Inflation is impacting how Americans plan to spend during the holidays, according to the new CNBC All-America Economic Survey.
The survey found that 41% of Americans plan to spend less for the holidays this year, six percentage points higher than a year ago.
Among those spending less, 46% blame the high cost of goods, a 10-point increase from the 2024 survey, CNBC said.
According to the survey, 36% of those spending more say it is because of high prices, an 11-point increase from last year.
In previous economies, most Americans said they spent more because they were earning more and the economy was in good shape.
Most of those surveyed, 61%, said they believe prices are rising faster than their incomes.
Americans plan to spend on average $1,016 this year on holiday gifts, roughly flat with last year, the survey found.
The poll found that 60% have a pessimistic view of the current state of the economy and are downbeat about where they believe the economy is headed, the highest level since December 2023.
The percentage who are optimistic about the present and the future ticked down by three points, according to the survey.
Democrats and independents are overwhelmingly pessimistic about the economy, while 53% of Republicans also say they feel pessimistic about the economy, according to the survey.
The CNBC survey showed that 28% of the public say they only buy discounted items, while half look for discounted items but will purchase what they are after anyway.
Americans are also carrying more debt, with 57% saying they have at least some debt going into the holiday shopping season, up 11 points from last year, according to the survey.
The survey of 1,000 people nationwide was conducted between Dec. 4 and Dec. 8 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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