2026
9
UK Christmas Gift Buying Market Report 2026
2026-02-27T08:00:58+00:00
REP62F70534_C756_46B4_B705_34C756E6B42E
2195
191516
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Report
en_GB
Christmas gift spending in 2025 held steady, rising from £357 to £374, as consumers were determined to have a better Christmas than in 2024, helping gifting remain stable despite ongoing…
UK
Retail
simple

UK Christmas Gift Buying Market Report 2026

"Building on good Christmas 2025 engagement, retailers should prioritise meeting demand for unique and hard-to-find gifts in 2026. Featuring second-hand and locally made products can provide an opportunity."

Emily Viberg, Retail analyst

Emily Viberg, Retail analyst

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  1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

    • What you need to know
    • Outlook for Christmas 2026
    • Opportunities
    • Livestream shopping will bring gifters closer to smaller brands
    • Go beyond generic AI gifting recommendations
    • Lean on licenced partnerships to create unique product collaborations
    • Manage festive fatigue with caution
    • Time your Christmas promotions just right
  2. THE MARKET

    • Inflation persistent in key festive categories
    • Graph 1: inflation, overall index (CPI) and core categories, October-December 2025
    • A more muted December than expected
    • Graph 2: all retail sales, excluding fuel, non-seasonally adjusted, December 2021-25
    • Strong performance across key categories in December
    • Graph 3: key category performance, non-seasonally adjusted value and volume, December 2025
    • Stores capture the majority of non-food demand
    • Graph 4: estimated share of non-food sales, store versus online and other non-store, 2025
    • Multichannel retailers continue to lead share online sales in Q4
    • Graph 5: share of online sales, by type of retail operation, 2020-25
    • Gifting competes with warmer weather and out-of-home dining
    • Graph 6: challenges to Christmas gift buying behaviours, 2025
    • Directly target Christmas shoppers during Black Friday
  3. THE CONSUMER

    • Gift purchasing and spending in 2025
    • Fashion and beauty top gift lists in 2025
    • Gift spending driven by higher earners
    • Graph 7: average spend on Christmas gifts, by household income, 2023-25
    • Higher earners lead secondary gifting
    • November sees Christmas shopping ramp up…
    • Graph 8: when Christmas gift purchasing began, 2022-25
    • …but gift spending starts much earlier
    • Graph 9: which months Christmas gift shopping began and how much they spend, 2025
    • Balance early promotions without feeding festive fatigue
    • Christmas gifting inspiration
    • Nearly half of gift buyers find gifting inspiration in stores
    • More to be done for curated gifting areas in store
    • 16-34s are social-first and AI gift shoppers
    • Graph 10: where gift buyers find inspiration, by age group, 2025
    • Livestream shopping set to become a key gifting tool
    • Higher earners seek inspiration directly from recipients
    • Gift purchasing drivers
    • Gift buyers want unique gifts not found elsewhere
    • 16-34s want quicker and simpler ways to gift
    • Graph 11: what gift buyers want to see more of when gift shopping with retailers, by age group, 2025
    • Higher earners look for unqiue gifts not found elsewhere
    • Graph 12: what gift buyers want to see more of when gift shopping with retailers, 2025
    • Make locally made and second-hand gifts part of gifting USP
    • A focus on unique gifting ideas and ranges
    • A new take on advent calendars unlocks more gifting opportunities
  4. INNOVATION AND MARKETING

    • Gifting services enhance experience-led shopping
    • Exclusive partnerships give way to more in-store theatre
    • Retailers leverage partnerships to elevate stores
    • John Lewis launches teddy repair service
    • Boots weekly beauty gift sets engaged early Christmas shoppers
    • Elevate the gifting game for a good cause
    • Alternative Christmas baubles were prominent
    • Retailers acknowledge challenging economic backdrop in adverts
    • Episodic approach to adverts builds anticipation
  5. APPENDIX

    • The consumer
    • Consumer research questions
    • Consumer research methodology
    • Other data source methodologies
    • Snoop SpendMapper methodology
    • Abbreviations

UK Christmas Retail Overview – Trends and Insights

  • UK Christmas gift spending in 2025 held steady, rising from £357 to £374, as consumers were determined to have a better Christmas than in 2024, helping gifting remain stable despite ongoing inflation in the wide retail sector.
  • At the same time, cost pressures have deepened value-driven behaviour. This is reflected in record engagement with Black Friday as a budgeting tool. In 2025, 72% of shoppers bought Christmas gifts during Black Friday promotions – firmly positioning November as the month for kick-starting Christmas gift buying.
  • But the festive season is becoming increasingly polarised. One in four shoppers now wait until December to begin shopping, continuing the shift away from early ‘Christmas Creep’. Meanwhile, those who start as early as September or before spend significantly more on gifts. This highlights a critical challenge for retailers to strike a careful balance of capturing early gift buyers, while avoiding consumer overwhelm and fuelling festive fatigue.
  • By 2026, retailers that focus on stronger storytelling, personalised experiences, inspiration-driven store layouts, and seamless omnichannel discovery will be best positioned to thrive. As consumers head into the festive season looking for unique and thoughtfully presented gifts, these strategies will be key to capturing their attention and delivering value.

This Report Looks at the Following Areas:

  • The implications of consumers leaving gift buying later year-on-year for retailers and their festive strategies.
  • How Black Friday affects Christmas gift shopping and ways for retailers to differentiate themselves.
  • What consumers are looking for from retailers during the Christmas shopping season.
  • Opportunities to enhance the in-store gift shopping experience through curated spaces.
  • Why retailers should consider incorporating second-hand and locally made products into their 2026 Christmas offerings.
  • Artificial Intelligence and live streaming to become key gifting tools.
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