How to Make a Christmas Gift-Giving Budget and Stick to It

You’ve probably already heard a thousand times how important it is to have a budget for your Christmas gift-giving. Having a budget allows you to plan for your holidays expenses and to keep them under control. However, having a budget and sticking to it are often very different things.

You have to be prepared to face many different temptations and pitfalls in order to stick to your holiday budget. Compulsive buys, unrealistic expectations, and lack of time can all wreak havoc on your careful planning. When creating your budget and getting your shopping done, be sure to keep these things in mind:

Start planning (and shopping) early. Starting early helps you build a solid gift-giving budget. You will have time to consider gift options for your friends and family and shop for a great price. And, you won’t fall victim to bad decisions caused by frantic last-minute shopping.

Build room in your budget for those necessary, but unforeseen, expenses like sales tax or shipping charges. You may find a great deal at your favorite website, but internet shopping often requires you to pay shipping charges. In the best circumstances, you will be able to use coupon codes to decrease or eliminate these charges. However you shop, online or in person, you should make plans to include the cost of sales tax in your budget.

Be flexible in your Christmas shopping whenever you can. You will find that there are some items that make their way to your shopping list that can’t be fudged. If your kids have their hearts set on a specific video game, you can’t exactly find a generic version of it. Less specific items may leave you a little more wiggle room. Look for similar products in the same color or style when shopping for home décor items, clothing, or kitchen goods.

Shop with cash. Going over your holiday budget is easy if you’re putting the total of your purchases onto plastic. There’s little to no pinch as you make your way through the checkout line. But, if you’re shopping with cash, you will know that you can only shop until the money runs out. That factor will make you much more cautious as you fork your hard-earned cash over to the cashier.

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