Plan and budget confidently for a joyful festive season.
Festive budget calculator
Take charge of your finances this festive season with our budgeting calculator, designed to help you plan your expenses confidently and easily. With this information, you’ll be well-equipped to make the most of your celebrations without breaking the bank.
How to use the Festive Budget Calculator?
- Add your planned budget for the festive season into the calculator.
- Just enter the estimated expense amount into the designated fields.
- You aren't required to use all the festive costs listed in the calculator. You have the option to adjust it according to your preferences. Don't need new decorations? Simply leave the corresponding field blank.
Festive budget calculator
Maximum budget for the festive season
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Festive Budget Summary
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Total Expenses
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Remaining Festive Balance
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Festive Budget Breakdown
This is how your budget is split across categories
Gift preferences by country
To help you estimate the cost of each festive item, we've gathered popular gifts and average prices from Germany, Italy, and Spain. This will assist you in making well-informed choices and ensuring your gifts are both thoughtful and budget-conscious. There are some shared gifting themes across the three countries, but also some differences in the top categories chosen as gifts by people across Europe. Germans have a preference for Food & Wine, Clothing and Books as gifts.* Gifts in these categories range between €5 and €60, with Clothing as the priciest gifting category. In comparison, Italians prefer Food & Wine, Toys and Beauty Products**, with similar price ranges. Spaniards prefer Perfumes, Clothing and Toys as gifts.*** where prices start at €9 and can go as high as €80, with Toys being the priciest. Given that prices can start as low as €5 and potentially soar beyond €80, our N26 Festive Budget Calculator is an essential tool to help you plan and manage your holiday expenditures effectively.Food, décor and wrapping costs
Gift-giving is a joyous occasion, but remember to factor in the additional costs associated with it. Wrapping paper and cards can add around €7 to your total, according to data from Germany, Italy, and Spain. Beyond gifts, setting up for the festive season — including trees, lights, decorations, food, and drinks—also contributes to the overall holiday spirit, as well as the budget.Read more about the festive season
The hidden numbers behind our festive season spendingFrom Swiss shoppers dropping €43 per person on chocolates to 64% of European shoppers opting for second-hand gifts, here’s where our money goes during the holidays.
Online Christmas shopping: the ultimate guideOur Christmas shopping tips make gift-giving easier in 2021. Find out how to create a gift list, stick to your budget, and score last-minute deals.
5 security features to help you keep your money safe this shopping season Think the only risk this shopping season is overspending? You might want to think again.
How to save money during the festive season?
Manage festive gifting like a pro
- Set spending limits and organize a Secret Santa to minimize the number of gifts.
- Opt for DIY gifts like crafts or baked goods
- Thrift for gifts: Explore thrift stores for unique and budget-friendly options, and consider using thrifted items for décor and wrapping, such as reusable fabric.
- Regifting and group gifts can further economize your spending.
- Communicate budget constraints clearly to align expectations with reality.
- Plan and budget: Use the N26 Festive Finance Calculator to ensure you stay within financial limits. These approaches ensure meaningful gifting while keeping track of spending and promoting sustainability.
Wrap it up, cost effectively
- Instead of buying single-use wrapping paper or gift bags, wrap gifts in reusable packaging like tea towels (for the foodies), pillowcases, fabric, old scarves, shoeboxes and enhance the presentation with a simple bow for a unique, clean aesthetic.
- Alternatively, opt for other recyclable options like newspapers, magazines, or brown kraft paper, and personalize them with stamps, drawings, or ribbons you already own.
- Or you can even skip traditional wrapping and engage recipients with a gift-revealing scavenger hunt or game, making the gift-giving experience both memorable and environmentally conscious.
Entertaining on a budget can be fun
- Simplify the décor or upcycle some thrifted items to match a festive theme when you are hosting friends and loved ones.
- Embrace DIY decorations, repurpose last year’s decorations in new ways and incorporate nature-inspired elements to add a fresh touch.
- Instead of carrying all the food costs for get-togethers, ask your friends and family to bring dishes and have a potluck party. This way, everyone plays a part in the party, and you can explore new dishes while spending time with them.
Learn more about budgeting
Monthly budget calculatorUse our Monthly budget calculator to know how your incomes are split among different categories and take control of your spending.
50 30 20 budget calculatorEasily apply the 50/30/20 rule with this calculator and find how you might divide your monthly income into needs, wants and savings.
Financial Calculators and Money-Management ToolsN26's free online financial calculators support your budgeting needs and help you manage your money better to achieve your goals!
More about the data sources: Methodology
The data sources used to establish the price ranges are listed below, as indicated by the corresponding notations.
More about the data sources: Methodology
The data sources used to establish the price ranges are listed below, as indicated by the corresponding notations.- https://www.amazon.de
- https://kaesescheune.de/Shop/Kaese-Geschenkboxen/
- https://holtseer.de/praesentkoerbe/vier-kaese-im-korb/
- https://www.globalprice.info/en/?p=germany/munich-food-prices
- https://www.expatrio.com/about-germany/food-prices-and-groceries-germany
- https://germanfoods.org/german-food-facts/elisenlebkuchen-finest-german-gingerbread/
- https://www.thetasteofgermany.com/blog/looking-for-lebkuchen-/
- https://www.lebkuchen-schmidt.com/en/festive-tin-2024-p7252/
- https://shop.deutschepost.de
- https://www.selinawamucii.com/insights/prices/germany/geese-meat
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/521655/sausage-product-prices-by-type-in-germany/
- https://www.selinawamucii.com/insights/prices/germany/sausages/#google_vignette
- https://www.lebkuchen-markt.de/christstollen-c-21_27.html
- https://www.dresdnerstollen-shop.de/Shop/
- https://www2.hm.com/de_de/index.html
- https://www.zara.com/de/en/
- https://en.zalando.de/
- https://www.uniqlo.com/de/de/
- https://www.c-and-a.com/eu/en/shop/men
- https://www.tkmaxx.com/de/de/
- https://www.otto.de/
- https://www.kik.de/
- https://www.amazon.de
- https://www.kulturkaufhaus.de/de/start
- https://www.peterknecht.de/shop/
- https://winenews.it/it
- https://www.amazon.it/
- https://www.romeoviganotti.com/en/packages-and-chocolate-boxes/
- https://www.federconsumatori.it/natale-2023-tra-regali-cibi-e-addobbi-i-prezzi-aumentano-mediamente-del-102/
- Disney Store Italy
- OVS
- https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/
- https://www.mondadoristore.it/
- https://it.clementoni.com/
- https://www.kikocosmetics.com/
- https://www.sephora.it/
- https://www.chanel.com/it/
- https://www.gucci.com/int/
- https://www.shiseido.it/it/it/
- https://it.sisley.com/
- Amazon.es
- https://www.elcorteingles.es/
- Gastronomicspain.com
- 2023 study by Organización de Consumidores y Usuarios (OCU)
- Correos.es
- UNICEF's Christmas postcards collection
- lasuperpapeleria.co
*Gifting data source on top gift categories for Germany is Nielsen Consumer LLC’s research
Source for pricing of all items in the categories Food & Wine, Clothing and Books:
Average range taken from Food & Wine products available on
**Gifting data source on top gift categories for Italy is Confcommercio-Imprese per l'Italia
Source for pricing of all items in the categories Food & Wine, Toys and Beauty Products*
Average range taken from Food & Wine items available on
***Gifting Data source on top gift categories for Spain is Statista.
Source for pricing of all items in the categories Perfumes, Clothing and Toys
Data taken from Perfumes, Clothing and Toys available on: