Over 158 million people will go shopping! The US Super Saturday shopping festival is coming!

According to the annual consumer survey of the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics, more than 158 million consumers will shop on the last Saturday before Christmas (December 17), also known as "Super Saturday" this year. This number is about 10 million more than the number of shoppers on Super Saturday in 2021, and it is also the highest number since NRF first began tracking this data in 2016.

Of the 158.5 million consumers who plan to shop on Super Saturday, 44.1 million (28%) plan to shop in-store, 42.2 million (27%) plan to shop online and 72.2 million (46%) plan to shop both in-store and online.

The survey found that, consistent with trends in recent years, U.S. holiday shoppers had completed about half (53%) of their purchases by early December, and next planned to complete their final shopping online (47%), at department stores (37%), discount stores (27%), clothing/accessories stores (24%), and grocery stores (19%).

By far the most popular gift items purchased by consumers include clothing (50%), toys (34%), gift cards (28%), books and media (26%), and food or candy (23%).

This year, 28% of holiday shoppers plan to give an experiential gift, such as a concert or sporting event ticket, gym membership, spa service or art class. That's up from 23% last year and the highest number since NRF began asking the question in 2015.

The survey also found that consumers are shifting the way they pay for holiday purchases. About half (52%) of consumers said they are using an alternative payment method or digital wallet, up from 44% last year and just 39% in 2019. The most common alternative payment method is PayPal (32%), followed by Apple Pay (14%) and CashApp (12%). Among 18 to 24 year olds, about three-quarters (76%) said they used an alternative payment method or digital wallet this holiday season.

Notably, 70% of Americans said they would make purchases after Christmas on December 25, a proportion comparable to levels during the pandemic.

“The post-Christmas shopping season is about to pick up again in the U.S. as holiday shoppers look to take advantage of retailers’ sales and promotions to spend big,” said Phil Rist, executive vice president of strategy at Prosper. “The week after Christmas will see consumers maximize discounts and offers to buy things, use gift cards and return or exchange unwanted gifts.”

The NRF defines the holiday season as November 1 to December 31, and predicts that U.S. retail sales this holiday season will increase 6% to 8% from 2021, to $942.6 billion to $960.4 billion.

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