Nearly Half Of Americans Expect To Borrow For Holiday Shopping. Some Will Still Be Paying In 2027.

Nearly half of Americans expect to borrow money to cover holiday purchases they cannot immediately afford, while almost one in four anticipate carrying that debt into 2027, even as retailers prepare for another season of rising consumer spending.

The findings come from the ICSC's 2026 Holiday Intentions Survey, which found that 49% of respondents expect to borrow for purchases they cannot pay for in full. Another 23% believe they will still be paying for this year's holiday purchases next year.

The survey, conducted online among 1,003 U.S. adults, also found that half of respondents expect existing personal or household debt to affect their holiday spending.

Despite those concerns, 88% plan to buy gifts or other holiday-related items, and 78% expect to spend at least as much as they did last year.

The willingness to maintain holiday traditions comes with financial tradeoffs. Nearly half of consumers surveyed expect holiday expenses to interfere with savings, retirement contributions or payments toward existing debt.

Among those surveyed, 49% expressed concern about affording gifts, even though 83% said they could keep up with essential household expenses.

Concerns about employment are also influencing purchasing decisions. The share of respondents who said worries about the job market would affect their holiday spending increased from 43% in 2025 to 49% this year.

The figures measure consumers' intentions rather than completed purchases or debt balances. The survey did not establish how much respondents expect to borrow or how long they would take to repay individual purchases.

Many consumers are planning to change how they shop instead of abandoning holiday purchases altogether. The ICSC survey found that 58% expect to try unfamiliar brands, while 52% plan to buy from retailers they have not previously used.

About 27% anticipate spending more time researching products and comparing prices because of budget concerns, and 25% expect to choose cheaper products or brands.

Even among respondents planning to increase their spending, more than four in 10 expect to buy fewer items, switch to lower-priced alternatives or purchase secondhand goods.

Those preferences are consistent with a more recent National Retail Federation survey, released Oct. 20, in which 56% of holiday shoppers said economic conditions would influence their plans.

Among those respondents, 43% intended to search for sales more frequently, 31% planned additional online price comparisons and 29% expected to use coupons more often.

The NRF survey, conducted among 8,094 U.S. adults between Oct. 1 and 7, also found that 43% of holiday shoppers planned to begin buying before November.

Of those starting early, half said they wanted to spread their purchases across a longer period to make the expenses easier to manage. Another 37% were motivated by attractive prices and promotions.

Holiday shopping is also increasingly extending beyond traditional gift purchases. In Deloitte's 2026 Holiday Retail Survey, shoppers said they expected to spend an average of $1,654 this season, up 4% from $1,595 last year.

The survey of 4,000 U.S. consumers, conducted between Aug. 26 and Sept. 10, found that spending on retail goods was expected to increase 10%, while budgets for holiday activities were projected to decline 4%.

Younger consumers are contributing significantly to that demand. Gen Z and millennials are expected to account for half of holiday spending among Deloitte's surveyed shoppers for the first time. Half of respondents also planned to give experiences, such as restaurant visits, as gifts, compared with 39% in 2024.

The prospect of financially stretched shoppers has not prevented retailers from forecasting higher sales. The National Retail Federation expects U.S. retail sales during November and December to rise 4.2% from last year to approximately $1.013 trillion.

That compares with $972 billion in 2025, when holiday sales grew 3.1%. The NRF forecast excludes automobile dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants.

Retailers are preparing for the seasonal demand by adjusting staffing levels. The NRF expects between 325,000 and 375,000 temporary retail hires this year, compared with an estimated 356,000 in 2025.

Consumers are also showing a willingness to visit physical stores when discounts make the trip worthwhile. In the ICSC survey, 68% said promotions and exclusive offers would encourage additional store visits, while 93% expected to visit a physical store to buy something or collect an online order.

That included 97% of Gen Z respondents, with nearly half of younger in-store shoppers describing holiday shopping as a social outing or an activity combined with dining and entertainment.

For retailers, those visits could provide opportunities beyond individual purchases. For shoppers, the immediate priority remains finding products and experiences that fit within their budgets.

ICSC also found that 61% of holiday shoppers intend to use AI tools to help with purchases, up from 47% in 2025. Price comparisons were the most common planned use, although 86% of those intending to use AI said they would conduct additional research before buying.