TULSA, Okla. — Now that we're deep in the holiday shopping season, it's time to take a step back and consider how deep we're willing to go in debt — and consider how long it takes to pay off holiday spending.
Just over one-in-three of us took on debt to pay for the holidays in 2024, spending an average of $1,181. That's up 15% from the year before, according to LendingTree.
NerdWallet found 28% of credit card users are still paying off gifts from last year.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Five-Year Historical Trend (2019-2024) According to LendingTree's historical data:
- 2024: 36% of consumers went into debt, averaging $1,181
- 2023: 34% of consumers went into debt, averaging $1,028
- 2022: 35% of consumers went into debt, averaging $1,549 (the highest on record)
- 2021: 36% of consumers went into debt
2020-2019: Data shows the trend was generally lower, with the pandemic years showing different spending patterns
The data shows 2022 had the highest average debt at $1,549, while 2023 saw a significant 34% decrease to $1,028, but 2024 rebounded with the $1,181 average.
2025 SPENDING
"Holiday shoppers are planning to spend, on average, nearly $200 more than they spent last year on gift purchases," said Sara Rathner, a NerdWallet credit cards expert.
If you're putting those purchases on your credit card and can't pay the balance at the end of the month, consider how much interest adds to the tab. Forty-two percent of card holders pay interest rates of 20% or higher.
That often means the holiday spending can follow you well into the new year, sometimes into several years.
"Ten percent of this year's holiday shoppers have holiday-related debt going back multiple years," Rathner said.
HOLIDAY DEBT PAYOFF TIMELINE WITH MINIMUM PAYMENTS
Here are the stark realities of making only minimum payments on holiday debt:
$1,000 debt at 21% interest rate making only the $25 minimum payment takes almost 6 years to pay off, according to CNBC. Total interest paid: Over $500
"One of the best holiday gifts you can give yourself is to stay within a realistic budget," Rathner said.
To help get out of debt, consider transferring your credit card balance to a card with zero interest or use a personal loan with a much lower interest rate to help you pay down your debt.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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