How to Prepare for Christmas Early: A Simple Money-Saving Guide
Christmas is supposed to be a time to relax, spend time with the people you love and enjoy a little festive cheer. But let’s be honest—it can also be very expensive, stressful and surprisingly easy to lose control of your spending.
Food, presents, decorations, travel and social events can all add up quickly.
The good news is that you don’t have to wait until December to start getting organised. Preparing for Christmas early gives you more time to plan, spread the cost and avoid those expensive last-minute purchases.
I’ve put together this simple Christmas preparation guide to help you get organised, save money and hopefully enjoy a calmer festive season.
And remember, you don’t need to spend a fortune to have a lovely Christmas. Sometimes the simplest celebrations are the most enjoyable.
Why You Should Consider Preparing Early for Christmas
Lowers stress levels– When you prepare for Christmas early, this lets you plan calmly. You stay clear of the craziness and stress of last-minute shopping or decorating.
Saves money – You can take advantage of sales during the summer, autumn and possibly Black Friday. Also, you can compare prices across various shops and websites, and spread out your spending, which is less overwhelming than doing it all at once. Look out for genuine discounts throughout the year, but only buy something if you actually need it.
Improves organisation – Preparing in advance helps you manage decorations, menus, and events smoothly, making sure nothing and no one is forgotten.
Creates more time for enjoyment – The best time is when the busy tasks are done ahead of time, and then you can relax and spend quality time with family and truly enjoy the season.
How to Prepare for Christmas Early
Set Your Christmas Budget
Before you start buying anything, work out your Christmas budget. Write down your estimated budget for each category. Your Christmas budget should be based on what you can realistically afford. Start saving a little each month to spread out costs.
Don’t put yourself into debt to create a perfect Christmas.
Here are some ideas for the different categories to think about.
- Christmas presents
- Food and drinks
- Decorations
- Wrapping paper and gift bags
- Christmas cards and postage
- Travel
- Christmas activities and entertainment
- New clothes or outfits
- Any other festive expenses
Keep track of expenses as you buy things to avoid overspending.
Make a Christmas Shopping List
Christmas presents can easily become one of your biggest expenses, so this is an area where planning can really help.
Make a list of everyone you need to buy for and decide how much you can afford to spend on each person. Think about what the person actually likes rather than simply looking for something that costs a certain amount.
Some affordable gift ideas include:
- Books
- Candles
- Toiletries
- Chocolates
- Mugs
- Socks
- Homemade gifts
- Personalised gifts
- Small hobby-related items
- Consider second-hand items
You could also agree with family and friends that everyone has a spending limit. This can take some of the pressure out of Christmas shopping.
Check What You Already Have
Before buying wrapping paper, decorations, Christmas cards, serving dishes, or other festive items, check your cupboards, lofts, and storage boxes for anything left over from previous years.
Start Buying Christmas Presents Early
One of the biggest advantages of preparing early is that you don’t have to buy everything in December. If you see something suitable at a reasonable price, you can buy it and put it away for Christmas. Keep an eye on sales and discounts throughout the year.
Make sure you buy presents with enough time to take advantage of free deliveries and still get them in time for Christmas.
As you buy presents, wrap them and label them, and you can then store them somewhere safe. This saves you from trying to wrap them all on Christmas Eve!
Plan Meals and Baking
Food is an area where I see people’s spending quickly get out of control. I’ll be honest, I buy 2 boxes of chocolates and the rest is normal shopping for me. I’m probably not the best person to advise on elaborate Christmas menus—I’ve been known to have fish finger butties for Christmas dinner! But if Christmas food is important to you, planning your meals can help prevent overspending and food waste.
Make a rough meal plan for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and any parties before you go shopping.
Buy non-perishable ingredients, drinks, sweets, snacks, and chocolate early to steer clear of overcrowded shops. Remember to check use-by and best-before dates and make sure you have enough storage space.
Reserve your online food delivery slot if you get food delivered in December, as they can go very fast.
Organise Decorations
Now, while I don’t spend on Christmas food, Christmas decorations are where I have to rein myself in!
Traditional, Elegant, modern or boho, there are so many to choose from! I find it very tempting to have a new Christmas theme every year; however, I don’t have the money or the storage to do that! (When I get a lottery win, I will have at least 5 themes to choose from!) So, this advice is more for me, but it might apply to you too!
Before buying new decorations, get your existing ones out of storage. Check that everything is still usable and make a note of anything you genuinely need to replace.
You don’t need a completely new Christmas theme every year.
Sometimes rearranging your existing decorations can make your home feel completely different.
Send Cards and Invitations Early
If you send Christmas cards, don’t leave them until the last minute. Make a list of everyone you want to send a card to and check that you have enough cards and stamps.
Write and send cards or invitations a few weeks before December.
Make sure that if you are sending any cards through the post, you know the last dates for posting to make sure they arrive before Christmas.
Plan any Travel or Events
If you’re travelling over Christmas, organise your plans as early as possible to get the best deals and avoid last-minute prices.
Book time off work if you need to go to your child’s school plays, etc and reserve any hair or beauty appointments early, as they will fill up fast.
If you are eating out at a restaurant at Christmas, book early to avoid being disappointed.
Prepare the Home
Christmas can mean having more people in your home than usual, so it can be useful to do a little preparation beforehand.
Try to declutter your home before Christmas, especially if you have little ones with lots of toys. You could create more space or even make some extra money if you sell something. Click this link to read a guide on decluttering the home.
Don’t Forget Yourself!
Make sure you take time to relax and enjoy festive moments. I make a Christmas playlist of my favourite Christmas songs to enjoy while watching a film snuggled under a blanket!
You don’t have to do everything. There is no right or wrong way to celebrate. Decide what is genuinely important to you and concentrate on that.
A Simple Christmas Preparation Timeline
July–August – Get ahead
- Start a Christmas savings fund
- Create a Christmas budget
- Make a list of people you need to buy for
- Start noting gift ideas
- Look out for genuine bargains
September–October – Start organising
- Begin buying gifts
- Buy Christmas cards and wrapping paper if needed
- Plan and buy tickets for travel or Christmas plays
- Check your decorations
- Start buying non-perishable ingredients/food
November – Get serious
- Finalise gift buying
- Order online deliveries
- Declutter and clean your home
- Purchase any decorations you need
- Write and send out your Christmas cards, especially if they are going abroad
- Order any food, for example a turkey, that needs to be reserved in advance
- Prepare any food that can be frozen
As December gets closer, make a simple list of the jobs you still need to complete. Ticking things off your list can make Christmas preparations feel much more manageable.
December – Enjoy the Christmas vibes
- Wrap presents
- Give out presents
- Put up your decorations
- Buy the perishable ingredients/food close to the day
- Enjoy the season!
Final Thoughts
Christmas doesn’t have to be perfect, elaborate or expensive to be enjoyable.
The key is to start early, make a realistic budget and decide what is genuinely important to you. Buying a little at a time, using what you already have and avoiding unnecessary last-minute purchases can make a big difference.
Most importantly, don’t put yourself under pressure to create the “perfect” Christmas. Your time, money and energy are valuable too. Be mindful of the pressure and influence from ads and social media about spending, especially influencers showing big hauls and unboxing.
Social media can make us feel like we need a mountain of presents, matching outfits and a beautifully decorated home. None of these things really matter for having a good Christmas.
A little preparation now can mean less stress in December—and more time to actually enjoy Christmas.
Coming in November, I will be posting a Spotify Christmas playlist.
Let me know in the comments section how you prepare for Christmas!
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