Listen closely: Can you hear it in the distance? It’s the sound of the holidays approaching! Bells are chiming, children are laughing, and if you really strain your ears, you’ll even catch the gentle jingle-jangle of your last two pennies rubbing together after it’s all over. Because, while many of us have already started counting down to the food, family time, and good vibes, the holiday season can do some serious damage to our bank accounts.
But there are ways to save money and not break your budget. The Nice News team put our heads together, reached out to our most thrifty and holiday spirit-filled friends, and scoured expert financial advice to curate a list of tips and tricks. They range from making use of cash-back apps to avoiding the “shopping momentum effect” and going the activity route for your Advent calendar.
Set a Budget
First things first. You can’t know how much is too much if you don’t sit down and really take stock of your finances beforehand. First State Bank recommends splitting your budget into categories like gifts, decorations, food and drinks, travel, and activities. Of course, once you set your spending limits, the tricky part is sticking to them — so maybe recruit an accountability buddy to help you stay on track.
Here’s a handy online worksheet that allows you to set a time period, income, and expenses.
Use Cash-Back Programs
Speaking of apps, Nice News Managing Editor Natalie Stone has been a longtime proponent of the app Rakuten as a simple way to score cash back. She got this writer on board, and now we’re passing the word on to you. In some ways, the app is almost too good to be true. You just sign up, shop at participating stores (there are over 3,500) through Rakuten’s links, and get cash back every three months. Other cash-back programs include Fetch Rewards and Ibotta, and you can cross-check rates with participating stores for each one at cashbackmonitor.com.
Avoid the “Shopping Momentum Effect”
Just like with Newton’s first law, a shopper in motion stays in motion — at least according to a phenomenon dubbed the “shopping momentum effect.” It occurs “when an initial purchase provides a psychological impulse that enhances the purchase of a second, unrelated product,” and so on and so forth. You can mitigate the effect by setting rules for yourself before you hit the mall, like you’ll only buy such and such object if it’s under a certain price, making sure you know what you’re looking for ahead of time, and walking out of a store for a few minutes if you feel temptation creeping in.
Also, Avoid “Resource Depletion”
According to Brian Harman, a lecturer in marketing, and Janine Bosak, a professor of organizational psychology, studies suggest that humans have “limited reserves of willpower,” and as we make decisions throughout the day, our reserves become exhausted. This leads us to experience “resource depletion,” which can cause us to act impulsively — like suddenly needing to buy that $200 cashmere sweater right next to the checkout stand at Nordstrom.
In an article on the psychology of overspending for The Conversation, Harman and Bosak suggest shopping early in the day when your resource supply is high, and minimizing other sources of stress, like big crowds, that can also deplete your store.
Scale Back on Subscriptions
Far be it from us to suggest you don’t need a subscription to every single streaming service — but pausing a few during the fall and winter months could put a couple hundred bucks back into your pocket, depending on how many you pay for. Bonus: If you do start them up again in January, you’ll have a backlog of content to binge (just avoid spoilers while you’re out of the loop).
If you don’t want to scale back, it’s still worth investigating whether you’re getting the best bundle. Consider doing a check of all the options out there to ensure you’re not overpaying.
Start Tracking Prices Now
According to Bank of America, sometimes big event sales like Black Friday aren’t as incredible as they appear to be in terms of actual savings. The best way to find out if something’s price has been significantly reduced is to track it for a few weeks or months, so you know what it normally goes for. That’s not to say there aren’t great deals on Black Friday, but you can’t be sure you’re lucking out if you don’t know a product’s price history.
Have specific people you buy gifts for every year? Ask them what’s on their wishlist far in advance, so you can research prices and get the best deals when they drop.
Join a Buy Nothing Group
If you’re not already in a Buy Nothing group, now is definitely the time to join. Delineated by neighborhood, these free groups allow you to pick up things you need and give away things you don’t (sadly, much of what gets donated to thrift stores ends up in the trash, according to waste expert and viral “Trash Walker” Anna Sacks). That could be decorations, unopened ingredients, extra seating for guests, wrapping paper, anything. You can typically post “Asks” that state what you need, and often a neighbor will come through.
Go the Activity Route With Your Countdown Calendar
Whether you’re counting down Advent, the days until Kwanzaa, or the seconds until the new year, marking each passing moment is a fun way to get excited. But as much as we love a fancy Advent calendar, creating your own with experiences is arguably more exhilarating than the daily piece of chocolate. Example: Write 24 movies or games down on slips of paper, and each night, have a member of the family choose one out of a hat. Then watch or play together (preferably while snacking on cookies).
Here are some more advent activity ideas.
Shop (and Sell) Secondhand
Holidays are unfortunately big generators of waste: One 2021 study found that Americans who partake in a winter holiday create an extra 30 pounds of trash a week during the celebratory season. That’s why it’s so helpful for the planet and your pocketbook to buy secondhand, either in-person or online through Facebook Marketplace and similar platforms.
Get Crafty With Decorations
If you love turning your entire house into a festive scene but don’t want to contribute to landfill waste or break the bank buying decorations, it’s time to get crafty.
A friend of the writer’s offered up the upside-down tomato cage decor trick
When you’re in craft mode, old holiday sweaters become brand-new pillow covers; upside-down tomato cages from your garden become wire Christmas trees; and the little bits of ribbon from your gift wrapping drawer become cheery flourishes on wall art or door knockers.
You can also check out the discard pile at your local Christmas tree lot (or just take a stroll in your local forest) for branches and pines to make good-smelling sachets and other decorations. For people who celebrate Hanukkah, check out these fun ideas for DIY decorating.
Get Crafty With Gifts
Homemade gifts have the benefit of not breaking your budget while also showing just how much you care about the people you love. Pomander balls, jars of potpourri, succulent or herb planters, and naturally scented mason jar candles are all great DIY gifts.
Let Your Decor Collection Evolve Naturally
It can be tempting to go all out the first year you host Thanksgiving or Christmas, but don’t feel pressured for your home to be as decked out as grandma’s (or your fave influencer).
There’s something special about pulling out items you’ve collected over the years or that have sentimental value. One Christmas you can buy yourself a simple wreath, the next you can purchase (or might receive as gifts) some picks — small, stemmed decorations like berries or flowers — to place on it. If you want a Christmas village near your tree, for example, start with one or two little houses you love, then add a couple each year until you have a whole neighborhood.
Eat (and Drink) In
The holidays are often when people catch up with friends they haven’t seen in a while, but that doesn’t mean every meeting needs to be at an expensive restaurant. Make meals or do cocktails at home (with a cute, themed vibe) or schedule a coffee shop and holiday lights stroll (you grab a cuppa and then walk around with it while admiring the lights).
Drop the “It’s the Holidays!” Mentality
This one is a toughie — because after all, it is the holidays! But although the season sometimes feels like a fantasy that stretches from Halloween to the new year, the money we spend is very real, as are the versions of ourselves that awake on Jan. 2 to find that our holiday personas decimated our savings.
So try to remember that making smart financial choices in the coming months can help you get off on the right foot with your 2026 savings goals.
RELATED: The Science of Great Gift-Giving: How to Select the Best Presents, According to Research
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