Overview
- On Thursday, July 23, industry forecasts and consumer surveys reported record aggregate back‑to‑school spending with the National Retail Federation projecting $43.3 billion for K‑12 and $103.5 billion for college students.
- Major polls show growing economic worry, with Deloitte finding 57% of parents expect conditions to worsen and average planned spending of about $557 per child, a small decline from 2025 but still a tight budget for many.
- Households are stretching budgets by shopping earlier, timing buys for sales and tax‑free weekends, switching to private‑label items, and using supply drives or secondhand clothes to cut costs.
- Many families are relying on credit: Omnisend found 45% plan to use buy‑now‑pay‑later for school purchases and about 31% expect BNPL to cover a large share, while surveys by Intuit/Credit Karma show roughly half of parents may open new credit or raise limits.
- Those choices could have ripple effects: parents say cost may force children to skip activities, retailers are competing on deals and timing, and limited assortments at some chains may shift where families shop for specific supplies.