Americans start their holiday shopping early this year

Nearly half of Americans plan to start their holiday shopping by Halloween this year — and they’re worried about overspending.

According to a new survey from Bankrate48% of Americans will start shopping for winter holiday gifts in October.

Shoppers are as price-conscious as ever, with only 24 percent telling Bankrate they’re likely to spend more this year than last year. A third said they plan to spend less this year.

When you break down the results by age, more younger shoppers said they plan to spend more this year than in the past. Two in five Gen Zers expect to spend more, compared to 31% of millennials. These figures are far lower than the 19% of Gen Xers and 15% of Baby Boomers who plan to spend more.

Of those surveyed, 34% said inflation is changing the way they shop.

Twelve percent of those surveyed said they started shopping in August, and 13 percent said they would start in September. Most shoppers say they’re not last-minute shoppers, with only 15% planning to start gift shopping in December.

“While some people scoff that the holiday shopping season seems to start earlier every year, starting earlier gives you more time to compare the best deals and spread the impact of your purchases,” Ted Rossman, analyst industry leader Bankrate. said in a statement.

One in four shoppers told Bankrate they’re stressed about the cost of holiday shopping, and only 30 percent say they’ve already set money aside for gifts.

When it comes to where shoppers get their gifts, 42 percent said they plan to shop almost exclusively online, and only 23 percent plan to shop mostly in person.

More than a quarter of shoppers expect to take on debt to pay for gifts.