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How to budget for the Holidays…..let’s have a fantastic holiday season, without overspending!

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Plus, if you need some help organizing your holiday budget & gift lists, grab your free Holiday Budget Printable when you sign up to my email list!

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I’ve got a fast & furious post for you on how to budget for the Holidays, plus some gifting tips!

How To Budget For The Holidays

 

1. Decide how much you are willing to spend for the Holidays.

Ideally, decide in January so you have all year to plan ahead.  A good start is to look at last year’s total and see if you can chip away at that number by 10% or so.

 

What’s on the Holiday Budget:

• Gifts
• Food
• Decorations
• Holiday Card & Gift Shipping Costs
• Travel, if any
• Vacation time – If you are taking UNPAID time off, you should add that “missed-work” money into your budget

 

Obviously, the dollar amount (how much money) that is going into each category is entirely up to you.  It depends on how much disposable income you have, how much debt you have, and how much of a priority the holidays in general are for you and your family.

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2. Be realistic about the budget amount in your “Gifts” category.

The truth is that things cost money.  If you are buying for 10-15 friends and relatives, plus 2-3 kids, the gift budget alone is going to be a significant number.  That DOESN’T mean the number is bad, as long as you are spending within your means. 

On the other hand, you may find that there is not enough money for expensive gifts this year.  There is no need to feel guilty about this!  If you are stretching too far, consider DIY gifts for more distant family & friends, and save the bulk of the gift money for the immediate family. 

A truly thoughtful gift for friends and family are a small package of these DIY eucalyptus shower steamers.  They are like bath bombs except you toss them in the shower.  Cold & cough season is upon us and I would be insanely grateful for a batch of these. 

If you are nervous about slipping in the shower, leave a little note for the person to place them in a little plastic dish in the shower, so it won’t melt & spread across the floor. 

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3. Ask people what they want!

It will save you a lot of time wandering around stores or scrolling online.

Take kids to a store and pass by the toy aisles.  Take pictures of what they pick up or what they say they want to buy.

Here are a few of my Gift Guides if you still need some inspiration:

• If Marie Kondo had an Advent Calendar, Here’s What Would Be In It
• 12 Perfect Christmas Gift Ideas that Double as Small Space Organizers
• 50 Gifts Stay at Home Moms Will DEFINITELY Use and Love!
• The Best Personal Finance Books If You Want Real Wealth This Year

 

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4. Break up that Holiday Budget total by the amount of time you have until the Holidays.

If you are starting early, terrific!

For example, if you are starting in January:

$1,000 total in budget divided by 11 = $90.90.  That’s how much you set aside each month for your Holiday budget.

If you are trying to pull money together in the middle of the season, don’t panic! If you forgot to budget, check out my post here for some out-of-the-box ideas to bring in a little more gift money, quickly.

An easy tip is cashing in any credit card rewards points for gift cards, either to gift to people, or to use for gift shopping!

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5. Have a separate bank account, or envelope, for “Holiday Budget” savings.

This separate account/envelope is ideally in a place you won’t be tempted to take from. I’m currently trying out the Capital One 360 high-interest savings account. It gives you a high interest rate on the main savings account, then lets you open several sub-accounts, so you can separate your savings by category.

I know for myself that if I keep cash in an envelope in the house, I will be tempted to use it if I need, say a $5 bill or a $20 bill for a class trip or something.  Then I’ll forget how much I took & it messes up the whole process.  So, I like to keep these kinds of savings categories in the bank.

But, if you are good with cash envelopes, it’s very easy to throw bills in there once a week!

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6. Don’t start shopping too early, because:

1. Usually there are a ton of sales & coupons around the holidays.
2. You don’t want the return policy to expire.
3. You don’t want to forget what you purchased.
4. It’s easy to be done spending early, then see that you have money during big sales and be tempted to spend that money anyway.

Video games & consoles is the exception.  I get burned by this every year.  Popular or new video games & consoles will sell out.  you’ll find yourself on craigslist with a questionable seller. 

On top of that, most popular companies like Nintendo don’t run sales on their games or consoles.  At most they’ll create bundles, with games that your kids don’t care about. 

Shop around for the best price, and buy it within a time frame when you are able to return it after the holidays, if there is a problem.

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7. Make Sure You Are Prepared to Shop The SALES.

No matter when you decide to shop, make sure your credit card info is current on the sites you are trying to score sales on.  There’s nothing worse than clicking that “place order” button and getting kicked back.

An obvious example is Amazon’s RIDICULOUS Black Friday sales across the board, ESPECIALLY for toys & electronics on Cyber Monday.

Make sure you:

• Are all signed up for Amazon Prime (They have a 30 day Free Trial),
• Are at least on the email list for any other stores whose sales you are planning on shopping; and
• Have funds available on your Debit or Credit Card.

For more tips on how to fully prepare yourself for Black Friday & Cyber Monday online, make sure to read this post here.

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8. Don’t forget shipping costs.

This includes your holiday cards!  I can’t believe mailing one card costs 50 cents.  If you have 10 people on your list, that’s an extra $5.00.  If you have 20, that’s an extra TEN DOLL HAIRS!!  It adds up!

If money is tight this year, consider signing up for a free trial of an email-card service like Blue Mountain.

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9. Spread the food budget around.

Each person can come to the Holiday table with an appetizer, salad, side, or dessert.  This saves you time, money and Holiday-day kitchen stress.

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10. Keep a Record!!

Here’s where it ALL comes together.  You have to keep a running tab of all of your awesome work.  It’s very easy for me to forget:

• How much I have saved in total in my holiday budget,
• what gifts I already bought and for whom,
• how much I was planning on spending per person, etc.

That’s why I use a Holiday Budget & Gifts checklist:

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It’s yours when you sign up to my email list!

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Conclusion:

Being unprepared when the holidays come at you can be really stressful.  It’s especially hard to tackle financially, and very easy to end up with huge credit card bills in January. 

But not this year!  I hope keeping a Holiday Budget makes less headache & more fun time for everyone! 

What’s the most stressful part of the holidays for you?  Let me know in the comments!

 

XO,

-Mina

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P.S.: Checkout my other Blog Posts & be sure to follow me on Pinterest, I have TONS more great content!!

Here are some more posts that might be helpful:

• The Ultimate Guide to Set Financial Goals
• Don’t Miss It! How to Prepare for Black Friday & Cyber Monday Deals
• How to Finally Declutter Your Halloween Costumes

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