Gartner Marketing Survey Finds Nearly 60% of U.S. Consumers Have Less to Spend This Holiday Season

Financial pressure and earlier shopping behaviors are changing the 2026 holiday season strategies for marketers. 

Nearly 60% of consumers have less to spend on holiday purchases than they did last year, while 57% said they were planning to begin winter holiday shopping in October or earlier, according to a Gartner survey of 1,004 US consumers conducted in August 2026.

We spoke with Emily Weiss, Sr Principal Analyst in the Gartner Marketing practice, about how changing consumer spending and shopping behaviors are affecting what marketers should do in response. 

Journalists who would like to speak with Emily regarding this topic can contact Juliette.Dixon@gartner.com. Members of the media can reference this material in articles with proper attribution to Gartner.

A: Consumers are becoming more selective and deliberate about holiday spending. Two-thirds plan to shop for fewer friends and family members this year, while 32% plan to spend less on winter holiday gifts overall.

For marketers, this means greater competition for a smaller share of consumer wallets. Price will matter, but marketers should not focus on prices alone. Brand reputation remains an important purchase consideration, so marketers need to communicate value while continuing to reinforce trust.

A: Consumers are stretching the holiday season even earlier, with 30% of consumers beginning as early as September. This extends the consideration period and requires marketers to engage consumers earlier than they might assume is standard for holiday campaign schedules.

Marketers should consider multiple activation waves that reflect how consumers research, plan and purchase gifts throughout the season, while retaining enough flexibility to adjust promotions, messaging and creative as conditions change.

A: Consumers appear more comfortable using AI to support the early stages of the shopping journey rather than turning decision making over to AI entirely. Interest in AI-assisted gift discovery and recommendations is emerging, but traditional search, retailer websites, marketplaces and physical stores still play a central role in how consumers research and purchase holiday gifts.

For marketers, the near-term opportunity is not to treat AI as a replacement for established shopping channels. Instead, brands should make sure their products can be easily discovered and evaluated when consumers incorporate AI into their research. Product information should be clear, detailed and consistent across both AI-powered and traditional search environments.