GAINESVILLE, Fla., Dec. 10, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- CardRates.com, a leading online site for smart credit card information, announced today the results of its Holiday Gift Shopping Survey* (fielded Nov. 28, 2018), which shows that 78% of consumers will shop for holiday gifts in December, and 45% still have 75% or more of their gifts to purchase. One in 4 survey respondents said they hadn't even started shopping for gifts this year.
Credit Cards Buy More Gifts than Any Other Payment Source
The survey revealed that credit cards (37%) are the most frequent method of payment consumers will use to make gift purchases in December, followed by cash (31%), online payment services (4%), checks (3%), and cryptocurrency (2%).
While more than 6 in 10 consumers said they will use credit cards for some of their holiday purchases in December, a closer look reveals specific credit card use varies:
- 20% of shoppers said they'll use credit cards for ALL gifts
- 13% of respondents said three-quarters of gift shopping will be with credit cards
- 9% said they'll use credit cards for HALF of all gift shopping
- 5% said credit cards will pay for 25% of all gifts
- 12% said they'll use credit cards for less than 25% of all their holiday shopping
- 2% plan to use credit cards only for large and/or expensive purchases
- 39% of holiday shoppers said they would NOT USE credit cards at all this season
The extra security provided by using a credit card may be a motivator for some users; the survey found that 17% of cardholders use a credit card primarily for online purchases, and around 4% of users took advantage of a virtual credit card for extra protection. Roughly 6% of respondents said they planned to use a mobile wallet to make in-store or online purchases, and just 2% will use tap-and-go or contactless cards for their holiday shopping.
Holiday Gift Shopping Can Be Rewarding
The survey also found that one-third of holiday shoppers who use a credit card will rely on their only card, while most consumers with more than one card will use the card that earns the most rewards for their purchase. Surprisingly, less than 2% of card users prioritize purchase protection when choosing a card for holiday spending.
"Rewards can add up quickly during holiday spending," said Ashley Dull, editor in chief at CardRates.com. "If you're using credit cards without rewards to buy gifts in December, you could be missing out on savings that can be applied as credit toward your card payments or future purchases."
Speaking of rewards, 62% of consumers looking to save on holiday gift purchases in December will not redeem credit card rewards. But, for those who do use rewards:
- 16% - use cash back as a credit to pay for gifts
- 6% - use points/miles for gifts and/or gift cards
- 6% - use cash back to pay for holiday travel
- 4% - use points/miles to pay for holiday travel
- 6% - use store card offers to save on purchases
Finally, more than three quarters (76%) of holiday shoppers said they do not take advantage of credit card issuer shopping portals or partner deals, while 8% reported using them for every holiday purchase, another 8% said they use it for some of their shopping, 5% reported using portals or partner deals only for large/expensive purchases, and 3% said they only use them for travel.
*Survey Methodology: CardRates.com polled more than 500 website users of all genders between ages 18 and 75 in the last week of November 2018 in the Google Surveys Publisher Network.
See survey results at: https://www.cardrates.com/news/2018-holiday-gift-shopping-survey/
About CardRates: CardRates.com provides education about credit cards to more than 12 million consumers of all ages, advising them on the best card for every financial situation, including cards with the best rates, the highest limits, and how to make better credit and personal finance decisions.
SOURCE CardRates
Share this article