Overview

• Back-to-school outlays hold at $30.9 billion, averaging $570 per student, 7% below 2021 levels.
• Parents are scouring deals on essential items like clothing while scaling back on technology and supplies in response to inflation and tariffs.
• Online spending is forecast at $23.8 billion, with 61% of budgets to be spent by late July and 46% of families eyeing Prime Day promotions.
• Eighty-three percent of parents report similar or worse financial conditions than last year and over half foresee further economic decline in the coming months.
• Shoppers are increasingly turning to private-label brands and accepting longer standard shipping times to cut costs.