Christmas comes every year. It's can be a big family celebration for many of us, whilst others choose a more intimate day with select loved ones, perhaps by ourselves. Christmas does come with a need to spend some money though. How much you actually spend is up to you and what your plans are. However, there are lots of ways to make savings. So let's look at how to save money for Christmas.
Know Your Budget
A great idea when planning for Christmas is to figure out your budget and stick to it. You can do this by looking back at previous years and figuring out how much you have spent. Of course, your financial situation may have changed since then, like so many! This could mean your Christmas budget has to be cut and hence, the amount of money you have to spend on festivities is lower. You can still enjoy a wonderful Christmas on a budget though!
Save Over The Year
How often do you get to November or December and think about the money you need for Christmas? Remember, Christmas Day is only one day, so there is little point in putting yourself into financial difficulty for just one day. Yes you might want to treat the kids and get them wonderful gifts, but you don't have to spend a lot of money to do that. If you can save up throughout the year with maybe £5 a week, you can build up a decent sized Christmas pot to use in the run up to Christmas Day. It feels easier to do it that way than find a couple of hundred pounds in one go. This is a great idea of how to save money for Christmas. You could also save gifts that you don't have a use for potential regifting.
Time Over Money
Don't forget though, so much of the time the main present people want is presence. Gifts are great but spending time together and making memories is what it's all about. Why not consider little gifts and then using your money for a day out together instead? One of the best ways of save money for Christmas is to cut out things you don't need. This might mean having an awkward conversation with loved ones about not exchanging presents this year. Or cutting back and putting a price limit on things. You never know, they might want to do the same and your conversation can save everyone a few quid. That way you have less to actually save and it all seems more manageable. Less of a facing in December!
Shop Through The Year
As well as saving through the year, why not shop through the year too? If you decide to build up a Christmas fund, don't be afraid to use it. If you see things you would like to give as gifts, on offer during the year, and they will save for the festive season, buy them at the discounted price! Food wise, we love a tub of festive chocolates. The supermarkets always seem to have decent deals on them in October and November. Buy them early, just be sure to put them away so you don't devour them before Christmas and have to re-buy them!
Christmas food shopping on a budget
Raise Some Funds
If you are struggling, a good idea of how to save money for Christmas is to sell what you don't need. Platforms such as Facebook Marketplace give you a fee free place to sell your unwanted belongings. You don't even have to organise postage as the buyer usually collects! Think about what talents you have too. Could you set up a side hustle in your spare time to raise some festive funds? You might even find some bargain priced gifts that you can buy yourself on there, saving you money on buying presents! How about taking on a one night a week evening job? Maybe in the local shop, using the money you earn just for the festive season? Don't forget that seasonal jobs start appearing in September which could help you out.
Change Your Priorities
One of the biggest parts of saving money is choice. It's a choice to spend money on a daily coffee on your commute rather than put £3 into your saving account. When you start to prioritise where you want your money to go, you start to question your choices. You can then divert your cash to where you want it to be. How to save money for Christmas is the same as how to save money for a house. Or how to save money for a holiday. You need to make that your priority. We're not saying to not have fun and enjoy your money in other areas of life. However if saving cash for the festive season is important to you, you will figure out ways of how to save money for Christmas.
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The 'Christmas Money Making Challenge' is running from the 1st of November to the 19th of December.
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