How much do you reckon you spend on Christmas, everything included?

[Forgottenmyphone]

All presents, catering, school events, work events, cards, wrapping, charity, advent, pantomimes, Santa visits, Christmas pyjamas, bedding etc…

£2500 all in I think 4 kids, house decs, lunch and annual theatre trip. Unfortunately we also have 3 December birthdays within our little family of 6 and also Dh’s Dads to contend with. And this yea that’s a 50th, a 21st and an 80th so it will be a lot of dollars.

About £1000, which I budget for through the year. I rarely buy cards...only send a few... or paper and only ever in the sale. We don't tend to do extra things like the pantomime although we sometimes go to see a musical as part of our immediate family gifts.

Usually £1k all in but we’re going to Lapland as a once in a lifetime visit this year, so £8k. I hope it’s worth it!

Presents - £300ish
Food - £150ish
Wrapping paper and cards etc. - £10.00ish
Christmas fair - £10.00ish spending money for drinks. My DP loves a mulled wine. It’s free entry.

We’ve done two light trails over the last couple of years and visited an Ice Bar once. They were lovely experiences, but I think once you do it once or twice, it’s enough! We won’t be doing them again.

We used to spend more in previous years, but we have a lower household income now.

I save £150 a month but £20 is from my mum. So after I give her £240 I have £1560 to spend on Christmas, that’s the budget for EVERYTHING.

its usually around the £3K mark

This is so interesting! I like re using everything and although ds is at uni now, he still checks Dec's he made as a toddler are on the tree:)

I think I am frugal, but just added up and I think I need a lie down because the numbers show I am some kind of crazy christmas lady with no concept of budgeting or money. And we don't do pj's, hampers, etc.

Christmas Day dinner is fairy cheap because my mum works in a supermarket where she gets a fair chunk percentage off own brand stuff. So including the chicken and gammon( which is bought from bookers and split into 3) we probs spend about £50 on Christmas Day food
we have Chinese on Christmas Eve which is usually about £100
presents for 16 people including dc is about 1k
boxing day we have a buffet, I couldn’t tell you how much because we go to every single supermarket and just see what’s going on in the part food section. Also split it between New Year’s Day aswell. New Year’s Eve we all ways get fish and chips from the chippy. Kids luckily are in high school and college so no Christmas events. They are however going to 2 light shows with DP. DP is going to winter wonderland with 2 cousins so will coat him a fortune. So probs altogether we spend about 2k give or take. To top it off DS birthday is 11 days after and this January he is turning 18 so that’s an extra 600/700 🤪

£1500 on presents/stockings for me, dh, our 3dc, 6 family members and small teachers gift. £100 for Xmas food. The DC’s budget include any Christmas jumpers, advent calendars etc.

£1200 on presents
£70 on panto tickets
£300 on food
i have a couple of Xmas nights out which will be about £200

Probably just over £1000. That is for presents and food. DH gets new clothes at Christmas because he doesn’t get round to buying stuff throughout the year. So for him it’s 6 months of needed clothes. The other 6 months are bought for his birthday!

Our budget this year is £600.

Gifts = £400
£100 x 2 per child
£50 x 2 me and DH
£100 max extended family and friends. These are the token bottle of wine/selection box mostly.

We have a reusable tree and decs so nothing there. Maybe £10 on wrapping paper.

£100 additional to the usual food shop. A family member does Xmas and we all bring something. We aren't big drinkers.

£50 - cinema trip on Xmas eve.

£20 - £30 panto - local am dram. Few mates are often in it.

No pj's, cushions, bedding. If kids outgrow their Xmas jumpers we do vinted or charity shop.

Presents £1500, fancy dinner out with DH and various social things £500. Food and drink £400. Tree £100. We also host a party in the early new Year £500. So about £3,000 all in.

I put £300 a month in a pot for Christmas and birthdays. I’d say the lion’s share goes on Christmas so about 2k. I find the Christmas period stressful and difficult so I do spend on things that make my life easier rather than going for more budget friendly options.

Last night we went to the light trail at Kew Gardens. Tickets for 3 adults, 2 children, car parking and 6 fairground tokens cost £162, plus about £20 on drinks. Just paid £60 for a family ticket for ice skating at Canary Wharf. It’s all adding up!

300 probably.
Secret Santa
Always a couple of new baubles
40/50 each DC
Something for DM
Normal food plus snacks
Something gifty for dh to open.

Probably about £1000 all in. Presents for 3 grandchildren, about £200 each. Presents for brother and sister, about £100 each. Family get together with food, about £100 for the food. Decorations about £100 (we buy some new ones every year). Nothing for Christmas dinner as we go to our daughter's.

Last year:
Presents: £250
Work gifts: £25
Secret Santa: £10
Tree: £35
Food shop - nectar points saved all year
Advent calendars: £30
Christmas jumper £20

Christmas day we go to the beach for a walk with the dog, Mum pays for the meat (£50), we rarely drink alcohol.
we cut back a lot last year on the food shop and it was lovely not to have tonnes leftover for days.

Approx
£350 on dd
£200 on dh - who has his bday at Xmas so includes that too
£100 on parents
£100 on other presents
prob £100 on extra food
£50 on light trail as dogs x3 love it!

no children so no other outings. No Christmas dos. Work one is free.

altogether £850 ish

I could make it a lot less if I wanted.

If we spent less than £2000, I'd be surprised.

Probably less than £300.00
Having worked in retail l see how wasteful it all is.
I have cut down now children are young adults and earning own money.
Just buy for closest family members.
I enjoy nice quiet relaxed Xmas doing exactly what l want to do.
So much easier than when children were young and cooking for 13.

Easily £2k
^ this includes crackers, giftwrap, cards, postage!, flowers, food, drink, theatre tickets (this year it's Kate rusby and Christmas Carol goes wrong 😊)
Gifts wise probably £1/1.2k

I never add it up. Child is adult now and gets very little as they can buy anything they need or want. Dont but presents for adult extended family members only for children, currently stop at 18 but one over 18 got something to help their first uni term. Wont be buying any new decorations or lights. Very little gets wrapped so still using stuff bought 2 years ago.

We'll donate during the Big Give for carbon offset and do a reverse advent calendar for the foodbank. They get masses at Christmas, struggle a bit in January. We'll eat out more in January than December, dont like crowds and drunks.

I'm tracking this year. I expect to spend around £300 on my (young adult) DC, and around £200 on all other gifts. I've also bought a bean to cup coffee machine as a family present £350.
I've spent £75 on new tree and decs this year as we have moved house this year and have a different space (no more bay windows) so my old tree wouldn't fit. It was at least 10 years old so feels justifiable.

I'm hosting Christmas dinner for 12 and have £120 on my M&S food order, and expect to spend another £250 or so at the supermarket on the extra bits for Christmas lunch, wine and our household Christmas snacks, cheese, party food etc. I have around £100 of topcashback I will trade in for a voucher, and another £30 or do on my supermarket points app. Plus dh has a £50 gift voucher from his employer which we'll probably use on the M&S shop.

I will probably spend another £200 or so on a Christmas day out, cinema, trip to the pub on Christmas eve, but we would normally spend similar on leisure / eating out.

So around £1500 in all, but have £180 in vouchers towards that, and £350 would be in my normal spend for food and entertainment.

A depressing amount! Gifts around 500, tree, candles, etc around 100, food, alchol, etc easily 400, host some sort of Christmas or Hogmanay thing for friends another 200, things like crackers, gift wrap, work secret Santa for DC friend groups another 50....
Tend not to go to many organised festive events, but will have 2 weeks off school & work so add on petrol costs, lunches out, etc.