Parents are making more deliberate tradeoffs in how they allocate their back-to-school budgets amid widespread inflationary pressures, but seven in 10 still plan to protect sports participation, according to the Consumer Pulse Back-to-School 2026 survey released by KPMG LLP.

Overall, families expect to spend $252 per child on back-to-school purchases this year, marking a 6 percent increase from 2025. However, nearly 80 percent of parents say the increase reflects higher prices for the same school essentials and technology purchases as last year, including big-ticket items like laptops, rather than a larger basket of goods. Of back-to-school shoppers, 39 percent expect to spend more per child on back-to-school due to higher price expectations versus 18 percent expect to spend less. Forty-three percent of back-to-college shoppers plan to increase their spending in 2026, again largely driven by expectations of price increases compared with 27 percent expecting to spend less.

Beyond rising costs of BTS purchases, consumers are feeling the pinch on non-discretionary items, with a majority of consumers expecting to spend more on groceries (83 percent), gas and car maintenance (77 percent), and prescription drug costs (52 percent) than they did at the same time last year.

However, the survey found parents are most likely to cut back on dining out, personal leisure and entertainment to ensure their child can continue participating in sports. The two primary areas parents plan to cut back are dining out and non-essential food items, cited by 43 percent; and reducing spending on personal leisure and entertainment, 41 percent.

Asked to select which activities their children participate in, outdoor sports (43 percent) is the most common type of child activity, followed by music/singing (29 percent) and indoor sports (26 percent). Among outdoor sports activities, the top three were soccer, cited by 47 percent; baseball/softball, 39 percent; and football (tackle and flag), 30 percent. Among indoor sports activities, the top three were basketball, cited by 59 percent; swimming, 27 percent; and volleyball, 24 percent.

Exploring the key drivers of increased sports spending in 2026, the top five answers were child’s growing interest in sports, cited by 42 percent of parents; physical health and fitness benefit, 40 percent; positive impact on emotional and mental well-being, 31 percent; development of social skills and teamwork within kids, 30 percent; and availability of better-quality equipment and gear, 25 percent.

The survey further showed sports-related purchases remain largely consistent, although 23 percent reported buying sports apparel more often.

Consumer Spending
Much of the survey explored the degree to which back-to-school shoppers were planning to pullback on discretionary spending amid inflationary pressures and macroeconomic concerns.  Of the respondents, 37 percent report worsening financial security year-on-year, outweighing the 27 percent who see improvement.

The survey found consumers in 2026 are allocating 40 percent of their income on living expenses with spend on discretionary items declining versus surveys in 2025 and 2024.. Majority of consumers expect to increase spending in groceries and gas, while a larger share of consumers plan to cut back spending on categories like toys, gaming, office supplies, etc.

“Families are paying more this back-to-school season, but they aren’t getting more,” said Duleep Rodrigo, KPMG U.S. Consumer, Retail & Hospitality Leader, in a press release. “That gap is forcing tougher decisions about where to spend and where to wait, and it’s changing what counts as essential. Brands that can demonstrate real value, not just lower prices, are the ones best positioned to earn their stay in the cart.”

Other findings from the survey:

  • Core school supplies, apparel, and footwear together comprise 49 percent share of wallet for back-to-school spending. Apparel is expected to make up 18 percent of the back-to-school budget; footwear, 11 percent; and backpacks or other accessories, 9 percent.
  • When purchasing back-to-school clothing, consumers foremost prioritize price and discount, cited by 75 percent of parents; followed in the top five by durability/quality, 63 percent; availability of sizes and styles, 42 percent; their child’s preferences, 36 percent; and brand reputation, 28 percent.
  • About half (51 percent) of consumers plan to dine out less frequently once school resumes, with 80 percent of those dining out less attributing the cut to budget constraints
  • Fuel-driven price increases are currently widely observed (88 percent), with 82 percent of consumers expecting these increases to further drive higher product and service prices. Consumers respond to rising fuel costs by reducing overall spending (42 percent) and cutting discretionary activities (37 percent).
  • Nearly one in three consumers are currently using or considering GLP-1 medications, driven by younger generations of Millennials (30 percent) and Gen Z (26 percent). GLP-1 adoption is primarily driven by lifestyle or weight management needs (70 percent), with higher uptake among women (75 percent). GLP-1 users report increased spending on healthy groceries (30 percent) and nutrition products (28 percent), and beauty and skincare
    (19 percent) with declines in unhealthy and indulgence categories.

The KPMG Consumer Pulse Back-to-School 2026 Survey is based on a survey of 2,297 consumers across the U.S. surveyed from May 29 to June 18.

Download the full report HERE.

Image courtesy National Sporting Goods Association