Survey Finds Dads Do More Back-To-School Shopping Than Moms

Main Findings:

• Dads spend more ($300 – $499) than moms ($200 – $299) on back-to-school shopping.
• Nearly two-thirds of all respondents (62%) will use credit cards, half of whom will use Visa (49%).
• Nearly 4 in 10 respondents plan to use buy now, pay later (BNPL) options, while 14% will use layaway plans.
• The top three purchases parents and guardians intend to make include clothing (82%), school supplies (80%), and shoes (77%). 
• More than 9 out of 10 respondents say their children agree with the back-to-school items they plan to purchase.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – July 26, 2023 – CardRates.com, a website that educates consumers about the benefits and perils of credit cards, today released the results of its Q2 2023 survey that reveals surprising back-to-school shopping trends, including that 83% of dads surveyed saying they will handle this year’s back-to-school shopping.

The other surprising finding was that kids should shop with dads for clothes and moms for school electronics. According to the data, dads spend more than moms on back-to-school shopping ($300 – $499) versus $200 – $299 for moms. Nearly two-thirds of all respondents (62%) will use credit cards, half of whom will use Visa (49%). Nearly 4 in 10 respondents plan to use buy now, pay later (BNPL) options, while 14% will use layaway plans.

The top three purchases parents and guardians intend to make include clothing (82%), school supplies (80%), and shoes (77%). 

More than 9 out of 10 respondents say their children agree with the back-to-school items they plan to purchase. However, when children disagree (8%), it usually involves clothing (47%), while accessories, school supplies, and school electronics all tie for a distant second place (32% each).

“Back-to-school purchases can be a large expense for families,” said Ashley Fricker, senior editor at CardRates.com.

“Families can help save on this expense by using a credit card that offers cash back or other rewards. For example, the Target RedCard offers 5% cash back on all Target purchases, a popular merchant for back-to-school shopping. The Chase Freedom Unlimited® currently offers unlimited 3% cash back on everything you buy in your first year of card membership, so you’re not limited in terms of retailers or the types of purchases you make. Furthermore, card issuers typically partner with retailers to offer even more cash back that can really help you maximize your savings. For instance, American Express has an offer to get $30 back when you spend $150 or more at Levi’s (online or in store) and $120 back when you spend $599 or more at Dell.com with your Amex card.”  

Methodology: A national online survey of 1,055 U.S. consumers, ages 18 and older, was conducted by Propeller Insights on behalf of CardRates.com in June of 2023. Survey responses were nationally representative of the U.S. population for age, gender, region, and ethnicity. The maximum margin of sampling error was +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.

Boilerplate: CardRates.com was created with a singular goal: to better educate consumers about the benefits and perils of credit cards. To that end, CardRates.com’s finance experts strive to share valuable, well-researched advice, news, and reviews with visitors daily. The world of credit cards can be difficult to navigate, with many pitfalls and untrustworthy sources. In addition to ranking credit cards on a number of criteria, CardRates.com’s writers and editors also offer tips to help you choose the best credit card for your needs.

Media Contact
Grant Zehnder
grant@bospar.com