Cash making a comeback this holiday season

The retail checkout offers insights into consumer attitudes not only about the economy but also about retailers and their product offerings. And with the holiday shopping season going full boar, the consultancy PwC reported it is seeing an unexpected trend: more people are planning to pay with cash.

Among consumers surveyed for PwC's 2025 Holiday Outlook, cash is one of the top three payment methods 48 percent of respondents plan to use this season, marking a seven-point increase over 2024.

More consumers surveyed also plan to use gift cards, with 27 percent placing them among their top three payment options, compared to 14 percent in 2024. Gift cards also top many consumers' holiday gifting lists: 47 percent plan to give gift cards to family members; 52 percent plan to give them to friends.

But rest assured, consumers are not ruling out credit and debit card usage. In fact, the number of consumers who plan on using their credit cards for holiday gift buying climbed sharply, with 52 percent of those polled by PwC ranking them among their top three payment methods.

That's up from 40 percent last year. And the top vote getter was debit cards, with 55 percent of consumers polled ranking debit cards as one of their top three preferred payment methods for holiday shopping.

Buy now, pay later, while getting a lot of hype this holiday season, was ranked as a top three payment method by just 9 percent of those surveyed.

Fulfillment choices diversifying

Meanwhile, fulfillment choices are diversifying. Seventy percent of online shoppers in the study prefer home delivery, while 39 percent said they plan to buy online and pick up in store. Same-day delivery is most popular among Gen Z and millennials, with about 30 percent of each of these demographics saying it's their preferred option for receiving items when shopping online.

This year's holiday shopping season is notably tighter than usual, with Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday arriving late (Nov. 27 through Dec. 1), which the PwC noted, "could put spending under time pressure."

According to the firm's survey (which took the pulse of 4,000 consumers), nearly 39 percent planned to spend on holiday gifts that five-day period. And the survey results suggested that 80 percent of holiday gift budgets will have been spent by the end of Cyber Monday.

Unsurprisingly, the biggest shopping day, cited by 21.2 percent of consumers surveyed, will be Black Friday.

There will be plenty of food consumption and gifting

"In a season shaped by cost pressures, many consumers are doubling down on what matters most – food, family and familiar rituals," PwC wrote. Nearly three-quarters of those surveyed (72 percent) said they plan to gather over home-cooked meals this year. And people expect to spend money on those meals: 45 percent of surveyed consumers said they expect to spend more on grocery items for celebrations than they did last year.

Food is also emerging as a resilient gift category. "Consumables" landed in the top five gifts on shopping lists this year, with 26 percent of this gift category going to family, 28 percent to friends and 23 percent retained for themselves. "Retailers can lean into this finding, offering more in-store promotions and pre-assembled bundles to meet demand," the consultancy noted.

The appeal spans generations, with differing ideas on what kind of food matters most. Gen Z and millennials are gravitating toward "wellness-forward options" (such as low-sugar treats, functional beverages and artisanal pantry items), while baby boomers tend to prefer traditional indulgences, PwC found.

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