How to Save Money on Christmas Shopping

With Christmas around the corner and the cost of living crisis in full swing it can be a challenge to find the budget you want to buy. In an effort to help you spend less but still have a fantastic Christmas, here are 10 ways to save money.

Christmas for us is about spending a fantastic time with people that we love. Saving money isn’t always about buying less, often it is about purchasing smartly and optimising all the ways you can save. It means planning ahead as it is hard to save if you are a last-minute shopper!

Don’t buy for buying Sake.

Plan – don’t be one of those people that buy the gift, wrap it and then forget what they have purchased! Keep a list (I have a spreadsheet) showing what you have bought, how much it cost and where you have stored it.

We have a reciprocal agreement with our siblings that we only buy for our nieces and nephews rather than everyone in the family. This works really well and stops us all from buying loads of gifts and really helps with our Christmas budget. It can cost a lot of money if you are buying for extended family so suggest a family Secret Santa instead. You don’t need to buy gifts for every family member, as the important thing is the time spent together.

Budget

Now this might be too late for this year, but going forward, set aside an amount each month to pay for Christmas, so you have all your expenses covered. You can even buy your Christmas cards and wrapping paper in the January sales – just remember what you have bought and where you have stored them!

Set a Spending Limit

Be realistic on what you can afford, set a spending limit and stick to it. Once you have your budget set, don’t get swept up in the Christmas spirit and start buying extras.

Get the best deal on wanted gifts

Once you know what you need to buy then look at ways you can save on your holiday shopping. Make the most of the discounts you can get.

• Always use a voucher code site – when shopping online coupon code sites can give you between 5% and 20% off on average by giving you a promotional code.
• Use a cash back site such as Quidco and TopCashBack that rewards you to earn as you spend.
• Purchase at the right time – Look for deals around holiday sales such as Black Friday or Cyber Monday.
• Use a cashback credit card (but always pay off the balance).
• Use a price tracking tool. Sales and special offers always come up, so it’s hard to know whether a deal is good value.  Camelcamelcamel.co.uk is an excellent browser extension for tracking prices on Amazon. 
• Exploit price matching policies. If you shop somewhere like Asda you can really make the most of price-matching. If they are not the cheapest by 10%, they refund you the difference between its price and 10% less than the cheapest competitor out there.
• Buy a voucher. Using an app such as Jam Donouht.  You can purchase a gift card for the store of your choice at a discounted price. You can often get gift vouchers for less than face value at Costco too.

Give the Gift of Time

Rather than a physical gift why not give the gift of your time. You can make some vouchers for baby sitting, lawn mowing, pet sitting, dog walking, house cleaning, shopping or cooking. I would love it if I received the gift of time for some help with hanging shelves!

Second Hand is Not Second Best

Not only are pre loved gifts often cheaper, they are great for our planet too. Chilldren grow out of toys and clothes so fast, so look for second hand to spread that holiday spending further. Ebay, local facebook pages, charity shops and friends can be great sources for quality second hand gifts and it also means non of that trying to buy toys on Christmas Day!

What can you make?

Homemade gifts are a wonderful way to save money and also are really well received.  I know I would rather receive something that thought has gone into rather than just something from a shop. Check out these great last-minute homemade edible gifts. If you are creat at crafting why not put those skills to use.

Re-gifting

I promise there’s nothing wrong with giving away a gift you once received and never used. If you have no reason to keep it and you think someone else would appreciate it more, give it away. Spread that joy.

Donate

Instead of buying novelty gifts for your family or friends who already have what they need, suggest a group donation to an organization in your community. You can save some money and feel good about giving back.

Give the gift of experiences

Experiences bring more happiness than things.  So why not give the gift of a number of experiences throughout the year, spreading the cost.  Such as a trip to the cinema, rock climbing or a family meal out.