【Esther Studer】

This Black Friday,Esther Studer shoppers in the U.S. really decided to splurge.

According to Adobe's holiday shopping data, an astonishing $86.6 billion was spent this holiday season to date (Adobe measures this period as Nov. 1 to 24).

On Black Friday itself, shoppers spent a whopping $9.8 billion, an all-time record, and on Thanksgiving, an additional $5.6 billion was spent. Compared to last year's somewhat lackluster holiday season, this year's figures represent a 4.8 percent growth according to Adobe's data.

The numbers are in line with Adobe's own predictions. In October, the company forecast that the U.S. holiday season will total $221.8 billion in sales. Adobe also predicted that Cyber Monday (that's today, in case you forgot; check out our selection of deals) will be the biggest shopping day of the season with an estimated $12 billion in spending.

Adobe's report has a few interesting data points on when to buy which types of product (for example, sporting goods are cheapest on Black Friday, while TVs get even cheaper on Cyber Monday).

• Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday: Which day is better for shopping?
• The best live Cyber Monday tablet deals
• The best Cyber Monday headphone deals are still live: discounts on Bose, Apple, Sony, and more
• Cyber Week deals on unlocked phones: Shop iPhone 12, Google Pixel 8, and more
• 800+ of the best Cyber Monday deals you can shop today

The report also shows that, while prices do tend to go lower in the week ahead of Black Friday, the absolutely best time to buy is either on Black Friday or Cyber Monday, depending on the purchase category.

Check out the entire report on Abode's website.