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---
description: Giftbit's September 2026 index analyzes 2025 transactions, separating November loyalty demand, December employee rewards and grocery gift-card growth.
title: Giftbit holiday index: two peaks for loyalty and employee rewards
image: https://giftcard.news/images/social/v1/giftbit-index-separates-november-loyalty-demand-december-employee-rewards-908c9b4254eba48f16cf2f935f47401b.jpg
---

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# Giftbit index separates November loyalty demand from December employee rewards

Giftbit's new index uses 2025 transactions to show two holiday reward peaks, a sharp grocery shift and longer claim times. The figures describe one platform.

By [Oliver Reed](https://giftcard.news/author/oliver-reed/) September 28, 2026 4 min read [ Google News ](https://google.com/preferences/source?q=giftcard.news&utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) 

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![Giftbit bar charts showing 2025 loyalty reward value peaking in November and employee reward value peaking in December](https://giftcard.news/images/variants/v1/giftbit-index-separates-november-loyalty-demand-december-employee-rewards-bar-charts-showing-w1280.webp) 

 Giftbit's source chart indexes each category to its January-to-October 2025 average of 100%. The December employee value of 742% is about 7.4 times that baseline. Photo: Giftbit 

[Giftbit](https://giftcard.news/company/giftbit/)'s newly published Holiday Digital Rewards Index puts two different buying calendars inside the year-end gift-card surge. Loyalty reward value peaked in November, while employee incentives reached their high in December. Published on September 28, 2026, the report analyzes transactions from calendar-year 2025, giving programme operators a historical planning reference rather than a reading of this year's holiday demand. [\[S01\]](#article-source-1)

Across all uses on the platform, average monthly reward value in November and December was 94% above the January-to-October monthly average. The final two months accounted for 28% of annual reward value. December alone reached 2.5 times the baseline. The operational question is how that concentration divides between customer programmes, employer budgets and recipient choices.

## Different programmes reach their peaks at different times

Giftbit reports that November loyalty reward value rose 84.1% from October and stood 93% above the January-to-October average. Those percentages answer different questions: one compares successive months, while the other compares November with the ten-month baseline. Loyalty value then fell 20.2% in December, although it remained above its earlier monthly average. [\[S01\]](#article-source-1)

Employee incentives followed a later, steeper pattern. December value was about 7.4 times the January-to-October average and represented 39.2% of the category's annual value. The report's table expresses that December level as an index of 742%, with 100% representing the baseline. It is not a 742% increase.

For a distributor serving both customer loyalty and employee recognition, these patterns imply separate periods of demand. A single December delivery plan would miss the earlier loyalty peak visible in this dataset. The findings do not establish that every employer or loyalty programme follows the same timetable, or that the pattern will repeat unchanged in 2026.

The data behind the story 

### Giftbit programme seasonal reward-value indices

Each programme uses its own January-October 2025 monthly average as 100.

 Loyalty rewardsEmployee incentives 

index (own baseline = 100)

Tap or hover for details. Select a series above to show or hide it.

Source 

Giftbit original programme tables

Published indices compare each category with its own baseline, not absolute spending between categories. Index 742 is 7.42 times baseline, not 742% growth. These are historical platform results, not 2026 forecasts.

Show data tableHide data table 

Scroll left or right to see all columns 

__Giftbit programme seasonal reward-value indices (index (own baseline = 100))__
| Category      | Loyalty rewards                | Employee incentives            |
| ------------- | ------------------------------ | ------------------------------ |
| November 2025 | 193 index (own baseline = 100) | 151 index (own baseline = 100) |
| December 2025 | 154 index (own baseline = 100) | 742 index (own baseline = 100) |

## Grocery growth uses a different baseline

The report also tracks which brand categories recipients claimed. Grocery gift-card value in December was 1,067.1% above the September-to-October average. Sporting goods and outdoor rewards rose 474.8%, toys and children's categories 274.7%, and apparel 256.9%. Travel and hospitality increased 26.8%. These category comparisons use a two-month baseline, unlike

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## In this article

### Companies

* [Giftbit](https://giftcard.news/company/giftbit/)

### Sources and documents

* [\[S01\] Giftbit Holiday Digital Rewards Index, published September 28, 2026](https://www.giftbit.com/holiday-rewards-index?utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) — Giftbit

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About the author

## [Oliver Reed](https://giftcard.news/author/oliver-reed/)

Journalist — Industry Deals & Research

Oliver Reed covers industry acquisitions, investment and market research for Gift Card News.

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