--- title: "Holiday Shopping Without the Guilt: Save Early, Spend Smart" description: If you’re ready for some guilt-free holiday shopping this season, now is the time to start saving early to prepare for the gifts you want to give! image: https://blog.memberspluscu.org/hubfs/still-life-christmas-gift-boxes.jpg --- [![MembersPlusCU](https://blog.memberspluscu.org/hubfs/MembersPlusCU_February2025/images/MPCU-logo-with-tag-e1540818915924.png)](https://www.memberspluscu.org/) Toggle navigation - Personal Banking - [Products & Solutions](http://memberspluscu.org/personal-banking/) - [Members Checking](https://www.memberspluscu.org/personal-banking/products-solutions/members-checking/) - [Members Plus Checking](https://www.memberspluscu.org/personal-banking/products-solutions/members-plus-checking/) - [Rising Teen Accounts](https://www.memberspluscu.org/rising-teen-accounts/) - [Debit Mastercard®](https://www.memberspluscu.org/personal-banking/products-solutions/mc-debit-card/) - [Savings](https://www.memberspluscu.org/personal-banking/products-solutions/savings/) - 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[budgeting (15)](https://blog.memberspluscu.org/tag/budgeting) - [budget (12)](https://blog.memberspluscu.org/tag/budget) - [Fianancial Planning (10)](https://blog.memberspluscu.org/tag/fianancial-planning) - [Financial Advice (6)](https://blog.memberspluscu.org/tag/financial-advice) - [Home Buying (6)](https://blog.memberspluscu.org/tag/home-buying) --- ### Recent Posts --- When it comes to holiday shopping, even though our intentions are good, we still sometimes tend to go overboard when it comes to spending. This often leaves us with a financial hangover in January, when the seasonal fun is over and holiday shopping bills are due! If you’re ready for some guilt-free holiday shopping this season, now is the time to [start saving early](https://www.memberspluscu.org/personal-banking/products-solutions/club-accounts/) to prepare for the gifts you want to give! ## **The Season of Joy (and Overspending)** The pressure to overspend and have everything “just perfect” is something we can all understand during the holidays. ## **Why Holiday Shopping Gets So Expensive** Unfortunately, wrecking the budget and being left with a less than pleasant financial situation is often due to these situations: - Last-minute buys and emotional spending in search of the perfect gift and irresistible deals - Expensive holiday travel rates, fancy decorations, popular gifts, and festive entertainment expenses add up quickly. - The influence of sales and social media specials can mean purchases that are too good to pass by but aren’t quite in the budget. To prevent the annual financial hangover in January, it’s a smart money move to plan ahead and start saving for holiday shopping with a [holiday club savings account at Members Plus Credit Union](https://www.memberspluscu.org/personal-banking/products-solutions/club-accounts/). Here’s why: ### **Benefits of a Holiday Savings Account at MPCU** - **Earn Dividends** –Every little bit helps when it comes to saving money and the interest you receive on your holiday savings account with MPCU will add up quickly to make a difference in your holiday spending budget! - **Automate Deposits** –MPCU makes it so easy to automate savings with the automatic transfers. Simply designate a set amount to be automatically deposited into your holiday savings account and watch your shopping budget grow! - **Avoid Using Credit Cards** – Having a dedicated savings account for holiday shopping helps avoid dipping into other savings or using credit cards to finance gifts. This is a smart choice that keeps you on budget and saves you from paying interest on holiday shopping. ### **How a Holiday Savings Account Helps You Stay Ahead** Stay ahead of your finances this year with a holiday savings account from MPCU. If you’re not familiar with this type of account, here are more details about how it works. ### **What is a Holiday Savings Account?** A separate savings account that is specifically designed for budgeting for holiday expenses, the holiday savings account lets you plan ahead for holiday spending. The holiday spending account steadily grows with small, regular contributions, so you have plenty of money to spend on gifts and seasonal expenses without using credit cards or bill money. Planning ahead and creating this special allows you to save all year long with the money becoming accessible just in time for the holiday shopping season! **Smart Ways to Start Saving Now** Are you ready to open a holiday savings account with MPCU to plan for your holiday shopping expenditures? Here are some tips to help you get started! ### ·         **Set a Holiday Budget Goal** - Look at last year’s spending for guidance on how much you will need for holiday shopping this year. It is a good idea to know your holiday shopping savings goal and decide sooner rather than later how much money you want to have saved by November so you can start shopping at this time. ### ·         **Automate Your Savings** - It’s a smart choice to schedule recurring transfers directly to your holiday savings account. This “set it and forget it” strategy makes saving painless, and you will have plenty of gift money before you know it! ### ·         **Bonus Tip – Stack Rewards and Cashback** - When it comes to holiday shopping, it’s not only a good idea to plan ahead and save, but it’s also smart to combine your savings with rewards tools and cashback opportunities for even more buying power. ### **Make Your Holiday Dollars Go Further** More than anything else, smart spending is the key to getting more bang for your holiday buck this season! Here are some tips to help you spend smart, not sparse this holiday season. - Plan gifts ahead of time and take advantage of seasonal sales - Set gift spending limits per person or category - Use digital budgeting tools from MPCU to track your progress ## **Enjoy the Holidays Without the Financial Hangover** Start saving early for stress-free holiday shopping this season so you can feel good about your holiday spending choices and stay within your budget. When you save for the holidays all year long, you can relax and focus on family traditions and filling the season with joy! Open your [holiday savings account with MPCU](https://www.memberspluscu.org/personal-banking/products-solutions/club-accounts/) today and make this your happiest (and smartest) holiday yet. [Return to Blog](https://blog.memberspluscu.org) ### Leave a Reply --- Questions about MembersPlus? 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