Year-to-year percentage of change in holiday retail sales in the U.S. 2002-2021

This statistic shows the year-over-year growth of holiday retail sales in the United States from 2000 to 2021. In 2021, holiday retail sales were forecast to grow by approximately 8.5 percent compared to the previous year. This was given as a conservative value. Forecast holiday season retail growth was expected to be within the 8.5 and 10.5 percent range.

Holiday season in the United States

The holiday season is just around the corner and it’s truly the best time of the year for both consumers and retailers of all shapes and sizes. Since the recession in 2008, Christmas holiday retail sales in the United States have grown steadily. In 2021, Christmas retail sales were forecast to grow to about 843.4 billion U.S. dollars. The amount of money that U.S. consumers plan to spend on gifts has fluctuated year to year.

Gift shopping

In the United States, consumers were more likely to select online stores when shopping for gifts for their loved ones. More than half of consumers in 2021 said that they were more likely to visit online retailers for holiday gifts. Mass retailers were also popular with half of respondents to the same survey. Most U.S. consumers would already begin their holiday shopping before Thanksgiving. Only a small fraction of consumers (12 percent) said they would start their holiday shopping in December.