How does your holiday shopping budget compare to others'? Wallethub, which offers free credit scores, estimated the maximum holiday budget for 570 U.S. cities using key characteristics of the population, such as income, age and savings-to-monthly expenses ratio.
Using that formula, it determined the average Jacksonville consumer has $685 available to use for gifts or other holiday expenses without wrecking their overall budget.
Wallethub determined the average Jacksonville consumer profile broke down as follows:
• Monthly Income: $4,748
• Monthly Expenses: $3,595
• Savings: $5,376
• Age: 36.1
Looking at some of Florida’s other cities, Gainesville’s holiday budget was $443, Miami’s was $315 and Tampa’s was $683.
Related: Melissa Gives Her Picks In 2020 First Coast Connect Local Holiday Gift Guide
There’s a huge variation in theoretical holiday budgets across the country, with Palo Alto, Calif., having the biggest at $3,056. Albany, Ga., had the smallest budget at $50.
Not sticking to a budget can quickly add up. Wallethub’s data showed the average household credit card debt is $7,938.
Despite the recession brought on by the pandemic, 53% of shoppers reported they intend to spend more because of canceled travel plans, according to the National Retail Federation, which estimates that individual holiday spending will average $997.79.
This year's Black Friday online shopping surged, with consumers spending a record $9 billion online the day after Thanksgiving, a figure that is up nearly 22% compared to 2019, according to the Associated Press.
Bill Bortzfield can be reached at bbortzfield@wjct.org or on Twitter at @BortzInJax.
