During October, Gallup runs a survey asking Americans about their Christmas spending plans. After hitting a peak of just over $900 in 2006 and 2007, average spending intentions plummeted after the financial crisis of 2008 and the Great Recession, bottoming out at just above $700 in 2010 and 2011.
That average intended spending level has since rebounded, hitting $812 in 2015.
Gallup notes some caveats with this survey - in past years, follow up surveys in November have often seen big swings, frequently in a downward direction, from October expectations. Still, they write that "these findings point to improved holiday sales this year compared with 2014."
