Americans Will Spend More on Back-to-School Shopping This Year Than Before COVID-19

A new survey shows parents care more about sending their kids back to the classroom with expensive threads than devices.

After learning from home for more than a year, parents want their kids to look and feel special when they head back to school.

Debt.com’s latest survey on back-to-school shopping reveals more than 6 in 10 parents will spend most on clothes this season. Less than 1 in 4 said they’ll use most of their budget on technology like laptops and other devices. Only 18 percent said traditional school supplies – backpacks and binders – will eat up their back-to-school budget.

“Parents spent a year sheltering at home, and their children spent a year learning at home,” says Debt.com chairman Howard Dvorkin. “We bought technology products last year to get us through daily Zoom meetings. Meanwhile, we either wore out or mothballed our clothing. So for once, we already own the latest tech but not the latest fashions.”

The majority of parents surveyed told Debt.com they plan to spend $200 more this shopping season than in 2019, before the pandemic.

Below are the most fascinating results of Debt.com’s 2021 Back-to-School shopping survey.

More than 2 out of 3 parents surveyed have at least one child going back to school

1 out of 3 parents surveyed will spend more than $200 per kid going back to school

More than half of parents with kid(s) back to school plan to spend more this year than 2019, before the pandemic hit

1 out of 3 parents surveyed will spend more than $200

Of parents who will spend more this year, 3 out of 5 say clothing will eat up most of their budget

Methodology: Debt.com surveyed 413 people and asked seven questions about how much they plan to spend on back-to-school shopping this year. People responded from all 50 states and Washington, DC and were aged 18 and above. Responses were collected through SurveyMonkey. The survey was conducted from July 30, 2021, to August 12, 2021.