Prime Day vs. Black Friday: When You’ll Really Get the Best Deals on Amazon
Amazon Prime Day may feel like a summertime Black Friday shopping event. But how do the prices compare?
While you (OK, we) were getting distracted by all the weird stuff that gets discounted on Prime Day, you’d better believe that people were using data to get into the weeds for this big event.
Best Black Friday, a website that covers prices and deals leading up to the holiday season, has analyzed Prime Day pricing against Amazon’s Black Friday deals since Prime Day debuted in 2015.
The site found that last year, 76% of Prime Day prices were better than they were on Black Friday. Just under 6% of prices were tied on Black Friday and Prime Day.
This year, the team expects at least 70% of Prime Day prices to be better than Amazon’s 2017 Black Friday prices.
But are those deals worth it? It depends on what’s on your shopping list.
What to Scoop Up — or Skip — on Prime Day
“We have found that Prime Day discounts on Amazon devices are usually cheaper [than], or at least equal to, Black Friday,” Best Black Friday co-owner Eric Jones said. “Which is great news for anyone in the market looking to buy a new Echo Dot or Kindle.”
Better yet, these items will be discounted throughout the event, so you won’t have to wait around for a deal once Prime Day starts.
What about non-Amazon electronics? These products often get a bad rap when they’re heavily discounted on shopping holidays.
“In the end, Prime Day is similar to Black Friday in the fact [that] the absolute cheapest, limited-quantity doorbuster deals on electronics are not going to be the best of the best,” Jones said. “Instead of going for the cheapest possible TV deals, we usually recommend spending $50 to $100 more on the particular size that you are targeting to get a higher quality set that is still available for a great price.”
Jones said that while Amazon has been allowing a few pricing sneak peeks for app shoppers, many Prime Day deals won’t be revealed until a day or two before Prime Day begins.
Jones’ team hasn’t noticed a timing pattern that would indicate when Amazon will mark down various shopping categories during Prime Day, he said. He recommends downloading the Amazon app and enabling alerts for when prices drop on items you’re eyeing.
Best Black Friday plans to live-blog the entire 36-hour event.
Lisa Rowan (@lisatella) is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder covering the retail and grocery industries.
