How to cut the cost of Christmas

The shops have been filling up with festive goodies for many weeks now - and, alongside many shoppers, you may well have taken advantage of the 'Christmas creep' to start spreading the costs around.

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With this year’s big spend expected to be £1,622.46 per household*, 16% up on last year, we’ll need every money-saving trick in the book to manage the expense!

PLAN AROUND YOUR BUDGET Typically, we spend about 30% more in December than in other months. With the price of pretty much everything up, start by setting a realistic budget for gifts, food, drink, travel and socialising. No option but to borrow? Make sure you get a card that offers 0% interest on purchases. And plan now how to pay off the card within the interest-free period – the best cards right now offer up to 24 months. Check out moneyfactscompare.co.uk for best buys.