What does everyone spend on kids

[Flower2025]

Hey, just out of curiosity what does everyone spend on their children at Christmas and what type of things do you tend to get?

He’s either very wealthy or you’re absolutely taking the piss. A bike from your dad for Christmas at 39.

I don’t expect anything. Never have. He chooses what to buy for me, I never ask for anything, and haven’t since I was about 16. He’d be pretty offended if I told him his gifts, that he’s chosen to get for me, were embarrassing to me.

How am I taking the piss? I didn’t ask for it! I said once ‘I might get myself a bike to I can ride alongside the kids’. He thought it would be a nice idea to get me one for Christmas. He likes to buy gifts for people. His choice.

He is fairly wealthy, yes. He also lives a long way away, and the rest of our family are dead. He likes to show his love through gifts.

Yes probably…but yes she can afford it.

I don’t have a specific figure, they get their main wants regardless of cost (to an extent) one might have more spent one year than another, example one wanted a switch one year and the other an invisibility cloak. There were a couple of years I got main presents from charity shops, one years main present was £8.

This years current figures stand roughly at 1) £187 (this one had the switch previously) 2) £278 (this one had the invisibility cloak) & 3) £139.

I’ve got a few more bits to buy, #3 will probably get another £20 spent #1 about £100 and #2 £40ish.

Next year will depend on what they want.

It’s not expected at all…it’s just what she does, I’ve tried to tell her not to but that’s where she gets her joy, who am I to tell her not to. I give her great gifts too by the way it’s a two way street!!

My kids have 2 houses (my and their father are not together)

I spend about £250 per dd ages 13/15
Exdp spends about £300-400 each child

I work a lot of overtime around Xmas and sometimes Xmas day which is £££ so I like to treat them as I miss so much time

Wait until they become teens/teens! £300 will seem cheap! When they sre older gifts are much smaller im size but way more expensive.

Not much. £50? My son is only three. He doesn't want, need or ask for much. Other relatives also buy him gifts though.

Daughter gets the wrapping paper to play with as she'll only be seven months old at Christmas.

My parents spend £200 on me. I'm 38 😂

I have an 18 year old and I've never spent more than £100 on her Christmas presents, in all her life! Her dad used to go bonkers but I'm not into extravagant gift giving.

Around £500-£600 each child, I have two children.

I think its adorable. People think nothing of letting their parents pay for their wedding, deposit for a house or their first car.

I probably spend around £300 on DD. Much of that will be clothes and books. I don't go in for plastic stuff much, though I'll probably throw in some dolls and games I'd imagine in that panic week just before Christmas. 😂 She's an only child and much of what she has, she'll wear or read throughout the year so I'm fairly relaxed about the expenditure.

@WiserOlderElf I think it's lovely! If he can afford it, why not?

£150 for my 4 year old. That will include a bike and helmet which she would need anyway. Then I’ll get a stocking of8-10 items, couple of books, dress up outfit, magna tiles, toy toaster, doll set, doctors kit and a growing dinosaur

I've saved £400 for dd aged 5.

I'm from a poor working class family and one thing we always had was magical Christmases with so many great presents you never ever questioned whether parent bought them. That was just unthinkable.

I've carried that on with DD and love a good pile. Tbf, with what she picks off the adverts and smyths catalogue it will soon go.

We have got a practical gift this year which I'd ordinarily have bought her because she needed it but I like the idea of dressing it up as a pressie and I know when she comes down to it Chrismtas morning she will love it. That will take up at least £150 of the budget.

Usually £150-200 for everything, depending on what they want/ need. Eldest (turning 12) will have slightly less this year as he is having an iPad for his birthday, the week after.

I'm sorry you feel like that. I love my children equally, she no longer lives at home and I love treating her when I can. She is also very generous with gifts. What on Earth is strange about that?

@harrietm87 I've seen a lot of posts from you admonishing people for spending money on their adult offspring and saying it's embarrassing. You do you I guess. I cannot imagine a time when I wouldn't want to do this for my kids, however old they are. It's the season of giving and it's not just for kids. In our family we love gifting. My Dad is 85, I still buy him lovely Christmas and birthday gifts and he does the same for me. I'm 55. If I told him how to spend his money, he'd tell me to bugger off.

Father Christmas fills the sacks, about 10-12 presents/£60-80 total.

And then 1-3 presents from us, under the tree. The main present might be tech, a bike, roller skates, etc. So could be anything from about £50 to a few hundred.

We're an eco-conscious household and not averse to buying second hand gifts.

They know Father Christmas can't fit big presents on the sleigh and the elves can't make electronics or live animals. They know mum and dad buy the main presents, so expectations can be kept realistic and we can vary the budget each year. (If they ask for something over budget we will explain that, so that they aren't left devastated on Christmas morning).

This year they have both asked for Nintendo Switches but money is a little tighter than we'd like so we will look out for preloved ones on eBay.

Father Christmas is bringing them each:

board game
perplexus maze ball
couple of fidget toys
stationery
book
chocolate coins
fudge
bath bomb

plus baking bits and a band t shirt for DS (11) and craft supplies and a soft toy for DD (9)

@TheFormidableMrsC I think you sound lovely, genuinely! Don't understand feelings of embarrassment or mortification at receiving an expensive gift, assuming the giver can afford it.

People obviously have different amounts of disposable income.

The pp with the loaded dad is one thing - if you’re massively wealthy then it could be a drop in the ocean, but @TheFormidableMrsC you said you have to save up all year so that you can spend the same amount on your adult daughter as on your child.

If I was your daughter I cannot imagine wanting or expecting the same amount spent on me as a dependent teen, particularly if that meant my mum had to save up all year to do it. And yes, I would have been embarrassed to accept it. Adults shouldn’t need a Santa sack of presents from their parents to feel loved by them.

She's a teen so...roughly half a million?

Yes, in my family we all buy presents for adults too. No more than one per person but still something thoughtful.

I don't really agree with the child-only approach to Christmas. Getting children to pick put gifts for others is a nice part of Christmas too. I have lovely memories of the first year I bought my own gifts with my own pocket money. Small things like a new comb for dad and some sweets for mum but still chosen by me. My parents would drive us to the supermarket and give us 30 min to do our shopping while they waited for us. So much fun!