The holiday shopping season is just around the corner, and a new report finds more than 80 per cent of Canadians plan to spend less overall as the cost-of-living pressures bite.
Many also say they want to “Buy Canadian” and skip cross-border shopping.
“Consumers would have the intention and would probably love to spend more money this year, but I think the reality of the economic situation is that they’re just not able to,” said national consumer markets leader Elisa Swern at PwC Canada, which conducted the survey.
“(Canadians) are planning on cutting back spending this year. We’ve typically seen a slight increase year over year when we conduct these surveys. Overall, consumers are planning to spend 10 per cent less than they did last year, which is pretty significant.”
PwC Canada released its 2025 Canadian Holiday Outlook report on Tuesday, which surveyed 1,020 Canadian shoppers between July 21 and 29 about their plans for spending.
Eighty-one per cent of Canadian respondents said they plan on cutting back on spending.
On average, Canadians nationally said they expect to spend $1,675 during the holiday season, which is down 10 per cent from last year, and the numbers vary dramatically when it comes to different age demographics, as the job market and cost of living continue to be major challenges.
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The survey found that younger Canadians were far more likely to say they plan to spend less than older generations this year compared with last year.
Gen Z said they expect to spend $1,497 during the coming holidays, which is down by 35 per cent compared with the same period in 2024, and millennials on average expect to spend 11 per cent less this year compared with last year at $1,983.
Meanwhile, Gen X and baby boomer Canadians said they expect to spend marginally less this year compared with 2024, with $1,724 for Gen X being a two per cent decline, and a one per cent drop for baby boomers at $1,398.
Younger Canadians are more likely to struggle with employment, with recent data showing youth unemployment reaching recession lows as housing affordability overall continues to decline.
Although affordability and household budgets can weigh heavily on holiday shopping expectations, Canadians surveyed say they were still willing to pay a little more for patriotism amid the U.S. trade war.
The PwC survey found that 49 per cent of respondents would choose a product “made in Canada” that costs more than two similar products made elsewhere.
Sixty-four per cent of baby boomers surveyed said they would choose a more expensive product that was “made in Canada” over a cheaper option made abroad.
Gen Z shoppers were more likely to prioritize affordability, with 62 per cent of the category surveyed saying they would choose the cheapest product — even if it was made outside of Canada.
This means retailers looking to make the most of the holiday may need to be aware of which consumers may be more cost-conscious, and which may have more wiggle room in their budgets, Swern said.
“I think that retailers should be looking very critically at their pricing and promotion strategy. If they’re highlighting ‘Canadian’ or ‘Made in Canada’ products, consumers will want those products to be priced in line with products from other countries — especially the U.S.,” Swern said.
“There’s an ongoing journey around personalization and it’s important to understand the differences between the different generations and how they like to shop and what’s going to be important to them.”
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