43% of Americans Have Already Started Saving for the Holidays. If You Haven't, You May Want to Do This

Many of us have only recently gotten to embrace fall in all of its cool-weather glory (thanks, 80-degree streak that came on way too late in the year). But while you might still be in full-fledged pumpkin-spice-latte and leaf-peeping mode, the reality is that the holidays will be here before we know it. In the coming weeks, you might end up with a much larger credit card tab in the course of buying things like gifts and decorations.

There's also holiday travel to think about. Airfare can be costly from late November through late December. And if you're on a tight schedule, you might have to pay up to fly out when you need to. So it's important to have cash reserves on hand by, well, now to cover your costs.

In a recent Sitecore report, 43% of Americans say they've already started saving for the holidays. But if you've yet to save money for your year-end spending, that window is closing. After all, you might have to book your flight home in late October to make sure you get a seat. And you may have to do a lot of shopping in November because that's when the deals start to hit. So if you haven't yet begun to save for the holidays, there's an important alternative to explore.

When there's no more time to cut back on spending

Some people begin saving for the holidays at the start of the year. And when you're going that route, you can take the approach of just cutting back on spending since you have many months to make progress.

But at this stage of the game, it's late October. You may only have a week or two to sock money away before you start incurring expenses. So since it's a bit late to start cutting spending, a better bet may be to get yourself a side hustle.

The good news is that now's a great time to look for extra work. Businesses tend to need more help during the holidays. If you walk around town or check out your town's social media page, you might learn of multiple opportunities that don't require much of a drive.

You can also take on an independent gig to drum up money for the holidays. People are always looking for unique holiday gifts for loved ones. If you're crafty, you might do well selling handmade jewelry or handbags. And if you're a great cook, guess what? Some people do not enjoy meal prep at all. If you moonlight as a personal chef for holiday parties, you might bring home a nice amount of cash.

Aim for a better head start next year

If you truly have no money saved for the 2023 holiday season, then getting a side hustle could be your ticket to avoiding debt. But also, learn from your circumstances by pledging to get a better jumpstart on holiday savings in 2024.

Once the new year rolls around, set up an automatic transfer to an account earmarked for holiday purchases. If you send $20 a week into that account, by next October, you'll have a decent chunk of cash to work with. And going into next year's holiday season with savings might make it more enjoyable for you all in.