HPU Poll: Holiday Shoppers Prefer Cyber Monday to Black Friday

HIGH POINT, N.C., Nov. 24, 2025 – A recent High Point University Poll found more people in the United States and North Carolina plan to shop on Cyber Monday than on Black Friday.

The HPU Survey Research Center asked U.S. and North Carolina residents about shopping on the Monday after Thanksgiving, known as Cyber Monday, one of the biggest online shopping days of the year. Nearly half of both groups (45% for the U.S. and 44% for North Carolina) said they plan on shopping online the Monday after Thanksgiving.

The poll also shows about one-third of U.S. residents (36%) and North Carolinians (33%) plan to shop on the Friday after Thanksgiving, known as Black Friday. About half (47% in the U.S. and 51% in North Carolina) said they will not shop on Black Friday this year.

When asked about choosing between the two, the Friday after Thanksgiving or Cyber Monday, more poll respondents in both populations said they would prefer shopping on Cyber Monday (36% nationally and 35% in North Carolina), while smaller percentages said Black Friday (28% in the U.S. and 25% in North Carolina). About one-quarter of poll respondents in each population said they would rather not shop on either day (24% in both the U.S. and North Carolina).

“Cyber Monday is entirely online, which means no crowds, no lines, and no chaotic in-store experiences,” said Dr. Nasir H. Assar, director of the MBA program and associate professor of economics at HPU’s Phillips School of Business. “This appeals especially to working professionals who can browse during breaks rather than taking time off for in-store shopping.”

When people across the U.S. and North Carolina do shop for the holidays, about one-third (30% in the U.S. and 31% in North Carolina) plan to do most of their shopping online. Meanwhile, about half as many people plan to do most of their shopping in brick-and-mortar stores (18% in U.S. and 17% in North Carolina). An additional two in five in both groups said they will do both equally (41% in the U.S. and 38% in NC).

Majorities of both U.S. residents (59%) of North Carolinians (53%) said they will start their holiday shopping about the same time as any other year. About one in five (20% in U.S. and 23% in North Carolina) said they will start holiday shopping earlier than usual this year, while fewer (13% in the U.S. and 15% in North Carolina) said they will start shopping later.

About one-third of people in the U.S. (33%) and North Carolina (34%) said they will spend less money on the holidays this year. Two in five (44% in the U.S. and 43% in North Carolina) said they will spend about the same amount of money on the holidays this year compared to last year. Only about one-fifth of respondents (20% in the U.S. and 19% in North Carolina) said they will spend more than last year.

When asked how much they plan to spend, the poll found that majorities of U.S. and North Carolina residents (59% in both populations) plan on spending less than $500 on gifts, food, decorations and other items related to celebrating the holidays. About one-fifth (21% in the U.S. and 18% in North Carolina) said they will spend between $500 and $1,000. Only about one in 10 (11% in both populations) plan to spend more than $1,000.

“Shoppers are weighing opportunity costs more heavily this year,” said Kat Morand, instructor in the Department of Economics at HPU’s Phillips School of Business. “Deloitte projects overall holiday spending to fall by about 10%, and Gen Z plans to cut back even further, reducing their budgets by 34%. When people are tightening their spending, the added costs of driving, waiting in lines, or giving up sleep for in-store promotions become much harder to justify. Online shopping gives consumers clearer visibility into what they’re spending as they add items to the cart, which helps them avoid the financial surprises that feel especially risky in a tighter season.”

When asked about holiday stress compared to last year, the largest proportions of respondents (51% in the U.S. and 45% in North Carolina) said their stress levels will be about the same as last year. About one-third (34% in the U.S. and 38% in North Carolina) said their holidays will be more stressful than last year, and only about one in ten (9% in the U.S. and 10% in North Carolina) said they will be less stressful than last year.

HPU Poll 116 – United States Sample (n = 1004)

United States Residents – Friday After Thanksgiving (November 2025) 

As you may know, the Friday after Thanksgiving is one of the biggest shopping days of the year. Looking ahead, do you personally plan on shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving, or not?

Yes – 36%

No – 47%

Unsure – 17%

United States Residents – Most Holiday Shopping (November 2025)

Do you plan to do most of your holiday shopping in brick-and-mortar stores or online this year?

Brick-and-mortar stores – 18%

Online – 30%

Both equally – 41%

Unsure – 11%

United States Residents – Cyber Monday (November 2025) 

As you may know, the Monday after Thanksgiving is known as Cyber Monday and one of the biggest online shopping days of the year. Looking ahead, do you personally plan on shopping online during the Monday after Thanksgiving?

Yes – 45%

No – 32%

Unsure – 23%

United States Residents – Friday or Monday Shopping (November 2025)

If you had to choose between the two, do you plan to do more shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving or Cyber Monday?

Friday after Thanksgiving – 28%

Cyber Monday – 36%

Neither – 24%

Unsure – 12%

United States Residents – Holiday Spending (November 2025)

Thinking ahead to the holiday season, how much do you think that you will spend this year on gifts, food, decorations and other items related to your celebration of the holidays?

$100 or less – 20%

More than $100 but less than $500 – 39%

More than $500 but less than $1,000 – 21%

More than $1,000 but less than $2,000 – 8%

More than $2,000 – 3%

Unsure – 10%

United States Residents – Holiday Spending (November 2025)

Do you think that you will spend more, less or about the same as last year on gifts, food, decorations and other items related to your celebration of the holidays?

More – 20%

Less – 33%

About the same – 44%

Unsure – 4%

United States Residents – Holiday Shopping – Earlier or Later? (November 2025)

Do you think you will start holiday shopping earlier than usual, later than usual, or about the same time as any other year?

Earlier than usual – 20%

Later than usual – 13%

About the same time as any other year – 59%

Unsure – 9%

United States Residents – Holiday Stress (November 2025)

Compared to last year, do you think the holiday season will be more stressful, less stressful or about the same as last year?

More stressful than last year – 34%

About the same as last year – 51%

Less stressful than last year – 9%

Unsure – 6%

HPU Poll 115 – North Carolina Sample (n = 1001)

North Carolina Residents – Friday After Thanksgiving (November 2025) 

As you may know, the Friday after Thanksgiving is one of the biggest shopping days of the year. Looking ahead, do you personally plan on shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving, or not?

Yes – 33%

No – 51%

Unsure – 16%

North Carolina Residents – Most Holiday Shopping (November 2025)

Do you plan to do most of your holiday shopping in brick-and-mortar stores or online this year?

Brick-and-mortar stores – 17%

Online – 31%

Both equally – 38%

Unsure – 13%

North Carolina Residents – Cyber Monday (November 2025) 

As you may know, the Monday after Thanksgiving is known as Cyber Monday and one of the biggest online shopping days of the year. Looking ahead, do you personally plan on shopping online during the Monday after Thanksgiving?

Yes – 44%

No – 34%

Unsure – 22%

North Carolina Residents – Friday or Monday Shopping (November 2025)

If you had to choose between the two, do you plan to do more shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving or Cyber Monday?

Friday after Thanksgiving – 25%

Cyber Monday – 35%

Neither – 24%

Unsure – 16%

North Carolina Residents – Holiday Spending (November 2025)

Thinking ahead to the holiday season, how much do you think that you will spend this year on gifts, food, decorations and other items related to your celebration of the holidays?

$100 or less – 20%

More than $100 but less than $500 – 39%

More than $500 but less than $1,000 – 18%

More than $1,000 but less than $2,000 – 7%

More than $2,000 – 4%

Unsure – 12%

North Carolina Residents – Holiday Spending (November 2025)

Do you think that you will spend more, less or about the same as last year on gifts, food, decorations and other items related to your celebration of the holidays?

More – 19%

Less – 34%

About the same – 43%

Unsure – 5%

North Carolina Residents – Holiday Shopping – Earlier or Later? (November 2025)

Do you think you will start holiday shopping earlier than usual, later than usual, or about the same time as any other year?

Earlier than usual – 23%

Later than usual – 15%

About the same time as any other year – 53%

Unsure – 10%

North Carolina Residents – Holiday Stress (November 2025)

Compared to last year, do you think the holiday season will be more stressful, less stressful or about the same as last year?

More stressful than last year – 38%

About the same as last year – 45%

Less stressful than last year – 10%

Unsure – 7%

HPU Poll 115 was fielded by the High Point University Survey Research Center on Nov. 11 through Nov. 17 as an online survey using a panel of respondents recruited and maintained by Dynata.

HPU Poll 116 was also fielded by the High Point University Survey Research Center on Nov. 10 through Nov. 14 as an online survey using a panel of respondents recruited and maintained by Dynata.

For both polls, Dynata sent invitations to its panels of respondents (HPU Poll 115 = North Carolina respondents, HPU Poll 116 = U.S. respondents) and the SRC collected the responses on its Qualtrics platform (HPU Poll 115 n = 1001, HPU Poll 116 n = 1004). The SRC did all data analysis. The online samples are from panels of respondents, and their participation does not adhere to usual assumptions associated with random selection. Therefore, it is not appropriate to assign a classic margin of sampling error for the results of HPU Poll 115 and HPU Poll 116. In this case for HPU Poll 115, the SRC provides a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points to account for a traditional 95% confidence interval for the estimates (plus or minus 3.1 percentage points) and a design effect of 1.04 (based on the weighting). For HPU Poll 116, the SRC provides a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points to account for a traditional 95% confidence interval for the estimates and a design effect of 1.01 (based on the weighting). The data is weighted toward population estimates for age, gender, race, and ethnicity based on U.S. Census numbers for the United States and North Carolina, respectively. Factors such as question wording and other methodological choices in conducting survey research can introduce additional errors into the findings of opinion polls. Percentages may not add to 100 because of rounding.

Further results and methodological details from the most recent survey and past surveys can be found at the Survey Research Center website. Materials online include past press releases as well as memos summarizing the findings (including approval ratings) for each poll since 2010.

The HPU Poll reports methodological details in accordance with the standards set out by AAPOR’s Transparency Initiative, and the HPU Survey Research Center is a Charter Member of the Initiative.

Dr. Martin Kifer, chair and professor of political science, serves as the director of the HPU Poll.

Dr. J.R. Moller serves as the staff director of the HPU Poll for the Survey Research Center.