{"id":19743,"date":"2023-12-01T11:32:40","date_gmt":"2023-12-01T11:32:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ccpc.ie\/consumers\/?p=19743"},"modified":"2024-01-25T14:21:03","modified_gmt":"2024-01-25T14:21:03","slug":"seasons-savings-your-christmas-budget-sorted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ccpc.inventise.ie\/consumers\/2023\/12\/01\/seasons-savings-your-christmas-budget-sorted\/","title":{"rendered":"“Season\u2019s Savings”, your Christmas budget sorted!"},"content":{"rendered":"

The countdown to Christmas is officially on! Our research finds consumers will spend on average, over \u20ac1000 this festive season. If you don’t know how you\u2019re going to cope financially, you\u2019re certainly not alone.<\/p>\n

The pressure of Christmas parties and events combined with buying presents for loved ones can easily push people into debt. We\u2019ve put together five budgeting top tips to help you during this festive period.<\/p>\n

1. Make your budget<\/h2>\n

There is still time for you to put a plan in place. Look at your day-to-day spending and see what you can afford to spend over the coming weeks. Use our budget planner Money Tool<\/a> to work out what you spend and compare this with your income. This will help you to control your spending better on a tight budget.<\/p>\n

2. Cut down on daily expenses<\/h2>\n

You can save money by making everyday sacrifices. Our spending calculator<\/a> works out how much money you\u2019re spending and what you could save by cutting back. For example, treating yourself to that caf\u00e9 americano five times a week can cost you up to \u20ac20 weekly. Put that money into your Christmas kitty instead and it won\u2019t be long building up!<\/p>\n

3. Make a gift list and check it twice!<\/h2>\n

Write a list of everyone you intend to buy for. Decide how much you will spend on each person. There is still plenty of time to shop around and compare prices online.<\/p>\n

If you usually buy individual presents for your family or friends, don\u2019t be shy to suggest trying Kris Kindle. This is where each person buys for one other only, the names are randomly drawn out of a hat! It can save you a lot of money. If you\u2019re feeling creative, why not make your own Christmas gifts? For example, a DIY photo calendar of the family, or yummy snowman cupcakes if you\u2019re the baking type!<\/p>\n

4. Choose a credit option wisely<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s best to use savings to cover Christmas expenses rather than getting into debt. If you do find yourself with no other option but to dip into credit, work out how much you need. For example, if you know you\u2019re going to spend \u20ac800 this Christmas, then a personal loan may be the best way to go. Check out our personal loans Money Tool<\/a> to compare the total cost of credit on the different loan options available.<\/p>\n

5. Be careful with your credit card<\/h2>\n

Credit card interest rates are among the highest. You don\u2019t want to face into January with a hefty credit card bill. If you do end up using your credit card, try paying off the balance in full when the bill arrives in the new year. Look at our credit card comparison<\/a> to see which providers offer the lowest interest rate.<\/p>\n

The Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS)<\/a> offer Christmas budgeting advice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The countdown to Christmas is officially on! Our research finds consumers will spend on average, over \u20ac1000 this festive season. If you don’t know how you\u2019re going to cope financially, you\u2019re certainly not alone. The pressure of Christmas parties and …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":240,"featured_media":19744,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[184,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-money","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n"Season\u2019s Savings", your Christmas budget sorted! - CCPC Consumers<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission is an independent statutory body that enforces competition and consumer protection law in Ireland\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\""Season\u2019s Savings", your Christmas budget sorted! 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