Urban Indian households are likely to spend an average of ₹20,000 on discretionary purchases this festive season, with total urban festive spending estimated at ₹1.97 lakh crore, down 6% from 2025, according to a survey by LocalCircles.
The estimate compares with ₹2.10 lakh crore in 2025 and ₹1.85 lakh crore in 2024. LocalCircles attributed the increase in spending last year partly to GST rate cuts that took effect in September 2025, coinciding with the start of the festive season.
The survey found that 57% of urban households surveyed plan to make discretionary purchases between September and November 2026, while 31% said they did not plan any such spending. Another 12% were undecided.
Among households planning to spend, 30% expect their budgets to be between ₹10,000 and ₹1 lakh, while 9% expect to spend more than ₹1 lakh. Another 18% plan to spend less than ₹10,000.
The findings come amid rising retail inflation. Consumer price inflation increased to 5.54% in September from 4.83% in August, while food inflation rose to 7.74% from 5.97%, according to government data.
Clothing leads planned festive purchases
Clothing, footwear and accessories are the most commonly planned purchases, with 72% of respondents intending to spend in this category, according to LocalCircles.
Home appliances and furniture, as well as travel and holidays, were each cited by 45% of respondents. Gourmet food and gifting accounted for 39% of planned purchases.
Mobile phones, consumer electronics and gadgets were cited by 22% of respondents, the same share as home renovation and interiors. About 10% planned to buy an automobile or two-wheeler, while 6% intended to purchase jewellery.
Respondents could select multiple categories.
Shivani Nirupam, Creative Director and Founder of Label Shivani Nirupam, said festive fashion demand is expected to remain healthy, although consumers are becoming more selective about their purchases.
“People are moving away from heavily embellished outfits that may only be worn once and are instead looking for pieces that can be styled differently and worn across multiple occasions,” Nirupam said.
She added that versatility and comfort are becoming important considerations, alongside contemporary designs that retain elements of traditional Indian wear. Younger consumers are experimenting with colours, prints, fabrics and silhouettes to reflect their individual styles, she said.
Most households expect to use savings
The survey also indicated that savings will be a source of funding for most households planning festive purchases.
About 83% of respondents planning to spend said they expected to use savings to finance at least part of their festive expenditure. Of these, 34% expect savings to cover at least 25% of their spending, including 16% who said their festive purchases would be funded entirely from savings.
Meanwhile, 49% expect savings to account for less than 25% of their festive spending, while 17% said they would rely entirely on current earnings. No respondents indicated that they would need to borrow to fund their planned festive purchases.
Survey covered 307 districts
LocalCircles said its survey received more than 67,000 responses from urban household consumers across 307 districts. The number of responses varied across individual questions.
The spending-budget question received 22,904 responses, while the question on funding festive purchases through savings received 23,451 responses. The survey was conducted through the LocalCircles platform using its proprietary stratified sampling methodology.
The organisation said the polls had a margin of error below 7% and a confidence level above 93%.