Gift card sales — including digital ones — rise over holiday season
Gift cards were a hit among consumers this past holiday season.
More than half (56%) of consumers reported that they purchased a gift card during the 2024 holiday season, an 8% increase over 2023, according to a survey from global branded payments provider Blackhawk Network (BHN). The total average value of gift cards received also saw a jump, with surveyed consumers reporting the total value increased to $209 on average, a notable increase from $161 in the previous year.
Eight-in-10 gift card recipients reported that they planned to spend more than the value of their gift card next time they visited said store. On average, consumers surveyed planned to spend $81 more than the value of their gift card.
Nearly half (49%) of surveyed consumers purchased digital gift cards this past holiday season, up 5% over 2023. While Gen Z drove much of the increase with 60% having purchased a digital gift card, baby boomers were twice as likely as younger generations to purchase digital gift cards at the last-minute.
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Gift cards were a popular choice for multiple reasons, according to the BHN survey. Seventy-four percent of consumers said purchasing gift cards assisted them in sticking to their holiday budget, while 59% said receiving a gift card eases financial stress after the holiday shopping season.
“In addition to demonstrable growth in gift card purchases, the industry saw increased demand for gift cards across a spectrum of use cases from promotions to returns, presenting unique first quarter opportunities for retailers,” said Jay Jaffin, chief marketing officer at BHN. “Gift cards not only encourage foot traffic and repeat business, but also enable merchants to acquire new customers who are eager to spend their holiday gift cards at the beginning of the new year. Our research also found that gift cards helped consumers alleviate some financial stress during and after the holidays.”
Additional insights from the survey include the following:
- Half (50%) of younger generations and 24% of older generations planned to use AI for holiday shopping. BHN’s post-holiday research found 65% of younger generations and 37% of older generations actually used AI for holiday shopping, and 73% of all consumers found it to be a useful gift shopping tool.
- Of the surveyed consumers, 77% leveraged sales, deals and promotions to purchase holiday gifts, up from 72% in 2023. Using deals, consumers saved an average of $151, and 28% said they used their savings to purchase more holiday gifts.
- Fifty-nine percent of younger consumers exchanged loyalty points for gifts, up from 52% in 2023, while 40% of older consumers used points to cover holiday gifts, an increase from 31% in 2023.
