Average Back To School Spending For 2024: $874.68
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Families with children in elementary school through high school plan to spend an average $874.68, according to the National Retail Federation.
That’s up $177.98 or 25% from the pre-pandemic 2019 average of $696.70, but is $15 less than in 2023.
“Last year’s watermark was partially driven by record investments in electronics, with 69% of back-to-school shoppers planning to purchase a laptop, tablet or other electronic device for their student,” Prosper Executive Vice President of Strategy Phil Rist said. “These are typically items students can use for several years, which may be why we are seeing slightly less interest in electronics this year.”
K-12 shoppers are budgeting $309.35 on average for electronics ($13.7 billion total), $253.29 for clothing and accessories ($11.2 billion total), $141.62 for school supplies ($6.3 billion total) and $170.43 for shoes ($7.6 billion total).
Similar to past years, the most popular destinations for back-to-school shopping are online (57%), department stores (50%), discount stores (47%), clothing stores (42%) and electronics stores (23%).
Back To College Spending 2024
College students and their families are expected to spend an average of $1,364.75 on items for the upcoming school year, in line with last year’s record of $1,366.95. Total back-to-college spending is expected to reach $86.6 billion, the second-highest figure in the history of the survey. Last year, total spending was forecast to hit a record $94 billion.
The top five categories for college spending include $359.49 on average for electronics ($22.8 billion total), $192.40 for dorm or apartment furnishings ($12.2 billion total), $171.06 on clothing and accessories ($10.9 billion total), $149.71 on food ($9.5 billion total) and $112.60 on shoes ($7.1 billion total).
Similar to past years, the top shopping destinations for back-to-college students and their parents are online (50%), followed by department stores (35%), discount stores (31%), and college bookstores, office supply stores and clothing stores (tied at 26%).
