The CSO's Retail Sales Index shows shop sales jump every November and December. These charts show the size of the December peak, which shops gain most, and what the latest 2026 figures say.
Irish shops sell more than half as much again in December as in an ordinary month. In December 2025, the volume of retail sales was about 55% higher than the average for January to October 2025. That is an Irish Wire calculation from the CSO's Retail Sales Index.
The Retail Sales Index, or RSI, is the CSO's monthly measure of shop sales. It is an index: 2021 is set at 100, so a reading of 160 means sales were 60% above the 2021 average.
Every year, sales climb in November and peak in December
The pattern repeats each year. Sales jump in November and peak in December. They then fall back sharply in January.
In 2024, December sales were about 59% above the January to October average. In 2025 the gap was about 55%. January is usually the quietest month of the year.
How to read the Retail Sales Index
- Volume strips out price changes, so it shows how much was bought. Value is the money taken in, including VAT.
- The figures here are not seasonally adjusted, so they show the real Christmas peak. The CSO's headline figures are seasonally adjusted, which removes it.
- The CSO uses four or five-week reporting periods. December 2025 covered five weeks, from 30 November 2025 to 3 January 2026.
- Online sales count only Irish-registered businesses, so purchases from foreign websites are not included.
- Our December uplift compares December with the average of January to October. It is an Irish Wire calculation, not a CSO figure.
Pharmacies, department stores and other goods shops gain most
Not every shop gets the same boost. Pharmacies and cosmetics shops, and the CSO's books, stationery and other goods group, sold about 92% more in December 2025 than in a typical month. Department stores were up 76%.
Food shops see a smaller jump in percentage terms. Supermarkets and other non-specialised stores were up about 27%. Specialist food, drink and tobacco shops were up about 14%.
Fuel barely moves. Sales at fuel stations in December 2025 were only about 3% above a typical month.
| Type of shop | Jan to Oct average | December 2025 | Uplift |
|---|---|---|---|
| Books, stationery and other goods | 117.2 | 224.9 | +92% |
| Pharmacy, medical and cosmetics | 98.4 | 188.6 | +92% |
| Department stores | 104.3 | 183.9 | +76% |
| Clothing, footwear and textiles | 125.5 | 209.5 | +67% |
| All retail (excl. motor trades and bars) | 103.5 | 160.8 | +55% |
| Supermarkets and non-specialised stores | 94.0 | 119.3 | +27% |
| Specialist food, drink and tobacco | 81.7 | 92.8 | +14% |
| Fuel | 103.6 | 106.8 | +3% |
November is now a big month too
November 2025 sales were about 25% above the January to October average. For the books, stationery and other goods group, the November jump was about 54%, more than half its December boost.
Department stores show a different pattern. Their November sales were only about 7% above normal, with most of their gain left until December.
Pharmacies and cosmetics shops were about 35% above normal in November and 92% in December. Clothing shops rose about 23% in November. For household equipment shops, which include electrical and computer shops, most of the Christmas lift had already arrived by November.
Online share of sales was higher in December
The CSO also measures the share of turnover from online sales by Irish-registered retailers. For all businesses excluding motor trades, it rose from 7.2% in January 2025 to 8.5% in December 2025. At department stores, it rose from 8.4% to 10.3%.
Electrical shops had the highest online share: 20.6% of their December 2025 turnover came online, up from 15.7% in January 2025. It rose again to 24.7% in January 2026. Clothing went the other way. Its online share was 12.8% in December, below the 14.0% of January 2025.
What the 2026 figures show so far
The latest release, published on 30 September 2026, covers August 2026. Seasonally adjusted sales volume rose 0.6% on July and 4.3% on August 2025. Excluding motor trades, volume was up 0.2% in the month and 3.0% in the year.
annual rise in department store sales volume in August 2026, the biggest of any shop type
Source: cso.ie- Value of all retail sales, August 2026: up 0.4% in the month and 5.6% in the year
- Biggest monthly rises in August: furniture and lighting (+2.6%), clothing (+2.2%), bars (+1.9%)
- Biggest monthly falls: pharmacy and cosmetics (-4.3%), fuel (-2.8%)
- Online share of all business turnover: 6.1% in August 2026, up from 5.0% a year earlier
- Department stores' online share: 8.9% in August 2026, up from 5.1% in August 2025
- Clothing, footwear and textiles: up 6.8% in volume on August 2025, among the biggest annual rises
The CSO says all retail sales volume figures will be revised in the coming months because of a new price classification used in the CPI, the official measure of price changes. Figures in this article could change after that.
CSO: Retail Sales Index for December 2026 (provisional), the first official figures on this Christmas
CSO: Retail Sales Index December 2026 (Provisional) and November 2026 (Final), the first official look at Christmas 2026
CSO: Retail Sales Index January 2027 (Provisional) and December 2026 (Final)
- CSO: Retail Sales Index August 2026 (Provisional) and July 2026 (Final)
- CSO: Retail Sales Index January 2026 (Provisional) and December 2025 (Final)
- CSO: Retail Sales Index background notes
- CSO: table RSM08, Retail Sales Index (NACE Rev 2) (Base Year 2021=100)
- Eurostat: Turnover and volume of sales in wholesale and retail trade, monthly data (sts_trtu_m), Ireland
