Australians to spend $10.5b in EOFY sales

This is up $400m from 2024.

Australians are expected to spend $10.5b during this year’s mid-year and end-of-financial-year (EOFY) sales, an increase of $400m or 3.9% from 2024, according to new data from the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and Roy Morgan.

The annual sales event has already begun, with major discounts on clothing, shoes, homewares, furniture, and electronics.

ARA Chief Industry Affairs Officer Fleur Brown said shoppers are keen to save on big-ticket items and winter essentials, with many looking for work-related products like laptops and phones to claim at tax time.

Clothing, footwear and accessories are the most popular categories (34%), followed by household appliances (19%) and electronics (12%).

The ARA said this year’s sales are especially important for retailers, as they try to recover from weak consumer spending.

Spending is also shifting offline. Just 44% of shoppers plan to buy online — down 11 percentage points from last year — indicating more are heading in-store for deals.

Around 6.1 million Australians (26%) are expected to take part, with 37% planning to spend more than last year, 42% the same, and 21% less. The average shopper will spend $1,714, up $76 from 2024.

Young Australians under 35 remain the biggest spenders, with an average spend of $2,065, contributing $4.3b overall. This age group also represents the largest cohort of shoppers, with 2.1 million expected to take part.

Men are forecast to spend more than women, averaging $2,044 compared to $1,430 for women. This translates into $5.8b in total spending by men and $4.7b by women.

More consumers plan to spend in the higher price brackets, with 36% expecting to spend between $1,000 and $4,999—up 15% from last year. Additionally, 11% plan to spend $5,000 or more (up 5%), whilst 22% aim to spend between $500 and $999 (up 1%). Conversely, fewer shoppers (31%, down 21%) plan to spend less than $500.