Plan your spending: the best (and worst) months to buy revealed

 

• PriceSpy reveals best and worst times to buy popular items
• Save over $2300 this year by following this buying advice

 

With consumers continuing to face interest rate rises, a cost-of-living crisis and surging food prices, many may be looking to tighten their spending across 2023.

 

To help consumers plan their purchases more carefully, PriceSpy, has researched the best (and worst) times to buy consumer goods across over 30 different shopping categories listed on the fully impartial price and product comparison site*.

 

Key research findings:

Dependent on the month of the year consumers purchased, PriceSpy’s research revealed considerable savings can be easily made:

• The most expensive month of the year to buy consumer goods in 2022 was June, with prices costing seven per cent ($54) more than average prices across the rest of the year;
• And the cheapest month of the year was November, with prices costing seven per cent less ($57) compared to the average price across the rest of the year.

 

PriceSpy’s research also uncovered how further savings could be made by regularly monitoring price points across the year, not buying products as soon as they have been released and buying out of season.  For example:

• The average price across the shopping category of BBQs was at its lowest in May (at $542).  The highest average price for the same category was at the height of summer season in February (at $936). So, an average saving of $394 can easily be made if consumers monitor prices and buy out of season.

• The lowest average price of game consoles was also found to be after Christmas (in January, at $561). The highest average price was in July (at $740), offering a potential saving of $179.
• And the most expensive average price to buy a mobile phone was revealed to be October (at $1047), which is shortly after Apple traditionally release their latest handsets. If consumers purchase a mobile phone in July however, the average price drops to $976, offering a potential saving of $71.

 

Liisa Matinvesi-Bassett, New Zealand country manager for PriceSpy, says: “Some purchases are a luxury, whilst others are a necessity. Whatever the motivation for buying, our new research aims to help people buy the right product at the right time, so that they can plan their spending accordingly and enjoy the potential savings on more important things.

 

PriceSpy Guide - The best times to buy

	What to buy this month	Saving ($)**	Saving (%)**
January	Game consoles	-$96 less	-17% less
	LEGO	-$23 less	-9% less
	DLSR cameras	-$105 less	-5% less
February	Laptop bags	-$17 less	-40% less
	Fridge Freezers	-$105 less	-5% less
	Vacuum cleaners	-$45 less	-7% less
March	Motherboards	-$40 less	-11% less
	Ebook readers	-$28 less	-4% less
April	Sunglasses	-$35 less	-23% less
	TVs	-$106 less	-4% less
	Handbags & Shoulder Bags	-$19 less	-14% less
May	BBQs	-$258 less	-48% less
	Slow cookers	-$30 less	-20% less
June	Lawn mowers	-$111 less	-26% less
July	Mobile phones	-$57 less	-6% less
August	Monitors	-$70 less	-9% less
	Smartwatches	-$49 less	-12% less
	Espresso machines	-$63 less	-8% less
September	Graphics cards	-$184 less	-16% less
	Tablets	-$84 less	-9% less
	Washing machines	-$59 less	-4% less
October	Portable speakers	-$30 less	-9% less
	Laptops	-$120 less	-7% less
	Suitcases & Bags	-$26 less	-9% less
November	Toasters	-$16 less	-10% less
	Headphones	-$42 less	-17% less
	Juicers	-$60 less	-25% less
	Home security cameras	-$48 less	-13% less
December	Tents	-$75 less	-14% less
	Board games	-$9 less	-13% less
	Sewing machines	-$215 less	-63% less
	Electric scooters	-$131 less	-20% less

 

PriceSpy Guide – The worst time to buy

	What not to buy this month	Extra cost ($)**	Extra cost (%)**
January	Portable speakers	+$29 more	+8% more
	Home security cameras	+$104 more	+25% more
	Pushchairs, prams and strollers	+$195 more	+52% more
February	BBQs	+$136 more	+17% more
	Sunglasses	+$18 more	+9% more
	Handbags & shoulder bags	+$29 more	+19% more
March	Lawn mowers	+$277 more	+52% more
	Hair straighteners & curling irons	+$127 more	+26% more
	Washing machines	+$88 more	+6% more
	Slow cooker	+$19 more	+11% more
April	Toasters	+$16 more	+9% more
May	Laptops	+$103 more	+5% more
	Fridge & Freezers	+$212 more	+9% more
	Suitcases & bags	+$51 more	+16% more
June	Monitors	+$122 more	+14% more
	Tablets	+$45 more	+4% more
	Electric scooters	+$153 more	+20% more
	Espresso machine	+$119 more	+15% more
July	DLSR cameras	+$151 more	+5% more
	Game consoles	+$83 more	+13% more
	Vacuum cleaners	+$37 more	+5% more
August	TVs	+$156 more	+6% more
	Juicers	+$125 more	+41% more
	Board games	+$11 more	+15% more
	Laptop bags	+$15 more	+25% more
September	Tents	+$255 more	+41% more
October	Mobile phones	+$71 more	+7% more
	Smart watches	+$70 more	+15% more
November	LEGO	$20 more	+7% more
December	Graphic cards	+$251 more	+19% more

 

“Whilst people’s reasons for shopping will differ, one thing will surely be the same - no-one wants to pay over the odds for a product if they can help it, especially when wider living costs are much more expensive, says Liisa.

 

“Knowledge is power and knowing the best time to buy will mean that people can make their money go further.”

 

Avoid seasonality to secure the best bargains

For those on a budget, PriceSpy’s data demonstrates how buying products slightly out of season can deliver big savings. For example, putting off the purchase of a new BBQ until May can save a staggering $258 (48 per cent) compared to the average annual price.

 

Similarly, PriceSpy’s data demonstrates the premium consumers may pay by buying a product when it’s most in-demand. Buying a BBQ in February in the heat of summer, for instance, could end up costing an extra $136 (17 per cent) compared to the annual average price. 

 

And overall, the difference between buying a BBQ when average costs are at their highest (February) versus when average costs are at their lowest (May), offers a sizeable saving of $394.

 

Liisa concludes: "Some of the price increases we see across the year may be driven by supply and demand.  For example, when consumers' needs for certain goods are naturally higher, like BBQs in the summer, they can expect retailers to sell such goods at higher price points.

 

“Ultimately, if consumers do not have to buy something immediately, taking time to make a purchase and keeping a close eye on what price points are doing, will help deliver the best result and potentially help save thousands of dollars in the long run.

 

“Another great tip is to also set up a free price alert on a service such as PriceSpy.  Price alerts help consumers monitor the price of the products they are looking to buy, and they are automatically sent notifications to advise them when the time and price is right.”

 

www.pricespy.co.nz

 

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Notes to editors

*Data based on average weighted price on PriceSpy between 1st January 2022 - 31st December 2022

**Compared to average weighted price on PriceSpy between 1st January 2022 - 31st December 2022             

 

	What to buy this month	Annual average Vs cheapest monthly average
January	Game consoles	$657 - $561
	LEGO	$266 - $243
	DLSR cameras	$2810 - $2705
February	Laptop bags	$61 - $44
	Fridge Freezers	$2403 - $2298
	Vacuum cleaners	$711 - $666
March	Motherboards	$398 - $358
	Ebook readers	$280 - $270
April	Sunglasses	$191 - $156
	TVs	$2657 - $2551
	Handbags & Shoulder Bags	$152 - $133
May	BBQs	$800 - $542
	Slow cookers	$176 - $146
June	Lawn mowers	$530 - $419
July	Mobile phones	$976 - $919
August	Monitors	$886 - $816
	Smartwatches	$467 - $418
	Espresso machines	$816 - $753
September	Graphics cards	$1307 - $1123
	Tablets	$1016 - $932
	Washing machines	$1388 - $1329
October	Portable speakers	$378 - $348
	Laptops	$1955 - $1835
	Suitcases & Bags	$313 - $287
November	Toasters	$177 - $161
	Headphones	$295 - $253
	Juicers	$304 - $244
	Home security cameras	$410 - $362
December	Tents	$627 - $552
	Board games	$76 - $67
	Sewing machines	$559 - $344
	Electric scooters	$777 - $561

 

	What not to buy this month	Most expensive monthly average Vs annual average
January	Portable speakers	$407 - $378
	Home security cameras	$514 - $410
	Pushchairs, prams and strollers	$566 - $371
February	BBQs	$936 - $800
	Sunglasses	$209 - $191
	Handbags & shoulder bags	$181 - $152
March	Lawn mowers	$807 - $530
	Hair straighteners & curling irons	$625 - $498
	Washing machines	$1476 - $1388
	Slow cooker	$195 - $176
April	Toasters	$193 - $177
May	Laptops	$2058 - $1955
	Fridge & Freezers	$2615 - $2403
	Suitcases & bags	$364 - $313
June	Monitors	$1008 - $886
	Tablets	$1061 - $1016
	Electric scooters	$930 - $777
	Espresso machine	$935 - $816
July	DLSR cameras	$2961 - $2810
	Game consoles	$740 - $657
	Vacuum cleaners	$748 - $711
August	TVs	$2813 – $2657
	Juicers	$429 - $304
	Board games	$87 - $76
	Laptop bags	$76 - $61
September	Tents	$882 - $627
October	Mobile phones	$1047 - $976
	Smart watches	$537 - $467
November	LEGO	$286 - $266
December	Graphic cards	$1588 - $1307

 

 

 

 

 

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