How to Shop Less this Year

There’s nothing like the holiday season to remind us of how easy it is to spend money. It’s also the season to remind us of our budgets and possibly just how stretched those are. Since money might be on the top of your mind too, I thought I’d ponder the idea of shopping less this year. Whether you are looking to spend less money in general or are trying to save money, shopping less is an important part of that journey.

How to shop less this year and why it matters

Shopping less is going to have a number of positive effects. Shopping less will help you stay within your budget which means you will have more cash on hand. This means shopping less will help you save money or will help you have more money to pay off your debts. From a sustainable viewpoint, shopping less means less waste. You have less packaging to deal with and less material goods that need to be disposed of. Shopping less has a domino effect for many positive results.

Consider these thoughts on your journey to shop less:

1. Focus on your budget

Money can be a great motivator in the drive to shop less. Focusing on your budget can help you see what areas you need to shop less in. Your budget can also provide guidelines on how much you can reasonably spend this year.

Try to:

• Set spending guidelines for yourself (and stick to them!)
• Set savings goals to show yourself what shopping less can do for your bank account
• Set debt payment goals for the same reason

If you are new to the budgeting game or want to get some more tips and tricks, check out these posts:

How to Create a Budget in 5 Easy Steps

10 Reasons to Keep Track of Every Purchase you Make

Money Master Class: A Year of Financial Guidance

2. Ask yourself “Do I really need this?”

With this one you have to be truly honest with yourself. There are many motivators for going out to buy something and need is often not the main motivator. Our shopping habits can be motivated and influenced by emotions, trends, people in our lives, and many other factors.

Try to focus in on why you are buying something. Is it because you are in need? Or is it because you are filling an emotional void? Perhaps you’re just bored? There’s no shame in shopping for those reasons–we all do it from time to time. Taking the time to hit pause and focus on why you are going out to shop is a chance for you to get to know yourself a little more. If shopping is being done for reasons other than need, then it is a great opportunity to make some changes and take care of yourself in other ways.

Check out these posts for some more tips on getting to know why we are needing to shop:

Questions to Consider as you Become a More Conscious Consumer

How Our Need to Shop is Ruining Our Planet

3. Borrow things you really do need

Sometimes it feels like the act of borrowing something from your friends and neighbours has become a lost practice. Items are so accessible these days with online shopping and immediate delivery options that there is not the same need to go knock on your neighbour’s door.

Borrowing items not only helps you to shop less, but also can help foster community. The entire idea behind Buy Nothing Groups and their geographic boundaries was to build community. Connecting with others is, in my mind, an important part of being human. Reaching out to friends or neighbours to ask for help is a great way to foster those relationships.

4. Give the gift of time instead of the gift of stuff

One big obstacle to shopping less might be the need to give gifts throughout the year. As the years go by I keep feeling more and more that everyone has enough “stuff” and I try to think of gifts that involve activities instead. While experiences such as theatre tickets or passes to an art gallery still involve shopping, giving the gift of time can be done without spending money. It may take a bit of creativity, but there are tons of ways to give the gift of time!

Here are some ideas to get your own creative juices flowing:

1. Give some free babysitting time.
2. Invite the recipient(s) over for a high tea event at your home.
3. Cook a fancy (or not so fancy) meal.
4. Create a homemade scavenger hunt with a theme geared towards the recipient.
5. Look up online bingo cards for your favourite movies (or make your own) and have a movie night.

For me, the memories created from spending time with each other last longer than any item that could be purchased.

There are also some thoughtful ways to create a homemade gift that doesn’t cost a lot of money. Check out our Sustainable Gift Guide for some ideas!

Shopping less in 2026

As the year starts out and we are focusing in on how we want 2026 to look, I hope these thoughts on shopping less give you some inspirations for a positive new year!

Let’s keep in touch! Sign up to receive email updates from A Sustainably Simple Life below:

We’d love to add you to our monthly email list! Send us an email with “Subscribe” in the subject line to asustainablysimplelife [at] gmail.com or fill out the form here: Subscribe to A Sustainably Simple Life

You can unsubscribe at any time.