There was a discussion at work the other day about how much we spend per child on Christmas gifts. Nothing competitive just everyone was discussing it and one woman without children said we shouldn’t spend over $100 on each kid. She felt that was more then enough. Another parent and I laughed. I don’t even know how you get more then a few gifts for that price. The other parent, a mother, said she spend way over that on her 2 kids. As for us my wife does almost all the shopping while I do the working but I know we spend way over that too.
It did get me thinking, how much should you spend on you kids for Christmas.
According to statista.com in 2022 the amount was very close within a matter of a few percent within the mid range.
21% is $50-$100
17% is More then $200
16% is $100-$150
15% is $25-$50
13% is $150-$200
9% is Don’t Know
7% is Up to $25
2% is No Expenses
On average it’s somewhere between $200-$300 per child. According to zippia.com upwards to $330 due to inflation.
I also see parents spend that much on fun gift and on top of that they get clothes and other things the child needs.
As a kid from a working class family I dreamed of a grand Christmas with a huge tree surrounded by presents and I’d by lying if I said I didn’t want my kids to experience that. Not that I need to get my kids a ton of toys so they will love me. We actually make most things come from Santa. I Just want a Christmas that is so unbelievably magical that they remember it forever.
When I was a kid we got on average a laundry basket, a few toys, and some new school clothes. Stockings were filled with an orange, some candy, socks, and some scratch off tickets.
All great things and stuff we could use but I don’t think I ever had a moment where I thought of it as a magical Christmas.
I know it’s not how much you spend but the thought that counts. We look at it as does it seem even across all 3 kids. We don’t get strict with the budgeting until the end of the year. We start buying right after their birthday’s so we have almost all year to spread out the cost. By the end of the year we usually spend around $500-$600 per child. This last year was no different even with inflation.
In addition to what we and Santa get them, we take them shopping and each kid gets $15 per each family member to spend.
Do we think of our kids as spoiled. Yes of course, all parents spoil their kids. We want for them better then we had.
Does that bother me? A little. I don’t want entitled brats. However, I do want kids that have the things they want and communicate their want and desires with me.
Will I change on how I get gift for them? I’m sure it’ll change as they grow up. The gifts they want will go from toys to what is useful, but how I want Christmas to be felt by them and the memories I want them to have wont change.
So, all this is great, but now your wondering how can you budget that much with whatever salary. How can you budget in for gifts, stocking stuffers, Christmas dinner, and everything else that comes with the holidays? Here is how we do it even as a single income family. Every year we learn a new trick to stretch our money and get what we want for them. Here are a few of the ways you can too.
Get Your Budget Set And Stick To It
I’ll admit this one we don’t alway follow. What we do though is make sure we budget near the end of the year. We get gifts and clothes here and there throughout the year but closer to Christmas we start budgeting and planning what we are getting and when.
Start Shopping Early
We do this every year. Starting within the first quarter of the year. That way it’s not as tight the last few months before Christmas. Like I said above we purchase gifts, clothes and stocking stuffers throughout.
Through The Year Have Them Make A Wish List
This lets you know what toys your kids are looking at. It allows you to take photos so you can set up a image folder of all their wants. Making it easier to pick things for them.
It also makes it so your not buying a lot of things when you’re out at stores on a whim. Those little purchases can eat into your yearly budget and usually those little gift are cheap and something they only play with for a few days and that’s it.
Create An Excel Sheet
Add the items from their wish list to an excel sheet (or numbers) and as you’re are buying stuff throughout the year you wont start forgetting what you purchased back in January. This is helpful is so many ways it keeps you from scrambling last minute, it allows you to know the budget and where to adjust. When you start add the product name, an image, a link, and cost/how much you spent after purchasing. Share it with your spouse so they know what to keep an eye out for and what you’ve each already purchased.
Consignment For Clothes
We do this every few months. There is a local consignment near us that sells only kids clothes, toys, and baby gear. You can find clothes with tags still on it. Most everything is in great shape and is a quarter of the price of what it sells for in stores. The way kids, especially the younger ones, grow through clothes or just plain wear them out there is no point in paying full price on all their clothes. Check your local area for something like this, Facebook marketplace, or sites like thredup.com.
Prepare A Place To Put It All
We run into this problem every year. We usually fill our small walk in closet with everything we get through the year and by Dec. we can’t get in there. Everything in packaging takes up space and if you are buying through the year you’ll need a space to store it all.
I suggest the large totes at Costco and label each one with who’s gifts are inside. You can even padlock it for those nosy lil children.
Keep An Eye Out For Price Drops
Stores like Target will price match up to 14 days after your purchase. So keep an eye out and if you see a drop in price be sure to get it adjusted. This is particularly useful near the end of the year when items go on sale multiple times near Christmas. We utilized this 2 last year.
Research When Items Typically Goes On Sale
To go along with the above make sure you research when items typically go on sale. You know Black Friday which is more of a 2 month sale now, cyber Monday which is easily a solid month long sale. There is back to school sales in the fall which is good for supplies and computer sales. January is great for toys. Places having semi annual sales and lots of toys are on clearance as retailers are trying to get rid of last years stuff for new inventory.
Let Them Know If It’ll Be Tight This Year
If your budget is tight this year, and your kids are old enough, letting them know in advance can help. If they want a laptop but you can’t budget it in this year let them know and maybe you can get it by their birthday next year but not for Christmas.
One Big Gift
What we do is each kids gets one big gift. A big hot wheels track, a doll house, or a collection of dolls and clothes. After that it’s small things, like surprise toys, accessories to go with the big gift, or something to go with a toy they already have.
Fruit In Stockings Makes A Great Filler
The other thing that can end up costing you more then you expect is stocking stuffers. You could be looking at $20-$30 if your not careful. You have the holiday candy, little toys, and other little items, and before you know it your $20 deep. What my mother use to do is stuff a nice large orange in the bottom and that takes up some space and is better source of vitamin C then candy.
What we use as fillers is bath bombs. The kids love them and you can find sets and split them up to between them.
Set Limits On Sibling Spending
This is another unexpected cost and something we started budgeting in for last year. With little ones we found it fun to take them shopping for each other.
I highly suggest setting a limit for each other. Little ones are adorable when shopping because they have no clue about prices. So telling them they have say $15 gives you power to say no if it is too high. They will push that limit too.
My son kept picking $50-$100 items because he wanted to give his sister something grand. In the end you can help them pick something, and have them help wrap it. It makes for a great gift exchange on Christmas morning and the gifts seem to mean much more to each other.
Look For Promo Codes
This is a hit and miss and that’s why it is near the bottom of the list. I don’t usually find anything grand but sometimes i get lucky with finding a 20% off promo code.
Sign Up For Email Discounts
You can find some good deals especially around the holiday’s. I find it best wait until you’re just about to purchase and sign up then. You’ll usually get a coupon just for signing up.
I get more email coupons for items I don’t use myself because I sign up for the ones that I buy as gifts. I’ve signed up for Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, William Sonoma, and Bath & Body Works. I’ve even signed up for Victoria Secret and trust me I would not look good wearing it.
Don’t Forget To Budget In Christmas Dinner
This one always seemed like a last minute thing for us. We learned to buy extra during the Thanksgiving Day sale. It helps so you’re not trying to budget in the full meal with the same paycheck as last minute shopping and bills.
These 15 tips have helped us budget 3 kids worth of presents year after year on a single income. Setting a budget and sticking to it regardless of your income is key, do that and follow the the other tips and you’ll have an easier less stressful time around the holiday.
If you found this helpful let me know it the Comments below and take a look at this other great post on how to deal with What to do when you run out of time wrapping Christmas gifts.
