Higher Prices Drive a $737 Holiday Budget as Shoppers Turn to AI for Deals
Accenture’s 20th Annual Holiday Shopping Survey puts the average 2026 gift budget at $737, with 53% of the shoppers raising their budgets pointing at higher prices. Among shoppers planning to use generative AI for the season, 39% want it for finding deals.
US consumers expect to spend an average of $737 on holiday gifts in 2026, up close to 12% from 2025, according to the 20th Annual Holiday Shopping Survey from Accenture, which surveyed 4,048 US consumers between August 14 and August 28. When Accenture asked the people raising their budgets why, 53% pointed at the price tag on everything else in their lives. Accenture previewed the findings in Mass Market Retailers, with the full holiday research due out in mid-October.
What the Survey Found
Thirty-one percent of shoppers expect their holiday budgets to go up in 2026, and 19% expect to spend less. Among the group planning to spend more, 53% said they are doing it because “the cost of everything has gone up.” Eighteen percent expect their disposable income to improve this season, down from 32% in 2025.
Is the $737 average a spending boom? More than half of the budget-raisers blame prices, and 18% of all consumers expect their disposable income to improve, so a bigger budget can mean paying more for a similar list of gifts. A retailer in that season can watch revenue climb while unit counts hold flat.
“Consumers are feeling the squeeze this holiday season, but they’re not giving up on spending. Instead, they’re becoming more intentional, seeking out promotions, comparing options and looking carefully at where they can get the most for their money,” said Kath Gramling, Accenture’s global Consumer Goods, Retail and Travel lead.
The intentional spending Gramling describes is heading to mass merchants and warehouse clubs, where close to half of consumers plan to buy gifts. Clothing and accessories are expected to draw holiday spending from 52% of shoppers, with food and beverage treats and gift cards or vouchers tied at 49%.
Two Kinds of Holiday Shopper
The $737 average hides a split, with Accenture identifying a group it calls “Luxury Indulgers,” who expect to spend an average of $956, close to 30% above the overall figure. Accenture’s Macro Foresight analysis backs that divide with income data, finding year-over-year spending growth among high-income US consumers at 2.5%, against 0.5% to 1% among low- and middle-income consumers.
A merchant planning promotions is selling to both groups in the same season, a high-income shopper whose spending is growing at 2.5% and a middle-income shopper whose budget grew on paper to cover higher prices.
Holiday Shopping Is Starting Earlier
Timing moved too, with 18% of consumers saying they started holiday shopping before August, close to twice the share Accenture reported in 2025. Nine in 10 plan to start before Black Friday and Cyber Monday, compared with three in four in 2025.
“The holiday shopping season is no longer defined by a handful of peak shopping days,” said Kelly Askew, Accenture’s global Retail lead. “The reality is that holiday budgets are being allocated earlier than ever.”
A budget that gets allocated in September is gone by the time a November doorbuster goes live. Retailers who build the season around one weekend are competing for whatever is left in the account by the time that weekend arrives.
What Shoppers Want AI to Do
Among consumers planning to use generative AI for holiday shopping, 39% expect to use it to find deals, 31% to compare options and 30% to decide where to buy. Thirty-two percent expect AI to help them find the best value for their money, and 27% believe it will help them save money.
Deals, comparisons and where to buy put the AI between the shopper and the retailer. The shopper hands the AI a question about value and lets it narrow the field, which puts a merchant’s pricing, promotions and product data in front of a machine that is comparing them against the competition before a person lands on a product page. What happens to a store the assistant never surfaces? When 30% of AI-using shoppers plan to let AI help decide where to buy, a store whose current prices and offers the assistant cannot read drops out of the shortlist. The shopper never learns it was an option.
The same pull toward price showed up in August, when shoppers using cashback tools told researchers they plan to spend 30% more this holiday season.
Methodology
Accenture conducted its 20th Annual Holiday Shopping Survey among 4,048 US consumers between August 14 and August 28, 2026. The figures in this post come from the preview Accenture released ahead of its full holiday research, which is scheduled for mid-October.
About Accenture
Accenture is a global professional services company working across strategy, consulting, technology and operations. Its annual holiday research tracks US consumer spending plans, shopping channels and timing, and the 2026 wave is the 20th edition of the survey.
