8 Cheaper Alternatives to Expensive Gifts

If you have champagne taste on a beer budget, you know all too well the struggle to keep your spending in check, especially around the holidays.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

If you have champagne taste on a beer budget, you know all too well the struggle to keep your spending in check, especially around the holidays. It’s tempting to go big on expensive gifts you can’t really afford, either for yourself or for the loved ones on your shopping list, rationalizing that a higher price tag guarantees a better product.

However, that may not be the case for every costly item you have your eye on, no matter the reputation of the manufacturer. With determination and a little guidance from us, you can find affordable alternatives to the priciest gifts you’re considering that offer similar quality for a whole lot less money.

To point you in the right direction, we asked several smart shopping experts to weigh in on a wide range of expensive gift ideas, from the latest electronics to a foodie favorite of carnivores. Here’s what they had to say.

Disclaimer

Prices verified as of Dec. 10.

Andrea Browne Taylor
Contributing Editor

Browne Taylor joined Kiplinger in 2011 and was a channel editor for Kiplinger.com covering living and family finance topics. She previously worked at the Washington Post as a Web producer in the Style section and prior to that covered the Jobs, Cars and Real Estate sections. She earned a BA in journalism from Howard University in Washington, D.C. She is Director of Member Services, at the National Association of Home Builders.