Avoid the festive financial hangover – try our new Christmas debt calculator

The Christmas shopping season is in full swing, and for many of us, the thought of January bills can wait until - well January.

It’s easy to lean on credit cards or buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) schemes to cover the cost of gifts, food and festive fun.

But the reality is that some of us could still be paying off this year’s Christmas well into the 2030s.

The pressure is clear

Rising costs mean rising borrowing and our latest data shows a worrying trend:

• 60% of customers now carry credit card debt, averaging £5,000, up from 57% and £4,000 last year
• BNPL debt help requests have jumped 44% over the past 12 months
• October 2025 saw the highest number of BNPL help requests

And it doesn’t end there. We expect a further surge in people seeking help in January and February 2026, as festive borrowing starts to bite.

With household bills still high, many people feel they have little choice but to borrow, often making only the minimum repayments. This can stretch debt out for years.

Christmas spending keeps rising

Recent research from Censuswide for all-in-one banking app thinkmoney, shows:

• The average UK household will spend £787 this festive season,  £87 more than last year.
• Almost a third (30%) of people say they’d cancel or delay Christmas if they could.
• That pressure is highest among 35–44-year-olds, with 37% feeling the strain and the highest average spend at £1,115.

With numbers like these, it’s no surprise so many people enter the new year feeling weighed down with money worries.

Meet our free Christmas debt calculator

To help you take control of your festive finances before costs snowball, we’ve launched a free interactive Christmas debt calculator.

It shows you exactly how long your festive borrowing could take to repay and how much interest it might cost.

How it works

Enter what you plan to spend across categories, including:

• • gifts and presents
  • food and drink
  • travel and transport
  • decorations and entertainment
  • other seasonal costs

The tool instantly totals your Christmas spending.

Tell us how you’ll pay for it, including:

• • your credit card’s APR
  • whether you already have a balance
  • your monthly repayment amount

The calculator then reveals the true cost of Christmas, including repayment timelines and interest charges.

What the calculator shows you

The tool helps you:

• get a real-time total of Christmas spending
• enter APR and repayment details
• see a debt timeline showing how long repayments will take
• compare total interest and savings if repayments are increased
• access practical cost-cutting tips and free debt advice

Understanding the true cost of festive spending upfront means you can make more informed choices that protect your financial wellbeing long after the decorations come down.

As Sebrina McCullough, our external affairs director, says: “Our calculator gives people a clear, personalised picture of how long Christmas spending could take to clear. It’s simple, practical, and designed to help people make informed decisions before the shopping rush begins." 

Try our Christmas debt calculator and head into the new year with confidence, not worry.