2018 Holiday Season Gift Card Survey

About The 2018 Holiday Gift Card Study 

Gift Card Granny conducted its annual survey to determine the latest gift card usage and trends for the 2018 holiday season. Nearly 3,000 US-based consumers who have visited www.giftcardgranny.com provided responses. Topics such as most popular retailers, purchasing behavior and digital gift card growth were analyzed.  

• Amazon is the favored online retailer for shopping this holiday season
• Thirty-seven percent of respondents prefer electronic gift cards over plastic
• Forty-seven percent of respondents indicate they have used a mobile app to purchase a gift card, up three percentage points from last year

Purchasing Behavior 

Consumers typically purchase one gift card a month for the purpose of giving a present; examples include birthdays, weddings, etc. More than half of respondents (53%) spend an average value of $25 to $49 per gift card. However, respondents aged 18 to 24 tend to spend less, with an average value of $0 to $24 per gift card. 

The majority of respondents (52%) state they generally buy one gift card a month for personal use, with the average value between $25 to $49 per card. Additionally, 64% of consumers disclose they have purchased a gift card based on a promotion such as extra reward points, bonus cards, etc. 

Top Online Retailers For Holiday Shopping

The majority of respondents plan to utilize Amazon (42%) when shopping online this holiday season. Other popular online retailers include Walmart (10%), Target (7%), Kohl’s (4%), eBay (3%), Macy’s (2%) and Best Buy (1%).  

Digital Trends: eGift Cards, Apps and Preferences Among The Generations

Digital gift card popularity continues to rise, with 87% claiming to have purchased an egift card. Thirty-seven percent of all respondents prefer digital gift cards over physical.  

Younger consumers are more likely than older ones to prefer electronic gift cards. Among millennials aged 25 to 34, 56% favor egift cards; however, the majority (46%) of baby boomers aged 55 or older prefer plastic.  

Additionally, 47% of respondents indicate they have used a mobile app to purchase a gift card, up three percentage points from last year. Even with the high interest in egift cards, nearly 37% claim to have lost a gift card.  

Survey Methods

Results for this Gift Card Granny poll are based on survey responses from November 2, 2018 through November 19, 2018 with a sample of adults aged 18 and older who have visited www.giftcardgranny.com. For results based on the total sample of 2,867, the margin of sampling error is two percentage points at the 98% confidence level.  

View full question responses and trends. For press inquiries contact pr@giftcardgranny.com.