Christmas shopping ideas on a pocket money budget

With Black Friday fast approaching this week, now is the perfect time for kids to start thinking about how they can use their pocket money to buy Christmas presents for friends and family. Giving your kids the financial freedom to use their own money for Christmas presents can also be valuable in reinforcing their concept of money and give them a sense of reward – after all, using their own pocket money to buy a special present for a loved-one can be really rewarding for kids!

If you’re on the hunt for some handy pointers on how to start Christmas shopping without breaking the bank – look no further! We’ve put together our very own pocket-money friendly guide on how your kids can get gift-shopping this Christmas.

First things first

Before thinking about spending any of their hard-earned pocket money, it is important that kids evaluate how much they have, and set themselves a budget – after all, they won’t want to spend the whole nest egg they have worked hard to collect! In the run up to Christmas as they start gift shopping, it might be useful to make use of nimbl’s microsavings feature, to help ensure your kids are still putting money into their savings pot whilst getting the Christmas shopping done – and it helps them  understand the different ways that they can budget and save up for holidays and special events like Christmas!

Although your children may want to buy really special Christmas presents for their loved ones, it doesn’t need to cost them the earth.  Simply considering their budget can help kids think about what special and meaningful gifts they can give this season.

Shopping the sales

Making use of discounts is a great way to shop on a pocket money budget. With Black Friday and Cyber Monday both coming up in the run up to December, this is also a great opportunity to find great deals both online and in store – helping them realise how to  make their money go just that little bit further. And what’s more, buying some gifts in the sales a little earlier on in the year will help them stagger their payments, so they can balance the Christmas good-will with their pocket money pay-days a little more easily!

Matching their contribution

When buying for friends or family, your kids might find it helpful for you to assign a small amount to each person they’d like to buy for, so they have a sensible target budget to work towards from their allowance. And, if they are keen to buy an extra special gift that’s out of their budget you could match the money they contribute, to ensure they can afford to buy the gifts they really want to give. This not only helps them stick to a set budget without blowing their money all in one go, but also helps them feel a sense of achievement for buying something really special!

Do it yourself

There is nothing quite as cost-effective as your kids making presents themselves, and this can be a nice personal touch for any loved ones. You could let your child buy ingredients for baking or craft materials for making and then work together to make it into something giftable and affordable. After all, the cost of a present isn’t the same as its value – taking the time and effort to create something unique and personal can often mean just as much as spending money on a gift!

Christmas is all about spending time with loved ones, so as long as you show your appreciation, it doesn’t matter how much or little you spend! We hope these tips inspire you to find some thoughtful gifts that won’t break the bank this year!