American consumers plan to trim the amount they spend on Mother’s Day gifts this year by nearly a quarter.
More than half of Americans who plan to purchase a gift for Mother’s Day this year say that inflation has impacted their ability to do so, according to a recent report by LendingTree. Of the 2,000 survey participants aged 18 to 77, approximately 57% said they plan to spend nearly 25% less than they did in 2022.
This puts the average price of a Mother’s Day gift in 2023 at about $172 versus the $225 reported last year, a 24% drop year-over-year, survey results show.
“When you factor in inflation, the value of that drop gets even bigger,” Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at Lending Tree, said in the report.
“If you have the same Mother’s Day gift budget this year as last year, the sad truth is that you’ll be getting your mom a little bit less,” he added. “Dropping a budget by nearly 25% is a big change. Hopefully this is a sign that more people are leaning into less expensive, more thoughtful and more creative gifts for mom instead, but I’m not sure that’s the case.”
In terms of people’s budgets for Mother’s Day gifts, Men are reportedly willing to spend around $227, while women are comfortable spending $112.
While 26% of survey participants were willing to go over budget on a Mother’s Day gift, data shows that it’s not really necessary to make moms happy on their special day. According to LendingTree, the top Mother’s Day gifts moms want are “quality time” (37%), a “card or letter” (27%), and “flowers or plants” (26%).
When it comes to how the different generations are handling the shock from inflation ahead of Mother’s Day, Millennials report being the most impacted (62%), followed by Gen Zers (56%), Gen Xers (52%), and Baby Boomers (46%).
Rampant inflation, rising interest rates, and general economic uncertainty have shrunk millions of Americans’ financial margin for error in a big way,” said Schulz.
“Tight budgets have gotten tighter. Paycheck-to-paycheck living has gotten tougher. When that happens, sacrifices have to be made, and some of the first expenses that get cut are holiday gifts,” he explained.
Moms are acutely aware of the inflationary impact on financial budgets, with most mothers expecting their children to spend only $59 on a Mother’s Day gift this year, according to the report. This hasn’t stopped sons and daughters from trying to find the best gift ideas for their moms.
Of the survey participants, slightly more than half plan to spend their Mother’s Day budget on flowers, 46% say they will go with a card or letter, and 42% say they plan to give material gifts like jewelry, clothing, and beauty products.
In the end, 78% of mothers claim they’ve never been disappointed by a Mother’s Day gift.
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