Spending for Chuseok Is Up, but Holiday Table Preparation Gets Easier

[Financial News] As expected Chuseok spending remained in the 700,000-won range for the second consecutive year, more consumers said the cost felt "very burdensome." Nevertheless, spending aimed at reducing the time and effort required to prepare for the holiday is spreading, with people placing greater value on time with their families and buying some holiday foods ready-made or replacing them with convenience foods.
On the 25th, the Consumer Public Interest Network released the results of its "2026 Chuseok Consumer Perception Survey," which was conducted among 1,000 consumers aged 20 to 69 nationwide. Expected Chuseok spending this year averaged 728,630 won, remaining in the 700,000-won range for the second consecutive year after 712,300 won last year.
Among the spending categories, allowances for parents accounted for the largest share. Among respondents who reported this expense, spending on parents' allowances averaged 304,900 won. The cost of holiday foods and table preparation followed at 223,900 won, while transportation and lodging-related expenses came to 192,300 won. Consumers also felt a significant burden when purchasing food. On a five-point scale, the burden of buying fruit was rated at 4.08, followed by livestock products at 3.98 and seafood at 3.79.
As high prices persist, consumers are feeling an even greater burden from the cost of observing the holiday. The proportion who said this year's Chuseok spending was "very burdensome" rose to 60.8%, up 9.6 percentage points from 51.2% last year. By household size, households of four or more expected to spend the most, averaging 907,300 won, while one-person households also expected to spend 526,700 won.
However, the growing spending burden does not mean consumers are placing less value on the meaning of the holiday. When asked which value they considered most important in Chuseok spending, "time spent with family and relatives and maintaining those relationships" ranked first at 24.7%. It was followed by practicality at 16.9%, price at 15.5%, and health at 14.0%.
As a result, consumers are increasingly trying to preserve time with their families while reducing the time and effort required to prepare for the holiday despite the financial burden. This shift is also evident in holiday table preparation. Rather than making all the jeon, seasoned vegetables, and braised short ribs themselves, consumers are buying some items ready-made or replacing them with convenience foods that only need to be heated.
An office worker surnamed Lee prepared some of the foods for this year's Chuseok table by purchasing ready-made products instead of making them all from scratch. Lee said, "I used to make most of the jeon and seasoned vegetables with my family, but preparing them took a lot of time, so this year I decided to buy only what I needed and set the table. There are now so many different products that only need to be heated, which has made it possible to reduce the burden of preparing for the holiday."
The retail industry is also responding to this shift by expanding its selection of easy-to-prepare foods for ancestral rites, small-packaged products, and gift sets requiring less preparation. In the past, holiday products centered on large-volume items and premium gift sets. Recently, however, consumers have had more choices that can be purchased in the quantities they need or eaten conveniently without separate preparation or cooking.
Demand for holiday convenience foods has been steadily increasing at Emart. During last year's Chuseok promotional period, sales of PEACOCK jeon, tteokgalbi, and neobiani products rose 12% from the previous year. During the same period, sales of Kitchen Deli seasoned vegetable dishes increased 14%, while sales of fried foods and neobiani products grew 29%. This year, Emart is offering assorted jeon and seasoned vegetable dishes for preparing an ancestral memorial table, along with discounts on foods that can be enjoyed conveniently.
Department stores are also highlighting products that reduce the burden of preparation and cooking. Lotte Department Store doubled the volume of its easy-to-prepare seafood gift sets for Chuseok this year. Its offerings include barley-dried yellow croaker and red sea bream that have been cleaned and steamed, as well as tilefish and silver hairtail with their scales and bones removed, allowing them to be cooked without additional preparation. Shinsegae Department Store likewise expanded its holiday table-setting gift sets to 14 varieties, allowing customers to prepare braised short ribs, jeon, seasoned vegetables, and japchae all at once.
The Consumer Public Interest Network said, "Even amid the financial burden, consumers recognize time with their families as an important value of Chuseok." It added, "To ensure that consumers do not give up the meaning of spending the holiday with their families because of financial pressure, it is necessary to stabilize prices in practical ways and create a reasonable consumer environment."

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