The average amount Canadians are expected to spend during the holidays

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How much money are you ready to drop during the holidays?

A recent survey done by Leger for the Retail Council of Canada (RCC) shows how much money Canadians plan to spend this Yuletide.

The national average for everything from gifts, travel, food and entertainment is $675 and varies considerably depending on the province.

Here are the average numbers of Canadian holiday spending across the country:

British Columbia: $688
Alberta: $622
Saskatchewan: $611
Manitoba: $611
Ontario: $805
Quebec: $458
Atlantic Canada: $813

According to the survey, 65% of Canadians have a firm budget for holiday spending, 28% of whom will end up spending more money than they planned.

Retail Council of Canada

Canadians overall anticipate that food, alcohol and sweets intended for holiday parties and entertaining take up the largest share of their budget, followed by clothing and toys.

holidays

Retail Council of Canada

A majority of Canadian holiday shoppers, 69%, will have already started their shopping by the end of November. Black Friday deals are the most popular as 40% of Canadians anticipate taking advantage of special sales, half of whom do so in-store while the other half shop online.

The figures were the result of a 10-minute online survey, from both male and females, aged 18 and older, from October 10 to 22 of 2018. The survey was fielded in both English and French.

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