Back to school shopping is too expensive for inflation. How do parents deal?

• After two grueling, pandemic years of school, parents looked forward to a normal year.
• But instead, they are dealing with a different pressure: inflation.
• Parents, pressured by rising food and fuel prices, are now suffering from the rising costs of going back to school.

Far fewer parents this year said they could afford to shop for their children back to school without any problems, likely due to rising inflation and the end of pandemic stimulus measures.

Only 36% of 2,178 American parents surveyed said they could afford to shop for their children back to school, down from 52% last year, according to a recent Morning Consult poll, which also found that more than 37% of parents this year are Their stress about back-to-school shopping — up from 32% last year.

Last year, parents took advantage of stimulus checks and child tax credit payments, which lapsed, and the savings accumulated during the pandemic.

“Now, those savings are being depleted as the burden of inflation increases,” said Claire Tassin, retail and e-commerce analyst at Morning Consult. Morning Consult conducted a survey in May and June of parents of school-age children planning shopping for the 2022-2023 school year.

In the 12 months through June, consumer inflation rose 9.1%, the largest increase in more than 40 years.

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How does inflation affect back-to-school shopping?

School supplies are seen as a necessity, so many parents can be expected to cough for them, even if they cost more this year.

Since early May, the share of shoppers returning to school who plan to spend more than $500 on their children’s supplies has increased to 25% from 11%, mostly due to inflation, according to Morning Consult.