TD conducted a recent survey; it revealed that when it comes to holiday gift giving, 72 per cent of Canadians prefer to shop online. While the ease of clicking things into your ‘shopping cart’ requires less work and less stress than battling crowds at the mall, it’s easy to overspend. In fact, over one-third of those surveyed who do most of their holiday shopping online are more likely to say they spend more than they would in-store (We’re definitely guilty of this.) Fret not; TD has some easy tips.

Here are a few TD #OnlineHolidayShopping tips to help you spend less and save more:

Pick your price: Visit competitive sites and compare prices to ensure you get the best deal.

Sign up for savings: Sign up with your favourite retailers for their email updates. They often send out information about upcoming sales or special pricing and offers for their subscribers. (We just scored a 40% sale by signing up for Gap newsletter!)

Maximize rewards: Take advantage of loyalty rewards. For example, there is a variety of redemption options available to TD First Class Travel Visa Infinite* credit cardholders, including redemptions for travel purchases as well as for brand-name retail merchandise and gift cards.

Consider international expenses: If you’re like the 39 per cent of Canadians surveyed who shop online for the ability to shop with international retailers, make sure you factor in duty taxes, exchange rates, and consider the return shipping costs, as those can quickly add up.

Cut shipping costs: Many stores offer reduced or even free shipping with a minimum dollar amount spent. Think about how many people you can cross off your list from one retailer – it can help save you time and money.

Make a plan and track your purchases: Instead of browsing for gifts online, start with a list of what you want to get each of your friends and family, and update it when you’ve made the purchase. That way, there should be no surprises when you see your credit card bill at the end of the month. (This is also a good way to ensure that things are balanced out, and that you haven’t splurged on one person and forgotten another!) (We’ve been there.)

Now that you have some tools from TD, we’ll help you find the coolest sites to hit up. Here are some of our favourite online shopping destinations that offer free shipping in Canada, or at least major discounts compared to the competition: Forever21, Gap, Sephora, Indigo and Zara. Happy shopping!

These #OnlineHolidayShopping tips were developed by TD Bank and Cathie Mostowyk, online shopping expert and president of Shoestring Shopping Guide Inc. This post was generously sponsored by TD, but opinions are my own.