'Gifts don't have to be expensive': How Aussies are navigating the festive season

Buying Christmas presents doesn't always mean we have to burn our pockets. But amid the rising cost of living how do Aussies navigate this festive season?

Majority of Australians (51%) are looking forward to Christmas this year, but Aussies are becoming savvier saying they will shop the end of year sales to bag some bargain gifts. Source: AAP / JAMES GOURLEY/AAPIMAGE

Key Points

• Majority of Australians (51%) are looking forward to Christmas this year.
• Aussies are becoming savvier saying they will shop the end of year sales to bag some bargain gifts, with November’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales being the most popular.
• To avoid the physical Christmas rush, 85% of Australians, including Gee Magno, will buy end-of-year gifts online this year.

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With Christmas and the festive season fast approaching, Australians are thinking about how to navigate their Christmas shopping without blowing the budget this year, amid the rising cost of living.

"I have sale notification sent to my email so I know when the next sale is. There's the end-of-financial year, Black Friday among others," says Gee Magno.

The mum-of-two and community leader is among majority of Australians finding ways to be savvier with the Christmas spending this festive season.

Two-thirds (68%) of Aussies say they will shop the end of year sales this year to bag some bargain gifts, with November’s Black Friday sales event followed by Cyber Monday being the most popular. Credit: Steve Buissinne from Pixabay

"You don't have to always buy expensive gifts as long as you get something nice and useful," points Gee Magno.

"I don't give gifts just for the sake of giving gifts. I always think is it worth it, will the receiver like it. You don't want to waste the gift, your money and effort in buying presents," stresses the Sydneysider.

According to the recent Paypal Christmas Spending Report, more than half of Australians (56%) feeling the pinch of cost-of-living pressures and one-in-five Aussies (21%) saying they find the festive season stressful.

But, majority of Australians (51%) are looking forward to Christmas this year – the first one in recent years not hampered by any COVID-related restrictions.

The report furthers that two-thirds (68%) of Aussies say they will shop the end of year sales this year to bag some bargain gifts, with November’s Black Friday (48%) sales event followed by Cyber Monday (33%) being the most popular.

To avoid the hassle of a physical Christmas rush, 85% of Australians will buy end-of-year gifts online this year. Credit: Cottonbro Studio on Pexels

Additionally, to avoid the physical Christmas rush, 85% of Australians will buy end-of-year gifts online this year, and about half of us (49%) think they’ll have bought the bulk of our Christmas gifts before the end of November.

"Among the few tactical Christmas shopping strategies Aussies looking to employ this year," says Danielle Grant, a consumer shopping Expert from Paypal Australia.

For Gee Magno, since the pandemic hit, she's been doing all her shopping online. It's easier for her to compare prices from different websites.

Shopping expert Danielle Grant points to the advantages of online shopping.

"It's a great way to fill your carts with more gifts or more groceries at a lower cost."

"No matter where you look at the moment, something is on sale and there are so many that are gonna be leading up to Black Friday and Cyber Monday."

But experts encourage Australians to practice safe online shopping strategies and keeping their financial details secure by using a trusted payment method.