How I'm getting out of the gift-giving budget trap

I know there is a lot more to life than giving and receiving presents. And I’ve definitely had to forgo picking up a gift for someone because payday was still a little too far away. But, if I’m being honest, finding something that will make someone I love very happy is one of my favorite things. 

That said, at the start of this year, I realized that I needed to get my gift-giving budget in check. 

Now that March, the busiest birthday month for my family and friends, is over, I thought I’d share what I did to keep spending down while keeping sentiment up. Moreover, I want to share how I found keeping to a budget for this aspect of life and how I think I’ll keep it up. 

So, if you’re also trying to rein in your spending, I hope you find some camaraderie here as well as some strategies I found useful. 

What made me step back

I love gift-giving. I think I’m pretty good at it. And if I’m honest, I don’t mind spending money on the people I love. 

However, when the dust settled after Christmas shopping last year, I’d been a little overindulgent. I welcomed my second child not too long before the holidays, and even though we don’t do lots of gifts for the kids, we did treat our parents and special aunts and uncles a little extra to celebrate becoming grandparents and honorary grandparents, all over again. 

This probably would’ve been enough to get me in gear to knuckle down and spend more carefully, but in my family, the busiest birthday month of the year comes hot on the heels of the holidays. 

Between my husband’s side of the family and my family, we have 12 birthdays to celebrate in March. It’s so busy, we now refer to it as our own version of March Madness. 

Back in January, with the knowledge that this fast-paced birthday bonanza was around the corner, I challenged myself to spend less on gifts. I wanted to break the cycle. 

Here’s what I did and how it panned out. 

What I planned

When it comes to saving and budgeting, I’m admittedly not consistent. I try to stick to my budget, which varies from maybe $20 to $100 depending on what my paycheck is looking like and who I’m buying for. I also do my usual checks for any discounts or codes I could use before clicking “Add to cart.” But I don’t stress over it. 

I also oscillate between waiting to make a purchase (either to make sure I want to buy whatever it is I’m after or to see if it goes on sale before I do) and buying more or less immediately. That means that sometimes, I fall into the trap of thinking that I haven’t overpaid, but when I look back, I’ve overspent on presents overall. 

So, I knew that going into March, I needed to make my spending goals realistic so that I didn’t feel hamstrung, and so that I stuck to my plan. It also meant I could allocate more money to any milestone birthdays, like my brother-in-law’s 30th birthday. 

Ultimately, I didn’t set a standard $20-or-less rule. Instead, I decided my game plan would be to get creative with how I shopped for gifts. 

This was what I set out to do:

• Use all cashback opportunities I have.

• Shop ahead of time to allow wiggle room in case I find the gift elsewhere at a better price.

• Set alerts in my various account profiles to notify me regarding price drops.

• Opt for the least expensive delivery option wherever possible. 

• Check out Facebook Marketplace or other second-hand sites, like Vinted, in case the perfect present found its way to me that way.

• Focus on gifts that won’t just sit around and collect dust.

What it was like

Overall, I was really able to stick to my plan, so I’d call it a win. That said, I did have at least two or three times when I found myself thinking, “Oh, maybe I’ll get one more little thing” to round out a gift. I can be really bad at stopping shopping despite having bought the perfect gift. And there was at least once when I really wanted to buy something, but I just couldn’t make it make sense from a budgeting perspective. 

Big wins and little setbacks

The month started strong when I unexpectedly found a set of Waterford tumblers on sale online at a department store. I also had 2% cashback for them and a free shipping discount code. That meant the extra nice, 30th birthday gift I was after was squared away. Then, the month rounded out nicely when I found a bentwood rocking chair on Facebook Marketplace for my mother-in-law. It was in great condition, was a shockingly good price, and was just up the road. It needs restaining, but I love a good DIY project, so that’s part of the gift, too. 

It wasn’t all victories, though. I’d nearly crushed the month, but then, I got weak when it came to my husband's birthday. I’d bought him a couple of new records, which I was able to save $5 on with a newsletter sign-up promo code. This was enough, but at the last minute, I decided to give him a gift I’d actually bought ahead of Father’s Day in addition to the records. The Father’s Day gift, now rebranded as a birthday gift, was to him from our kids, but part of me does think I should’ve stuck to my original plan. Not to mention I now have to think of a new Father’s Day gift to get him…

Cashback and discount codes were definitely my heroes. These, unsurprisingly, helped me save consistently on the gifts I bought. But it really was a joint effort, so it goes to show that I saved over $200 on gifts I wanted to buy. I’m also really confident that each gift will be used and enjoyed. 

What this year will be like for gifting

I think what stuck with me after the birthday March Madness came to a close, was that there wasn’t one gift I gave where, in the moment, I felt like it was lacking. Every present was meaningful and thought out. This means I’m heading into the rest of the year with more confidence to keep working to a more restrictive budget for gifts. 

It felt good knowing that I set myself a challenge and stuck to it. Sure, I could do more, and perhaps as the year goes on, I will try tighter stipulations, but for now, this money-saving strategy is helping me. I expect that this year, I’ll have broken the cycle and instilled some healthier habits towards spoiling the people around me. 

If you’re a little worried about how you’re going to make ends meet without sacrificing special moments, I completely recommend challenging yourself to pinpoint your “why” and then dive in. If you can determine the “how” at the start, even better. But get started. Then, you can celebrate the wins and learn from the hiccups.