Back To School Shopping Trends For 2018

Pittsburgh, PA August 7, 2018

Gift Card Granny recently surveyed more than 2,500 consumers who visited the website to determine their back to school shopping habits for 2018. Topics such as budget, shopping preferences, savings strategies and most popular retailers were analyzed.

Among the 2,637 respondents, 54% are shopping for back to school; the majority (53%) will be purchasing for their children. Twenty-two percent say they will be shopping for themselves, while 21% will buy for someone in their family. Additionally, 4% are either purchasing items for a charity or are teachers shopping for their classrooms. Among those who are buying for their children, the majority (42%) are shopping for one child. Thirty-six percent are purchasing for two children and 22% are buying for three or more.

Walmart (51%), Target (47%), Amazon (37%), Kohl’s (37%) and Old Navy (31%) are the most popular stores for back to school shopping. The most common items that respondents will be buying this year include clothes or shoes (82%), folders, binders or notebooks (77%) as well as pens and pencils (74%). The majority (64%) of survey respondents say they shop both in-store and online; 9% primarily shop online and 26% largely shop in-store.

Gift Card Granny also asked members about their budgeting for back to school necessities. Half of respondents (51%) claim they stay within their allotted spend. However, 24% state they typically exceed their budget, while 25% don’t follow a budget. Additionally, 44% of respondents will spend between $0 and $150 for back to school shopping, while 55% plan to spend $150 or more. The top five ways respondents save on back to school shopping include in-store sales (81%), coupons or promo codes found online (71%), discount gift cards (55%), cash-back credit cards/apps/websites (48%) and coupons from the local newspaper (45%).

August (47%) is the most-likely month for back to school shopping followed by July (39%) and June (11%). Although 65% of respondents say they look forward to back to school shopping, 35% find it to be a feat they dread.

To view the full results of Gift Card Granny’s Back To School Shopping Habits For 2018, visit here. For press inquiries contact pr@giftcardgranny.com.