Essential Gift Card Statistics to Know in 2024

Between 2022 and 2030, analysts predict the market will grow at a compound annual rate of 8.3%, reaching nearly $2.1 trillion at the end of this period. The key growth drivers include the rising penetration of smartphones worldwide, increased reliance on flexible payment methods, and high adoption of digital gift cards by retailers as a promotional and revenue-boosting tool.

(Research and Markets)

According to experts, the US market will experience massive growth over the next five years. Increasing at a staggering annual rate of 19.12% between 2023 and 2027, analysts predict it could reach $388.81 billion in value by the period’s end — more than double its current size.

(Research and Markets)

Over the next 11 years, experts see the industry growing at 12.4% annually. By 2032, its value should reach $497.2 billion — more than three times its current value. Throughout the period between 2022 and 2032, Europe will hold up to 30% of the global gift card market, with the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain accounting for more than half of the total European revenue.

(Persistence Market Research)

Like other regions, Asia-Pacific will also experience growth over the coming years — albeit at a somewhat slower rate. The region’s gift card industry is expected to reach $305.58 billion by 2026, for an annual growth rate of 9.6% between 2022 and 2026. But the local retailers won’t be solely responsible for this growth; in countries like China and India, local governments have launched gift card initiatives to boost consumer consumption following the global pandemic.

(Research and Markets)

This marks a 19.2% increase from the $286.95 billion recorded in 2021. With Amazon, Apple, and Blackhawk among the digital segment leaders, it is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 17% over the next four years. Propelled by the rapid growth of the Asia-Pacific digital gift card industry, the digital market segment alone should reach a value of $639.9 billion by 2026.

(Research and Markets)

According to Digital Commerce 360’s gift card study, nearly half of North America’s top 1,000 online retailers currently accept gift cards. Their number is bound to increase as online shopping continues to grow. Besides other potential benefits for businesses, a recent study found that 72% of gift card shoppers end up spending more than their gift card is worth at checkout.

(Digital Commerce 360, Stax Payments)

A study of gift card trends published in 2021 estimated that the digital segment would grow by 23% until 2025. At 2.5 times the growth rate of the overall gift card market, that would make eGift cards its fastest-growing segment by a wide margin. The massive spike in the adoption of digital gift cards was primarily driven by the shift to online shopping amid the global pandemic.

(Business Wire)

Despite the growth in the eGift card segment, statistics show that over half (54%) of shoppers still prefer physical gift cards. While 77% of those who prefer digital cards cite their immediate delivery as the top reason, 62% say they’re easier to send, and 50% say they’re simpler to buy. On the other hand, 61% of those who prefer physical gift cards say it’s because they like to give tangible gifts to others, and 46% say they like it when the recipients have something to unwrap.

(Payments Dive)

Gift cards are the preferred holiday present for 56% of Americans, so it’s no surprise that 43% of US shoppers planned to buy at least one gift card during the 2022 holiday season. It isn’t just a US trend — consumers worldwide tend to buy gift cards for holidays. Countries with high shares of holiday gift card shoppers also include France (40%), Australia (39%), and Germany (38%).

(Statista)

The number marked a 1.8% year-over-year spending increase in the holiday season leading up to Christmas, gift card statistics show. An average shopper planned to buy up to four gift cards in 2022, each worth $51.47. The planned per-person spending on gift cards averaged $165.87. Overall, with 45% of shoppers planning to buy gift cards, they were the second–most popular gift item during the 2022 holiday season, behind clothing (55%) and ahead of toys (37%).

(National Retail Federation)

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), restaurant gift cards were the most popular gift cards for Christmas 2022, with 27% of US consumers planning to buy at least one. Other top categories included department store gift cards (26%), bank-issued gift cards like Visa or Mastercard (25%), and food delivery gift cards for services like Uber Eats and DoorDash (10%).

(National Retail Federation)

Although 2022 was the best year for gift card sales in terms of total consumer spending, the actual number of units sold between Black Friday and Christmas Eve was down by 10.7% year-over-year. Physical gift cards are the main culprit, their value having dropped by 22% compared to the 2019 holiday season. But on the positive side, the number of digital gift cards sold saw a 4.6% year-over-year increase, while their value was up by 77% compared to 2019.

(Paytronix)

Data from 2021 shows that US consumers redeem 35.02% of their gift cards within the first 45 days of receiving them. The share of redeemed gift cards increases to 46.04% by day 90, but the increases get smaller for each subsequent 45 days. Namely, the share of redeemed gift cards climbs to 52.09% by day 135, eventually reaching 56.11% six months after receipt.

(Paytronix)

According to a 2022 survey, 47% of US consumers have at least one unredeemed gift card or store credit in their name. And while the average per-person value isn’t that high at $175, it marks a massive 53.5% increase from 2021, when the per-person average stood at $114. Even more worrisomely, the total value of unused gift cards in the US currently amounts to $21 billion.

(USA Today)

Besides being most likely to have an unused gift card, statistics reveal that millennials hold the most unredeemed credit at $226 per person. Meanwhile, the per-person credit of Gen-Zers is significantly lower at $149. As for other age groups in the US, 43% of Gen-Xers and 42% of baby boomers also have unused gift cards, averaging $180 and $133 per person, respectively.

(USA Today)