Average back-to-school spending tops $600 per child: Report

Back-to-school shopping season is underway and it's going to be expensive. A new report from Nerdwallet estimates that back-to-school shopping will cost parents $600 on average per child this year. As Nerdwallet Senior Writer Kimberly Palmer explains, because of higher prices, "back-to-school shopping is really putting a lot of financial strain on parents this year." Palmer joins Yahoo Finance Live to give some tips that parents can use to keep costs down.

Video transcript

DIANE KING HALL: With August just around the corner, literally tomorrow, parents will be preparing their kids to head back to school and the price tag that comes with it. The National Retail Federation says inflation may cause 2023 to be the most expensive year yet, with spending estimated to surpass $135 billion.

NerdWallet estimates it will cost about $600 on average per child and found many parents will have to dip into savings or go into debt to afford it. Kimberly Palmer is a senior writer at NerdWallet and joins us now. Kimberly, thanks so much for joining us. Let's dig into this data that you all called. First, what is expected to be the priciest thing in terms of back to school purchases this year?

KIMBERLY PALMER: Well, in general, back to school shopping is really putting a lot of financial strain on parents this year. Because prices are higher, you still need to fulfill that list that you get from schools. And the priciest items tend to be things like electronics. A lot of kids need computers, graphing calculators. As you get older, the items just get more expensive. And then, of course, kids also want things like backpacks, clothing, and all of that adds up really quickly.

SEANA SMITH: Kimberly, how is this then I guess affected some of the shopping attempts here or strategies, I should say, from parents in terms of where they're looking to save, when they are buying, has that shifted at all given the fact that so many parents are under financial pressure?

KIMBERLY PALMER: It has. Parents are really getting creative about how they're saving money this year. So first of all, they're being really careful to stick to the lists provided by the schools. So as soon as you get that school list, you can see that it is pretty limited because schools are mindful of the fact that parents are under so much financial strain.

So your children might be asking you to buy more things off list, but you can absolutely stick to that list. Also check what items you already have around the house that might be that you bought extra binders last year and you can reuse them this year or reuse that backpack because that's another big ticket item.

I think one of the most creative strategies that I've heard of is parents teaming up with each other because in a lot of cases you can buy in bulk together and then share the cost and then that can make your overall budget a little bit easier.

DIANE KING HALL: And Kimberly, I want to ask you about something that we've talked about here and you are a parent as well, I know. So what's a way to get around some of these pricier things? I know there are certain days, for instance, you can shop on. What's your tip there?

KIMBERLY PALMER: There are. So the biggest tip is that you want to spread out your purchases. And some school systems make this a little easier for you by giving out those school shopping lists early in July. So some parents have actually already started shopping and took advantage of those July summer sales. But don't worry if you haven't, it's not too late because we'll see some pop up discounts.

It's a lot of times based on your local district and when your kids are going back to school. So you want to check for those local sales. And then meanwhile, you want to think about spreading out your purchases too and even waiting until October for some of those items because kids don't need everything on day one. You can often wait to buy some things until second semester.

And when it comes to clothing, especially fall clothing, you definitely want to try to wait to buy until we get a little closer to winter because the sales will be much better.

SEANA SMITH: You can really-- actually, I had a question on that because the estimate that we have on the screen is that it's expected to exceed $600 per child. Does that include clothing?

KIMBERLY PALMER: It does. So we actually ask families how much do you expect to spend this year on back to school shopping. And so that does include-- it goes beyond not just what the schools are requiring you to buy, but all of those other items as well. And yes, I have kids myself and I know they ask for much more than that's on the list. And so that's why it easily adds up.

And some portion of parents actually say they'll spend over $1,000. So you can see how that becomes such a strain.

DIANE KING HALL: Wow, oh, my gosh. I'm sorry. Over $1,000, I'm like, wow. Because when you go to the store for this stuff, yes, you can get the folders, the notebooks, et cetera, for cheaper. And especially, when you take your kids with you, they start, like, asking for things and that can add up if it's hard for you to say no.

But talk to me about the tax holiday thing because some parents are newer to this, the list. Their kids are just starting out in school. What's the detail about that that parents should know about?

KIMBERLY PALMER: Well, the most important thing to know about tax holidays is that it's state-specific. So you want to check on what your state offers in terms of tax holidays because a lot of them come up in August. And you can actually take advantage of that for your back to school shopping.

So you want to check what categories you're able to shop during that tax-free holiday and then go ahead and do that because you can really save some money there, and this year, every little bit helps.

DIANE KING HALL: And what can people think about getting besides looking around to see what you have, but, like, second hand or something like that to help kind of keep these costs down, especially when we think about where inflation is now, Kemberly?

KIMBERLY PALMER: Well, one big trend this year actually is looking at refurbished items, so especially when you're looking at electronics. So anything like computers or graphing calculators, anything in that category, it's worth checking to see what refurbished options are available because you can save big. And that way your kids still have a great product, but you are not spending as much as you would otherwise on an all new product.

SEANA SMITH: All right, Kimberly Palmer, great to get your perspective. Thanks so much for joining us here today.