Accessibility links
The Efficient Christmas: Why Economists Hate Gifts : Planet Money When economists see holiday gifts, they see waste: sweaters that never get worn; books that never get read. Many recommend cash or no gift at all. Economist Tim Harford may have a compromise.
NPR logo

The Efficient Christmas: Why Economists Hate Gifts

Listen · 9:52
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/788587668/788587865" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
The Efficient Christmas: Why Economists Hate Gifts

The Indicator from Planet Money

The Efficient Christmas: Why Economists Hate Gifts

The Efficient Christmas: Why Economists Hate Gifts

Listen · 9:52
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/788587668/788587865" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
SOCKS
Enlarge this image
Philipp Nemenz/Getty Images
SOCKS
Philipp Nemenz/Getty Images

A recent study from Finder.com estimates more than 15 billion dollars in unwanted Christmas Gifts will be exchanged this holiday season. To economists, this means more than 15 billion dollars in waste. For this reason, economists usually recommend buying no gift at all, or just giving cash. But economist Tim Harford says he has a solution.

Music by Drop Electric. Find us: Twitter / Facebook / Newsletter.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, PocketCasts and NPR One.