Consumers to spend an average £1,522 this Christmas

Consumers are expected to spend an average £1,522 each during the festive season, with the most money being spent on Christmas getaways, gifts and hosting parties, research from American Express reveals.

On average, consumers are predicted to spend £458 on Christmas getaways, which is followed by £312 on gifts and £124 on hosting parties, the research found. In addition to this, consumers are also planning to spend money on travel (£119), gatherings (£112), new clothes (£112), festive experiences (£108), Christmas Day food shopping (£102) and Christmas decorations (£75).

Those hoping to save money on their festive spending may be planning to take advantage of discounts available on Black Friday, which takes place this coming Friday. This is supported by research from Nationwide Building Society, which found that 22% of consumers see the Black Friday weekend as the start of their Christmas shopping and are hoping to pick up some bargains. Those who have already started their Christmas shopping are also expected to be hitting the shops this Friday. In fact, research carried out by Yorkshire Building Society found that nine in 10 (91%) of consumers plan to make a purchase in this year’s Black Friday event, with the average shopper’s spend expected to be £200.

According to Yorkshire Building Society, 44% of Black Friday shoppers are expecting to put their purchases on a credit card. For consumers who are able to pay off the full balance on their credit card, using a card that offers rewards could help them to reap extra benefits from their Christmas shopping and research from American Express found that 23% of their year’s Christmas shoppers will redeem loyalty points, cashback and rewards.

Consumers looking for a rewards credit card this Christmas will find Tesco Bank currently at the top of our rewards credit card chart offering 9.9% APR on its Clubcard Credit Card with Low APR Mastercard, which allows spenders to earn Tesco Clubcard points for spending on your card. Creation Financial Services is second in the chart with its Maximiles Mastercard that has 0% purchase rate for three months and enables cardholders to earn Maximiles points. This card has a 17.9% APR. The Co-operative Bank is third in the chart with its Members’ Credit Card Visa that offers 1p cashback per £2 spent on Co-op food stores and has an 18.3% APR.

For those planning to use a credit card to meet the costs of their Christmas spending and who are unable to pay off the full balance on their credit card, a 0% purchase credit card could be a good option. MBNA Limited sits at the top of our 0% purchase credit card chart offering 0% for 26 months on purchases made in the first 60 days on its 0% Transfer and Purchase Credit Card Mastercard. Santander is second in the chart offering 0% on purchases for 26 months with its All in One Credit Card Mastercard. This card also offers 0.5% on cashback on purchases. Third in the chart is Barclaycard, which offers 0% on purchases for 25 months on its Platinum All-Rounder Visa.