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Giftbit, a global digital rewards provider, analyzed reward activity on its platform from January through December 2025 to reveal two distinct year-end waves in business reward activity. Loyalty rewards peak in November, followed by a sharp surge in employee recognition in December.
The study compares monthly reward value, types, and claim behavior across Giftbit’s global customer base. The rewards pattern reflects two separate business cycles. In November, before the holiday shopping season peaks, companies invest in customer loyalty and engagement. By December, focus flips inward as companies close out the year recognizing internal teams.
“Timing is an important part of creating a powerful reward experience,” notes Leif Baradoy, CEO of Giftbit. “The holiday rush can be a blur, so we’ve seen that businesses start loyalty incentives early in November, and employers use December to pause and express appreciation to their teams. Creating these moments is powerful and simple, and they last through the busy holidays to motivate in the new year ahead.”
That timing gap matters because the two needs call for different actions. A loyalty reward sent in November is competing for attention against a flood of retail marketing. An employee reward in December is competing with busy schedules and holiday budgets.
Analyzing redemption data from Giftbit’s catalog of more than 1,500 reward options, the company found that holiday conditions shape what recipients value. Grocery gift cards in particular saw a marked jump in claim value during these months, as recipients gravitated toward practical rather than aspirational rewards.
Key findings:
- Reward value across all business use cases was up 94% in November and December compared to the January–October monthly average, accounting for 28% of the year's entire reward spend in just two months.
- Loyalty rewards peaked first, rising 84% from October to November.
- Employee recognition peaked second and most sharply: December reward value hit 7.4 times the January–October average, with team celebrations alone drawing 56% of their entire annual value into that single month.
- Recipients' brand preferences also shifted steeply in December, with grocery gift card claim values rising 1,067% over the September–October baseline.
Giftbit recommends businesses plan for these distinct waves by building loyalty campaigns that begin ahead of the holiday noise and by giving employee recognition its own moment. Offering broad reward choice also matters more in a season where budget and taste vary widely by region and recipient.