Holiday Spending In California: How We Rank

LOS ANGELES, CA —The holiday season is a time for celebration, but between the presents, decorations and festive meals, it can become an expensive time of year.

California residents have some of the highest holiday budgets in the nation, according to a new ranking by WalletHub.

The personal finance website ranked the maximum holiday budget for residents in 570 cities across the country, with California's Palo Alto finishing first, spending an average of $3,160.

“To avoid overspending during the holidays, have a realistic budget and plan with a maximum cap that you share with a spending partner, do not be guilted by yourself or others into overspending, and shop year-round early to get both the best prices and the greatest number of options,” Scott Swan, a professor of innovation and marketing at William & Mary, said in comments accompanying the study.

Shop Patch’s 2019 Holiday Gift Guide Here

While shoppers in Palo Alto, California, plan to spend the most per capita during the holiday buying season, other Californians are also shelling out big bucks, according to the analysis. Sunnyvale ranked second, and Mountain View ranked third.

Residents in Providence, Rhode Island, have the lowest holiday budget in the country at just $111.

Americans are projected to spend between $727 and $730 billion during the 2019 holiday shopping season, which runs from Nov. 13 to Dec. 25.

To determine the ranking, WalletHub compared 570 of the largest cities in the United States across five key characteristics of holiday spending, including income, age, debt-to-income ratio, monthly income-to-monthly expense ratio, and savings-to-monthly spending ratio.

Here are the 10 cities with the highest holiday budgets:

1. Palo Alto, California: $3,160
2. Sunnyvale, California: $2,971
3. Flower Mound, Texas: $2,937
4. Newton, Massachusetts: $2,888
5. Mountain View, California: $2,877
6. Frisco, Texas: $2,836
7. The Woodlands, Texas: $2,833
8. Carmel, Indiana: $2,632
9. Naperville, Illinois: $2,566
10. Milpitas, California: $2,549

Here are the California cities and how much they spend:

1. Palo Alto, CA: $3,160
2. Sunnyvale, CA: $2,971
3. Mountain View, CA: $2,877
4. Milpitas, CA: $2,549
5. San Mateo, CA: $2,492
6. San Ramon, CA: $2,195
7. Walnut Creek, CA: $2,104
8. Pleasanton, CA: $2,102
9. Santa Clara, CA: $1,921
10. Livermore, CA: $1,740
11. Fremont, CA: $1,733
12. Alameda, CA: $1,718
13. San Francisco, CA: $1,674
14. Yorba Linda, CA: $1,569
15. Union City, CA: $1,558
16. Mission Viejo, CA: $1,542
17. Torrance, CA: $1,453
18. Folsom, CA: $1,374
19. Santa Monica, CA: $1,348
20. Lake Forest, CA: $1,337
21. Chino Hills, CA: $1,301
22. Santa Clarita, CA: $1,267
23. Redondo Beach, CA: $1,200
24. Newport Beach, CA: $1,196
25. Redwood City, CA: $1,174
26. San Jose, CA: $1,113
27. Laguna Niguel, CA: $1,054
28. Thousand Oaks, CA: $1,037
29. South San Francisco, CA: $1,004
30. Citrus Heights, CA: $1,003
31. Tracy, CA: $988
32. Carlsbad, CA: $981
33. Temecula, CA: $981
34. San Clemente, CA: $976
35. Irvine, CA: $964
36. Lakewood, CA: $935
37. Huntington Beach, CA: $928
38. Elk Grove, CA: $924
39. Corona, CA: $910
40. Rancho Cucamonga, CA: $904
41. Simi Valley, CA: $899
42. Vacaville, CA: $894
43. Concord, CA: $890
44. Murrieta, CA: $872
45. Camarillo, CA: $869
46. Carson, CA: $865
47. Roseville, CA: $849
48. Alhambra, CA: $840
49. Napa, CA: $836
50. Chula Vista, CA: $831
51. Orange, CA: $824
52. West Covina, CA: $822
53. Daly City, CA: $813
54. Fairfield, CA: $812
55. Chino, CA: $801
56. Buena Park, CA: $791
57. Pittsburg, CA: $789
58. Tustin, CA: $782
59. Whittier: $774
60. San Leandro, CA: $770
61. Menifee, CA: $763
62. Hayward, CA: $754
63. Vallejo, CA: $750
64. Oxnard, CA: $747
65. San Diego, CA: $744
66. Clovis, CA: $725
67. Costa Mesa, CA: $723
68. Santa Rosa, CA: $722
69. San Buenaventura (Ventura), CA: $719
70. Santa Barbara, CA: $719
71. Downey, CA: $718
72. Anaheim, CA: $716
73. Berkeley, CA: $709
74. Fontana, CA: $709
75. Fullerton, CA: $708
76. Oceanside, CA: $700
77. San Marcos, CA: $697
78. Garden Grove, CA: $694
79. Oakland, CA: $692
80. Richmond, CA: $688
81. Upland, CA: $686
82. Riverside, CA: $681
83. Redlands, CA: $678
84. Santa Maria, CA: $675
85. Moreno Valley, CA: $671
86. Norwalk, CA: $666
87. Antioch, CA: $666
88. Manteca, CA: $653
89. Burbank, CA: $652
90. Ontario, CA: $645
91. Perris, CA: $645
92. Visalia, CA: $637
93. Palmdale, CA: $633
94. Sacramento, CA: $627
95. Santa Ana, CA: $625
96. Rancho Cordova, CA: $614
97. Rialto, CA: $614
98. Davis, CA: $605
99. Baldwin Park, CA: $603
100. Salinas, CA: $596
101. Glendale, CA: $577
102. Modesto, CA: $576
103. Turlock, CA: $576
104. Bakersfield, CA: $573
105. Escondido, CA: $571
106. Bellflower, CA: $568
107. Yuba City, CA: $561
108. Carmichael, CA: $561
109. Westminster, CA: $559
110. Hawthorne, CA: $555
111. Hesperia, CA: $553
112. Redding, CA: $546
113. Apple Valley, CA: $544
114. Long Beach, CA: $541
115. Lancaster, CA: $535
116. Los Angeles, CA: $534
117. Lynwood, CA: $531
118. Pomona, CA: $522
119. Stockton, CA: $519
120. South Gate, CA: $495
121. Chico, CA: $476
122. San Bernardino, CA: $475
123. El Cajon, CA; $472
124. Fresno, CA: $471
125. Compton, CA: $460
126. El Monte, CA: $445
127. Merced, CA: $431
128. Inglewood, CA: $425
129. Indio, CA: $398
130. Hemet, CA: $381

The full rankings are available at WalletHub.