Bank of Ireland's debit card transactions on the first day of reopening of non-essential retailers after Covid restrictions on December 1 jumped by 42% on the same day last year.
The new Bank of Ireland figures also show that debit card spending for both Cyber Monday and Black Friday was up slightly on last year.
The value of Cyber Monday debit card transactions was up 8% on last year, with Black Friday spend up 1%, the figures shows.
Overall debit card spend in November also increased, with high street spend understandably down and online spend significantly up.
Bank of Ireland said that spending on computers, software and electronics were up 82% year on year, while gambling rose by 65% compared to 2019.
Shoppers also spent 43% more on books and printing supplies, while spending on groceries was up 24%.
But passenger transport transactions were down 70%, accommodation spend slumped by 81% and spending in restaurants were down 45%.
Despite calls to shop local, Bank of Ireland said that Amazon had a stellar performance in November, with the bank's debit card spend on the website almost tripling year on year.
Ger Thompson, Head of Current Account Banking, Bank of Ireland, said that although non-essential retailers were closed, debit card spend on Black Friday and Cyber Monday was still up compared to last year.
The banker said that November trends mirrored some consumer spending habits from earlier in the pandemic.
"While cash and ATM usage remain low, contactless is still trending up and our new app hit record activity, as consumers continue to focus on the safest way to bank and spend," he added.
