“With a shortened window between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, consumers will be hitting stores and shopping online to get those final gifts and to take advantage of special promotions and deals.”
WASHINGTON – An estimated 157.2 million consumers plan to shop on the last Saturday before Christmas, according to the annual survey released today by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics. The estimate is up from 141.9 million Super Saturday shoppers last year and is the second-highest number after 2022’s 158.5 million figure.
“Super Saturday is one of the last opportunities during the holiday season for consumers to get the remaining items on their shopping list,” NRF Vice President of Industry and Consumer Insights Katherine Cullen said. “With a shortened window between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, consumers will be hitting stores and shopping online to get those final gifts and to take advantage of special promotions and deals.”
With only four days between Super Saturday and Dec. 25, shoppers are likely to embrace multiple channels as they wrap up their holiday shopping. This year, 69.5 million (44%) people plan to shop both in-store and online, up from 58.3 million (41%) in 2023. Approximately 49.4 million (31%) expect to shop exclusively in-store, down from 52.8 million (37%) last year, while 38.2 million (24%) plan to shop online only, which is up from 30.8 million (22%) in 2023.
As of early December, consumers had purchased half (50%) of the items on their shopping list, on average, while only 10% were completely done. Those with at least half of their shopping left to finish said they were waiting because they were still trying to figure out what to buy (37%), had other financial priorities before December (27%), or were waiting for family members and friends to let them know what gifts they want (24%).
“Whether shoppers have planned out their shopping list or are waiting until the last minute, most shoppers still have purchases left to make before December 25,” Prosper Insights & Analytics Executive Vice President of Strategy Phil Rist said. “As with last year, over half of consumers expect they will complete their shopping in the week leading up to the Christmas holiday.”
The leading destinations consumers plan to finish their shopping are online (49%), department stores (37%), discount stores (27%) and clothing and accessory stores (25%). The top gifts shoppers have purchased so far include clothing and accessories (50%), toys (32%), gift cards (26%), books, video games and other media (24%) and personal care or beauty items (24%).
Similar to last year, most consumers (71%) plan to shop the week immediately following December 25. The top reasons consumers plan to shop during the week are to take advantage of holiday sales and promotions (48%), use gift cards (26%) and return or exchange unwanted gifts and holiday items (16%).
NRF defines the holiday season as Nov. 1 through Dec. 31 and has forecast that holiday spending is expected to reach record levels and will grow between 2.5% and 3.5% over 2023, totaling $979.5 billion to $989 billion.
The survey of 7,861 adult consumers was conducted Dec. 2-9 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.1 percentage points.
Read more about the holiday season at the NRF Winter Holiday Headquarters.
As the leading authority and voice for the retail industry, NRF provides data on consumer behavior and spending for key periods such as holidays throughout the year.
About NRF
The National Retail Federation passionately advocates for the people, brands, policies and ideas that help retail succeed. From its headquarters in Washington, D.C., NRF empowers the industry that powers the economy. Retail is the nation’s largest private-sector employer, contributing $5.3 trillion to annual GDP and supporting more than one in four U.S. jobs — 55 million working Americans. For over a century, NRF has been a voice for every retailer and every retail job, educating, inspiring and communicating the powerful impact retail has on local communities and global economies. nrf.com
About Prosper Insights & Analytics
Prosper Insights & Analytics is a global leader in consumer intent data serving the financial services, marketing technology, and retail industries. We provide global authoritative market information on U.S. and China consumers via curated insights and analytics. By integrating a variety of data including economic, behavioral and attitudinal data, Prosper helps companies accurately predict consumers’ future behavior to help identify market behaviors, optimize marketing efforts, and improve the effectiveness of demand generation campaigns. https://prosperinsights.com/
