Swedish Households Increase and Advance Their Christmas Spending in 2025

Retail sales in Sweden have shown a marked increase during the lead-up to Christmas 2025, with a notable shift toward earlier and larger purchases. In November, physical store sales rose by 4.8% compared to the previous year, followed by a 4.5% increase in early December, indicating a stronger and earlier start to the Christmas shopping season. This trend is underpinned by a more favorable economic environment, characterized by lower inflation and adjustments in interest rates, which provide households with greater financial flexibility.

Louise Richardson, the country manager at Nets Sweden, attributes this positive development to more stable consumption patterns as households receive encouraging economic signals, allowing for better purchase planning. A significant behavioral change is the growing share of Christmas shopping happening before December, spurred by events like Black Friday and Black Week. As a result, December shopping now focuses more on food, experiences, and supplementary gifts than on large presents.

Households are making bigger investments in categories such as IT, telecommunications, furniture, and home décor, sectors experiencing notable growth after previous economic caution. Conversely, restaurants, bars, and cafes are seeing weaker growth. Domestic card payments constitute approximately 90% of December sales, with foreign cards (predominantly Norwegian) making up nearly 8%. Looking forward, Christmas shopping expenditures in Sweden are expected to hit a record 24.5 billion kronor, and total retail sales for December are projected to surpass 100 billion kronor for the first time, marking a 5% increase from the prior year.