Winter holidays
$890.49
planned per person for 2025 winter-holiday gifts, food, decorations, and other seasonal items.
Source: National Retail Federation, 2025 Winter Holiday Consumer Spending Survey, October 16, 2025
Link to this statisticBack to A Gift From Ethan
Gift-giving reference
U.S. gift-giving statistics: 2026 spending and shopping trends.
Current figures for seasonal gifting, jewelry, personal care, and online shopping, gathered from public research and primary sources. Last updated October 2, 2026.
Gift giving is rarely only about the calendar. The figures below show how shoppers plan for winter holidays, Valentine’s Day, and Mother’s Day, along with the role online shopping plays in retail more broadly. Every statistic links to the study or public release that reported it.
These are survey findings and official estimates, not forecasts for A Gift From Ethan or a promise about any individual shopper.
The numbers
Nine current figures worth knowing.
Winter holidays
$627.93
of that planned spending was earmarked for gifts for family and friends.
Source: National Retail Federation, 2025 Winter Holiday Consumer Spending Survey, October 16, 2025
Link to this statisticWinter holidays
55%
of holiday shoppers planned to buy online, making digital shopping the leading holiday destination in the survey.
Source: National Retail Federation, 2025 Winter Holiday Consumer Spending Survey, October 16, 2025
Link to this statisticWinter holidays
50%
of consumers said gift cards were among the gifts they most wanted to receive. Clothing or accessories followed at 46%, and personal care or beauty items at 23%.
Source: National Retail Federation, 2025 Winter Holiday Consumer Spending Survey, October 16, 2025
Link to this statisticValentine’s Day
$29.1B
in expected U.S. Valentine’s Day spending for 2026, a record in the survey.
Link to this statisticValentine’s Day
83%
of Valentine’s Day celebrants planned to buy for a significant other. Another 58% planned gifts for family members and 33% for friends.
Link to this statisticValentine’s Day
$7B
in expected Valentine’s Day jewelry spending for 2026, the highest-spend gift category in the survey. Twenty-five percent of consumers planned to purchase jewelry.
Link to this statisticMother’s Day
$38B
in expected U.S. Mother’s Day spending for 2026. Shoppers budgeted $284 per person on average.
Source: National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics, Mother’s Day survey, 2026
Link to this statisticOnline retail context
17.1%
of total U.S. retail sales came from e-commerce in the second quarter of 2026, seasonally adjusted. E-commerce sales were up 12.2% from the same quarter a year earlier.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Quarterly Retail E-Commerce Sales, August 18, 2026
Link to this statisticWhat the data suggests
Thoughtful gifts keep their place in a practical shopping mix.
Across the surveys, shoppers are setting aside meaningful budgets for the people they care about, while choosing across a mix of gifts, experiences, and everyday luxuries. Jewelry remains a high-value Valentine’s Day category, and personal care or beauty items appear on many holiday wish lists.
For a small shop, that is a useful reminder that clear product details and a gift-ready presentation matter. The best choice is often not the biggest gesture. It is the item that feels considered for the person receiving it.
Sources and methodology
Where these figures came from.
This page uses the latest relevant public releases available on October 2, 2026. The winter-holiday and Valentine’s Day figures come from National Retail Federation surveys conducted with Prosper Insights & Analytics. Mother’s Day figures come from the National Retail Federation’s 2026 survey summary. The e-commerce figure comes from the U.S. Census Bureau’s seasonally adjusted quarterly retail report.
- National Retail Federation, 2025 Winter Holiday Consumer Spending Survey, October 16, 2025
- National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics, Valentine’s Day survey, January 27, 2026
- National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics, Mother’s Day survey, 2026
- U.S. Census Bureau, Quarterly Retail E-Commerce Sales, August 18, 2026