Canberra is not the Shopping Capital of Australia (for that visit either Sydney or Melbourne). However, there are some excellent shops and  you will  be able to pick up some great buys.

While each area will tend to have its own shopping centres, Canberra is a city with five (5) major shopping plazas. They are Civic (the main central part of Canberra CBD) , Belconnen, Tuggeranong, Gungahlin and Woden.  Most will contain the same "chains" when it comes to shopping.

For clothes shopping visit Belconnen Westfield. They have a good range of stores for all ages.

Civic's Canberra Centre, which had a large extension completed in 2008, also has a wide range of clothing, shoe and variety of other stores.  Quite a few of the shops are more up-market.

Woden is best for "home-maker" items (e.g. manchester, crockery).

Tuggeranong is an odd mix but there are some stores that make a visit still worthwhile.

There are also boutique shopping areas in suburbs such as Manuka and Kingston which have interesting shops and specialise in the hard to find items.

There are factory outlets on Majura Rd near the airport, if you are after a bargain.  A bus leaves Civic every 1/2 hour. There is also a  DFO (Direct Factory Outlet) on the corner of Canberra Ave and Newcastle St Fyshwick which is about 15 minutes from Civic.

There are a variety of markets, including the award winning Old Bus Depot Markets in Kingston and the Hall Markets in the village of Hall just to Canberra's north.