That’s a wrap for Morning Consult’s 2021 holiday consumer trends tracker.

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Updated: Dec. 17

Tracking Consumer Trends This Holiday Season

The COVID-19 pandemic is still lingering on, impacting the 2021 holiday season in new ways. Some consumers feel safe returning to stores, but many don’t, and are more comfortable embracing newly formed online shopping habits. Supply chain issues are rippling through the country, negatively impacting already-stressed delivery systems, with warning signs that it will get worse before it gets better. And travel plans are up in the air, not because of safety concerns but because of flight cancellations and delays.

We’re tracking consumer trends on these important issues and will be updating this page weekly with new data, analysis and original reporting.

WHAT WE'RE TRACKING THIS WEEK

About 1 in 4 U.S. adults say their families are planning to cancel their usual holiday get-togethers this year: For those who don’t plan to fully cancel their celebrations, a majority say their family and friends will be having smaller get-togethers than usual this year. Nearly 7 in 10 plan to eat their Christmas meals with just their immediate family. Read more.

More than 2 in 3 Americans do not plan to book any holiday travel: On Dec. 13, 68% of Americans said they will not travel for the holidays, up from 57% who said the same on Sept. 23. Read more.

About 50% of those who have started shopping have faced supply chain issues. These include items being out of stock online (52%), in-store (50%) or back-ordered or delayed (45%). Read more.

TRACKING SHOPPING RATES

Most Consumers Who Plan to Shop for the Holidays Have Started Their Gift Buying
Respondents were asked "How much of your holiday shopping have you already completed?"

Weekly surveys are conducted among roughly 2,200 U.S. adults and have a margin of error of +/-2%.

Tracking Supply Chain Issues

About Half of Consumers Have Experienced Issues Caused by Delayed or Out-of-Stock Items
The share of respondents who said that they have experienced the following issues since they started holiday shopping:
Weekly surveys are conducted among roughly 2,200 U.S. adults and have a margin of error of +/-2%.

More on this topic: Retailers can retain consumers through stock shortages with proactive recommendations. Consumers facing an out-of-stock holiday gift are just as likely to buy a substitute from the same retailer as they are to jump to a competitor in search of the original item. Read more.

Tracking Channels

Online vs. In Store: How Consumers Are Shopping This Year
Respondents were asked "Thinking about the upcoming holiday season, which of the following best describes you?"
Weekly surveys are conducted among roughly 2,200 U.S. adults and have a margin of error of +/-2%.

More on this topic: Holiday shopping procrastinators will continue their annual dependence on brick-and-mortar stores to fulfill gift lists, as the omicron variant has not diminished consumers’ comfort with shopping in stores. Read more.

Tracking Spending

How Much Are Consumers Planning to Spend?
Respondents were asked how much they expect to spend on gifts this holiday season
Weekly surveys are conducted among roughly 2,200 U.S. adults and have a margin of error of +/-2%.

More on this topic: Morning Consult’s monthly U.S. Consumer Spending report provides a detailed assessment of consumption patterns reported by consumers within a variety of categories of goods and services. Read more.

Tracking Travel

More Than 2 in 3 Americans Do Not Plan to Book Any Holiday Travel
Respondents were asked "How much of your holiday travel have you started to book?"
Weekly surveys are conducted among roughly 2,200 U.S. adults and have a margin of error of +/-2%.

More on this topic: As Americans prepare for the 2021 holiday travel season, many are expecting higher prices and less reliability for planned trips than in a typical year. 45% say they’ll limit their attendance at in-person events, and 41% say they’ll travel less this holiday season compared with pre-pandemic times. Read more.

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