What Your Pumpkin Spice Habit Says About Your Spending Style

Daily gingerbread lattes. A cute apple pie candle. All the Halloween décor you can fit in the car. No matter what autumn-themed goodies have caught your eye, one fact remains true: fall is the season for a splurge! Read on to learn what your autumnal splurges say about your spending style, and how you can stay financially healthy while still enjoying the best of the pumpkin spice season.  

A Seasonal Coffee Every Day  

Do you find yourself heading to the coffee drive through more often when the weather cools? For many lovers of autumn, seasonal splurges are an every day affair. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with indulging in a little daily treat, the cost of all those caramel apple muffins and pumpkin spice lattes can add up fast. If you’re a daily spender and you want to reduce the autumn hit on your wallet, consider purchasing one or two special fall items at the grocery store—such as gingerbread drink syrup or pumpkin spice baking mix—and preparing some fall-themed treats at home.  

Adventures to the Pumpkin Patch  

If you find yourself filling every weekend in fall with another adventure to the pumpkin patch, the apple orchard or the haunted maze, you may be an experience splurge: always happy to dig into the coffers if it means making the most of the season. One way to take advantage of all these wonderful autumn experiences, while spending a little less money, is to put purchases on a credit card which offers points, rewards or cash back. When you’re earning cash back on gas, groceries and other purchases, the hit from autumnal activities won’t affect your bottom line quite as much.   

Organizing an Epic Vacation  

Despite the near universal love for pumpkin spice season…some people are less than overjoyed when the temperatures begin to dip. These same people often spend the early days of fall scouring the internet for the best travel deals to warm-weather destinations—and they don’t mind going over budget if it means booking in an epic vacation to get them through the winter. To enjoy lower-than-average APR on vacation spending, consider a vacation loan. The right vacation loan can offer a little extra cash to escape the cold weather, without the high-interest credit card bills to pay off when you’re back home.  

Unplanned Autumn Purchases  

You walk into a store for a single item: an onion, a towel, a bottle of dish soap. And yet, when you walk out of the store, your shopping cart is filled with cinnamon spice candles, festive lanterns and more jack-o-lanterns than you can count. Inspired by the aesthetics of the season, it’s easy to get carried away while shopping and end up spending much more than you planned. If you’re an autumn impulse shopper, try entering the store with cash rather than a card to limit your spending, or use platforms like Instacart to purchase necessary items while avoiding the browsing which can lead to unbudgeted spending. 

Over-Preparing for Winter  

While some autumn-lovers live in the moment, savoring all the bridge season has to offer, others keep their focus firmly on what’s to come. If you find yourself over-preparing for winter—purchasing three new coats, multiple pairs of snow-shoes and all the wool socks you can find—then it’s time to pause the spending and think through what preparatory purchases are truly necessary. This is especially true if half your haul ends up in the upstairs closet, unused. Often, it’s better to see what items you need and build your winter wardrobe gradually. As always, use thrift stores to help! In the end, a smaller number of quality basics will make it easier to get dressed on winter mornings (and save you money, too).