2026 holiday shopping trends: The impact of holiday ads, AI use case shifts, the impact of rising costs and more.

As marketers prepare for the busiest part of the holiday shopping season (the last two weeks of November and the first two weeks of December), Epsilon Pulse wanted to check in with consumers.

We wanted to know how much they plan to spend, how they’re using AI, what inspiration channels are driving the most impact and more.

Overall, we thought inflation and rising costs would have much more of an impact on consumer sentiment, but that’s not what the data showed us this year.

Everything might cost more, but people across generations have adapted their spending strategies accordingly to make sure no one is left out of the festivities.

Beyond that, we saw that in-store and online continue to be equally popular, and holiday ads have a high impact on consumer spending.

Keep reading to learn more about what to expect during the holiday shopping season.

5 insights for the 2026 holiday shopping season

• Holiday ads drive engagement more than ads for other major retail shopping events with 81% saying they act after seeing a holiday ad.
• Almost half of consumers use AI to help with holiday shopping. 3 in 5 Gen Z say they use AI for holiday shopping often, almost or always, while boomers are the least likely to use AI for holiday shopping.
• Rising costs aren’t impacting expected holiday spend as much as we thought. 52% expect to spend the same on holiday shopping this year, while 2 in 5 Gen Z and millennials expect to spend more.
• Giving back is a priority for consumers, with 3 in 4 consumers donating time or money during the holiday season.
• In-store and online are equally popular for holiday shopping, but Gen Z especially values in-store options when shopping for gifts.•Online and social channels are driving the bulk of holiday gift inspiration, especially for younger generations.

6 quick stats to know from the 2026 holiday research

• 52% expect to spend the same amount on holiday shopping this year.
• 87% plan holiday shopping in advance.
• 41% of Gen Z and millennials say they’re likely to purchase gifts via a holiday shopping catalog.
• $946 is the expected average holiday spend.
• 37% make a purchase after watching a holiday ad.
• 48% use AI tools for holiday shopping.

Download Epsilon's holiday shopping report to learn what consumers have to say about:​

• The impact of holiday ads on consumer spending
• How consumers leverage AI for holiday shopping
• The average anticipated spend for the 2026 holiday shopping season and top spending categories
• How item category impacts in-store vs. online preferences
• Sources of holiday shopping inspiration

Epsilon Pulse is the beating heart of Epsilon’s proprietary research. Designed to produce relevant and up-to-date insights about consumers, marketers and their preferences, Epsilon Pulse helps brands better understand the adtech and martech industry so they can make informed, data-driven marketing decisions.