InComm's 2021 shopper research finds rebound in gift card giving

InComm Payments' consumer research indicates that giving gift cards recovered during 2021 after the first pandemic year. Published on April 26, 2022, the analysis compares shopper responses year over year for retailer-specific and network-branded prepaid cards.

For closed-loop cards, the company reported a 14% increase in gifting to extended family following a decline in 2020. Nearly half of respondents said their purchases were always planned and roughly another third said they were mostly planned; only 5% described them as mostly or entirely unplanned.

Knowing the recipient's preferences was important to the choice. InComm said 88% considered knowledge of the person's preferred retailer, restaurant or service very or extremely important. It also reported that 87% felt very or extremely comfortable choosing a card for someone else, rising to 91% when choosing for immediate family.