the popular sale days still draw a fair amount of shoppers, at 45% and 39%, respectively.<\/p>\n
Small Business Saturday is still a key shopping date for nearly a quarter of Americans, but respondents say they are limited by both local awareness of the day and higher sticker prices this year. For those who say they are not shopping on Small Business Saturday this year, 41% cite a lack of knowledge of local businesses, while a quarter cite higher prices than larger retailers, and nearly a fifth cite less convenient shipping options.<\/p>\n
To save this year, nearly half say they will spend less on non-essentials, while a third say they will use coupons or loyalty purchases. Seventeen percent have a holiday budget, with younger shoppers in the Gen Z and millennial cohort much more likely to rely on budgets this year, offering further evidence that this group is being squeezed more than others in the current economic climate. <\/p>\n