NJ is 6th in the U.S. in Christmas spending increase

If you’re feeling guilty about how much money you spent this Christmas, never fear. Your fellow New Jerseyans did the same. Turns out, New Jersey did pretty well in holiday shopping this past December.

A recent study ranked us sixth in retail spending increases during December 2023. Sure, we weren’t number one—that honor goes to Hawaii, with a whopping 9.4% boost—but New Jersey held its own, showing that we know how to shop when the season calls for it.

A new study has revealed that Hawaii led the nation in retail spending increases over Christmas 2023, with a remarkable 9.4% boost in December sales. New Jersey also performed well, securing the sixth spot on the list.

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Canva / TSM illustration

This new study was conducted by the coupon site Bravo Deal and it analyzed monthly retail sales information from the Census Bureau. With those stats, it ranked states by how much they increased retail sales from December ‘23 till now.

The study also compared trends from previous years just to get a bigger picture of holiday retail spending growth.

Idaho and Nevada were second and third on the list of holiday spending growth.
Other states rounding out the top five include Colorado, with a 4.8% increase, and Michigan, which saw a 4.3% boost in December retail sales. The top ten also featured Arizona, Oregon, Washington, and North Dakota.

At the other end of the spectrum, Mississippi experienced a 4.4% decline in December 2023 retail sales, marking a notable downturn after modest gains in 2022 and 2021. Ouch.

Canva / TSM illustration

The report also pointed out that retail spending has been a bit of a rollercoaster since the big COVID rebound in 2021. States like Hawaii and Idaho have seen steady increases, but trends vary widely, so predicting what’ll happen next is tricky.

They plan to repeat this study in the coming years to understand trends.

Either way, it’s nice to see NJ holding its own in the holiday shopping game. Who knows—maybe next year, we’ll crack the top five. For now, let’s just give ourselves a little credit for keeping those registers ringing.

But it’s good to know that here in New Jersey, at least, many of us feel confident enough in the economy to still spend.

25 Christmas songs performed by NJ artists

If you celebrate Christmas, the next month of your life is likely going to be consumed with shopping for gifts, retrieving a tree, decorating the house, and going out on adventures to see elaborate light displays.

The one thing that you must have at the ready for all of these scenarios is Christmas music.

Since a lot of the songs you hear tend to get repetitive this time of year, why not pay homage to some of the great singers, bands, and musicians that make New Jersey's music history so rich.

Gallery Credit: Joe Votruba