How We Really Feel About Giving Cash as a Holiday Gift

Welcome to exhausted America 2025: Most adults are more than a little fine with doling out cash as gifts, and many plan to be asleep before midnight on New Year's Eve, a new poll finds. About 6 in 10 Americans say cash or gift cards are "very" acceptable as holiday presents, but they're much less likely to say that about a gift that was purchased secondhand or re-gifted. More findings from the wide-ranging holiday poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research:

• The poll found about two-thirds of Americans under 45 say cash is a "very" acceptable holiday gift, compared with 55% of adults age 45 or older.
• Most people at least grudgingly accept various gift types, with about 9 in 10 saying cash or gift cards are at least "somewhat" acceptable and about 6 in 10 saying the same for secondhand gifts and re-gifted items.
• About three-quarters of adults under age 45 say secondhand gifts are at least "somewhat" acceptable, compared with about 6 in 10 adults age 45 or older. About 4 in 10 adults age 45 or older say secondhand gifts are "somewhat" or "very" unacceptable.
• About 3 in 10 US adults say they will give a gift to their pet this year.

• Only about 1 in 10 US adults say they'll do Elf on the Shelf.
• 44% of Americans say they won't stay up to greet 2026, according to the poll. About half of US adults age 45 or older won't make it to midnight, compared with around one-third of adults under age 45.
• It's not just your pesky neighbors who leave their holiday decorations up into January. About one-third of US adults say they'll leave them up after New Year's Day.
• It's more common for people to leave their decorations up after the holiday season than to put them up early, according to the poll. About 2 in 10 Americans say they put up holiday decorations before Thanksgiving.
• About one-quarter of US adults say they're planning to watch sports on Christmas Day, while only 5% will head for a movie theater.