For many Nigerians, Christmas is arriving differently in 2025. The lights are dimmer, the budgets tighter, and the shopping lists shorter, yet the spirit of the season remains surprisingly unbroken.
A series of festive polls on the ARISE News WhatsApp Channel paints a revealing picture of how households are navigating joy and hardship in equal measure.
If Christmas has a heartbeat, most Nigerians say they feel it in the air. About 58% of respondents (390 out of 671) chose “the smell of Christmas in the atmosphere” as the moment the season truly comes alive, far ahead of carols in public places, church services, or gift shopping. It is nostalgia and memory, not merchandise, that appears to be carrying the festive mood this year.
But beneath the warmth lies a more sobering reality. Nigerians are grappling with sharp cost of living pressures, and the festive season has not escaped the squeeze. In another poll, just over 52% of respondents (227 out of 436) said they are spending “much less” this Christmas, while 25% (109 out of 436) admitted they will cut back “a little”. Only a small minority reported no change to their spending plans.
Yet instead of despair, many have turned inward and upward. When asked how they are coping with soaring food prices, an overwhelming 76% of respondents (351 out of 464) selected the faith filled response, “God is in control.” The result reflects the deep emotional and spiritual resilience that has long defined Christmas in Nigeria, a belief that even when the economy falters, the meaning of the season endures.
Economic pressure is also reshaping traditions. Most families, 88% of respondents (297 out of 337), said they have not begun decorating, describing it as “still too early”, a response that suggests financial hesitation as much as timing. With decorations, groceries, and transportation all costing more, many households appear to be waiting for the right moment, or the right paycheck.
Food, however, remains non negotiable. If there is one certainty on Christmas tables nationwide, it is chicken. Nearly 62% of respondents (238 out of 386) chose it as the must have festive dish, well ahead of jollof rice, goat meat, or sweets. Even in tighter times, the Nigerian Christmas menu is holding firmly to its centrepiece.
The picture that emerges from these polls is layered: nostalgic yet stressed, hopeful yet cautious, with faith acting as the emotional anchor. Christmas may be slimmer this year, fewer decorations, fewer shopping bags, fewer extravagant meals but it is no less meaningful.
For many Nigerians, the season lives not in consumption but in connection: the smell of harmattan mornings, the laughter in crowded kitchens, the echo of hymns, and the belief that brighter days lie ahead.
In a year defined by struggle, the spirit of Christmas is proving quietly but unmistakably, unshakeable.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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