Budgeting in the Holiday Season

While the holidays are over, the gifts are not! There are so many deals and promotions available as we enter the new year. We bring you steps to ensure proper and fun budgeting for the holidays, New Years, and even the upcoming year!

By Finance Board


Step 1: Deciding Your Budget

  • Plan ahead

  • Account for shipping costs 

  • Be mindful of your other costs that need to be paid like bills, tuition, etc. 

  • Keep track of how much you are spending

Step 2: Make a list of who you are purchasing gifts for 

  • Establish how much you can afford to spend on each person


Step 3: Check if you can get a discount with a price match guarantee!

  • Many stores like Target, Walmart, and BestBuy have price match guarantees

  • If you find your gift at a lower price from another online retailer like Amazon, these stores will match that price!


STEP 4: Don’t wait until the last minute

  • Shopping in a rush may induce you to spend way more than you should

  • Make a gift-giving plan and stick to it!


STEP 5: Take advantage of holiday sales 

  • Look for deals more often than just event-based sales that might not even be as marked down as we expect 

  • “Free Shipping Day, on Dec. 14” - many retailers have free shipping this day

  • Some special holiday sales if you look around


Step 6: If you have a big family/group of friends, doing Secret Santa could be an alternative

  • White Elephant is a good alternative too 

  • Turn it into something fun without feeling obligated to give each and every single person a gift


Step 7: Make homemade gifts!

  • By taking the DIY route, you can buy gifts in bulk and customize it to save up some money

    • A lot of ideas on Pinterest, YouTube, etc.

  • Examples: Cookies and baked goods, photo gifts, candles


Step 8: Save! 

  • If you put money aside each month throughout the year to cover your expenses, you will stress a lot less when the holiday season comes around 

  • Once you get into the habit of creating a budget for the holidays, use the previous years’ budget for reference


For more information about budgeting during the holiday season use these resources!

How to Stick to your Holiday Budget 

Holiday Shopping Tips 

Holiday Spending 

Ways to Save during the Holidays 

Tips to Save Money & Time 

7 Tips to Budget Holiday Spending 



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