Tech and electrical goods were the go-to choice for shoppers this autumn, as new spend data* from Virgin Money shows sales rose by more than a fifth (21%) compared to last year.
Overall, Virgin Money credit card customers spent £1.9bn on lifestyle purchases between September and November, an increase of 15% (an additional £243m) compared to the same period last year but a drop of £14.3m compared to the previous quarter. Lifestyle spend includes spending on clothing, retail, tech and electricals, subscriptions, home improvement, eating out and takeaways, and travel.
Tech and electrical goods saw the biggest jump in sales out of all lifestyle categories, with more than £61.9m spent on these items in autumn (September-November 2025), an increase of £10m year on year (up 21% year on year) and a 36% rise compared to the summer (£45.5m spent June-August 2025).
Apple, Currys and AO were the most popular retailers in this category at a time when consumers were likely making the most of the recent Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. In fact, during these two days alone, Virgin Money credit card customers made 1.2 million lifestyle purchases (the equivalent of seven per second) totalling £77m.
Subscriptions also proved popular – a total of £3.5m was spent on this area in autumn, a 17% increase year on year and up 8% on this summer, with top providers including Sky, Netflix and Disney+. Spend at clothing stores totalled £115m this quarter, up 15% year on year and 12% since the summer. The average transaction amount has also increased slightly on summer – up from £46 to £51 – with top retailers including Next and Primark.
Meanwhile, eating out and travel both saw a decline in customer spending compared to summer. Eating out and takeaway sales dropped by 9% quarter on quarter, and spend on travel totalled £438m this quarter, which is £88.7m (17%) less than in summer.
Nick Martin, head of lending insights at Virgin Money, said: “Throughout spring and summer we have seen a clear pattern in customers spending more on eating out and travel, but autumn spending has bucked that trend with tech and electrical, subscriptions and retail spend seeing the highest increases.
“Our data also shows considerably more was spent at clothing stores in November compared to September and October, which likely means our customers are choosing to make their money go further by hitting the sales for gifting and updating their wardrobes ready for the upcoming party season.
“The way our customers choose to spend their money changes with the seasons. Regardless of the season, we’re committed to continuing to provide our customers with tools to help them manage their budget in a way that works for them so that they can make the most of their money.”
Virgin Money credit cards are packed with a range of great benefits to help people make the most of their money, including the ability to earn cashback on everyday spending, rewards from the wider Virgin family, and the chance to spend fee-free worldwide. Virgin Money also offers a wide range of savings products to help customers make their money work for them.
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*Customer spend data sourced from Virgin Money credit card customers who have spent between September 2025 and November 2025.