By Retailist Team

With the holidays fast approaching, there is one certainty: Millennials enter the height of the holiday shopping season with a high level of optimism about their household finances and future income prospects. TransUnion’s (NYSE: TRU) Q4 2024 Consumer Pulse study found that 33% of Millennials plan on spending more than $500 this holiday season – the highest of any generation.

The newest Consumer Pulse study is based on a survey of 3,000 American adults between October 1-9, 2024. Among the reasons why Millennials will play a large role this holiday shopping season: 65% are optimistic about their household finances – greater than the 58% total for the entire population and the highest among generations surveyed.

In addition, 41% of Millennials said their income increased during the past three months compared to 29% across generations; 63% of Millennials felt their income would increase in the next 12 months compared to 53% for the entire population.

“We are about to enter the busiest period of the holiday shopping season and it’s a good sign for retailers and lenders that consumers are more optimistic about their household finances compared to one year ago,” said Charlie Wise, senior vice president and head of global research and consulting at TransUnion. “Based on our research, it’s clear that Millennials will play the largest role this holiday shopping season with the greatest expected spend. Consumers, led by Millennials and Gen Z, continue to most value the deals associated with Black Friday and Cyber Monday – either when shopping online or in-person.”

Though the holiday shopping season seemingly starts earlier each year, many consumers continue to be most interested in doing their shopping online or in-person between Thanksgiving Day and Cyber Monday. Four in 10 (41%) Americans are interested in shopping online on Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. About one-third of consumers said they are interested in shopping in-person on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday. The next most popular shopping period was prior to Thanksgiving (30%). Only 21% of consumers were interested in last-minute holiday shopping deals.  

Credit cards are still the most popular way to make holiday purchases at 38%, followed by debit cards (31%) and cash (16%). Non-traditional payment platforms such as mobile payment apps (ApplePay, PayPal, etc.) are at 7%, followed by Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) at 4%. 

Not surprisingly, Gen Z plans on using non-traditional payments at a higher rate than other generations – 15% for mobile payments apps and 7% for BNPL. Millennials also are more apt to use these payment types (10% mobile payment apps; 6% BNPL). “Though the use of non-traditional payments is still relatively small, we do believe BNPL will continue to gain in popularity, especially when BNPL payments become more widely reported to credit bureaus and begin factoring into credit scoring models,” added Wise. 

Another reason non-traditional payments could increase in popularity: two-thirds (67%) of consumers said they conduct half or more of their holiday shopping online. This percentage is even higher for Millennials (80%) and Gen Z (73%) with Gen X not far behind at 69% and Baby Boomers at 51%.

Inflation still a worry, but concerns dissipating

Consumer optimism about household finances in the next 12 months increased this past year from 56% in Q4 2023 to 58% this quarter even as inflation for everyday goods remains a top concern. Eight in 10 consumers (80%) ranked inflation in the top three concerns affecting their household finances in the next six months and 46% ranked inflation as their top concern. The good news is that such concerns are down from 84% and 50%, respectively, in the second quarter of 2024. 

Despite continuing concern about inflation, 81% of Americans reported their income increased or stayed the same in past three months, indicating a level of stability in household finances. Their income outlook is even stronger with 93% expecting their income to increase or to stay the same.

“While inflation, and higher prices generally, certainly remain a concern, continued low unemployment rate and wage gains are helping many consumers weather higher costs for everyday goods and services. As long as consumers see continued wage growth and are gainfully employed, we should see healthy spending once more in this upcoming holiday season,” concluded Wise. 

For more information about the Consumer Pulse study, please click here. To learn more about inflation and its impact on credit, click here.