Busiest Shopping Days of the Year
Boosting your brand’s presence around the busiest shopping days of the year can help increase sales and revenues by getting more eyes on your business and products.
Here’s a look at the top shopping holidays in the United States so you can plan your marketing strategy accordingly.
Biggest US holidays ranked by expenditure per person
|
US holidays |
2023 per-person expenditure |
2024 per-person expenditure |
|
Back-to-College |
$1,366.95 |
$1,364.75 |
|
Back-to-School |
$890.07 |
$874.68 |
|
Winter Holidays |
$875.00 |
Data unavailable |
|
Mother's Day |
$274.02 |
$254.04 |
|
Father's Day |
$196.23 |
$189.81 |
|
Valentine's Day |
$192.80 |
$185.81 |
|
Easter |
$192.01 |
$177.06 |
|
Graduation |
$116.19 |
$116.97 |
|
Halloween |
$108.24 |
Data unavailable |
|
Independence Day |
$93.34 |
$90.42 |
|
Super Bowl |
$85.36 |
$86.04 |
|
St. Patrick's Day |
$43.84 |
$44.40 |
Busiest shopping days of the year in 2023
So, what is the busiest shopping day of the year?
According to the National Retail Foundation, in 2023, the most recent year for which complete data is available, the period just before students typically return to college topped the list of the busiest shopping days of the year. An average of $1,366.95 was spent per person in preparation for the new college year. It was also the only event on this list of the top shopping holidays that saw the average spend per person exceed $1,000.
The average back-to-college expenditure in 2023 was notably higher than the second-busiest shopping event of the year, back to school, on which the average person spent $890.07.
If the back-to-college and back-to-school seasons are key shopping holidays for your target market, you might want to consider investing more in marketing items that fall into the electronics and clothing categories. Both are among the biggest product categories for consumers shopping during these two shopping seasons, in terms of overall expenditure.
The winter holiday season ranks third on the list of the busiest shopping days of the year. In 2023, the average person spent $875 on end-of-year gifts and celebrations.
Mother’s Day and Father’s Day follow, with average expenditures per person at $274.02 and $196.23, respectively. A deeper look reveals that historically, consumers have spent more on Mother’s Day than on Father’s Day. The sixth busiest shopping period of the year is around Valentine’s Day, which generated expenditures of $192.80 per person in 2023.
The period leading up to Easter is next on the list of the busiest shopping days of the year, with $192.01 spent per person. Graduation, Halloween, Independence Day, the Super Bowl, and St. Patrick’s Day round out the list of the biggest shopping days of the year, with per-person expenditure of less than $150 in 2023.
Busiest shopping days of the year in 2024
According to the latest data from 2024, which excludes Halloween and the winter holidays, back to college remains the biggest shopping day of the year, with per-person expenditure reaching $1,364.75. Notably, the rankings for this year closely mirror those of 2023.
Among the 10 major shopping holidays that have occurred so far in 2024, most have seen annual declines in per-person spending. However, three events—graduation, the Super Bowl, and St. Patrick’s Day—bucked the trend, recording modest increases ranging from 0.7% to 1.3%.