Are Amazons Cyber Monday prices better than Black Friday? Our shopping experts say the answer is clear.
As the holiday shopping season approaches, the excitement surrounding Black Friday and Cyber Monday is palpable. Traditionally marked by early morning store openings and chaotic crowds, the landscape has shifted dramatically in recent years. Now, deals begin as early as Halloween, blurring the lines between these two major shopping events. For savvy shoppers, this means the opportunity to snag significant discounts well before the official Black Friday date. This year, standout deals include the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Plus for just $24.99 (a $25 savings), the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch M4 at $749 (saving $250), and the Hisense 65-inch U6 Mini LED QLED 4K TV for $547.99 (a $300 discount).
Experts suggest that Black Friday remains the optimal day for securing the best deals, particularly on popular items. For instance, the Apple AirPods 4 are available for only $69, reflecting a $60 savings, while the Amazon Kindle is priced at $79.99, saving buyers $30. While Cyber Monday has historically been viewed as an online shopping bonanza, recent trends indicate that many of the best deals may not hold out until then. According to Mashable’s shopping reporter Sam Mangino, “Think of Cyber Monday as your last chance to shop deals, not your best chance.” This sentiment underscores the importance of acting quickly on Black Friday, as many sought-after products may sell out or revert to regular prices before Cyber Monday rolls around.
With Amazon’s Cyber Monday sale commencing on November 29 and running through December 1, shoppers are encouraged to take advantage of the deals available on Black Friday. The advice is clear: if you see a deal that piques your interest, particularly on high-demand items like Kindles or Apple products, it’s wise to purchase sooner rather than later. The shopping fatigue that often accompanies this season can be overwhelming, but the potential for savings makes it worthwhile. For those feeling uncertain about their purchases, utilizing price tracking tools like camelcamelcamel can provide valuable insights into an item’s price history. As you prepare for this shopping extravaganza, be sure to keep an eye on the latest deals and discounts, ensuring you make the most of this year’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.
The best Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals at a glance:
Best Streaming Deal
Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Plus
$24.99
(save $25)
Get Deal
Best Apple deal
Apple MacBook Air 13-inch M4
749
(save $250)
Get Deal
Best Kindle Deal
Amazon Kindle
79.99
(save $30)
Get Deal
Best fitness tracker deal
Oura Ring 4
$249
(save $100)
Get Deal
Best TV deal
Hisense 65-inch U6 Mini LED QLED 4K TV
$547.99
(save $300)
Get Deal
Best AirPods Deal
Apple AirPods 4
$69
(save $60)
Get Deal
In 2025,
Black Friday
is a marathon, not a sprint. The only thing is, these days it can be hard to tell where exactly the finish line is.
Not too long ago, if you wanted to score
Black Friday deals
, you either had to head to the local Target at the crack of dawn or line up just after dinner leftovers had been packed away. Online shoppers bided their time until the Monday after the holiday, a day eventually dubbed Cyber Monday. It was chaos, but it was chaos with clearly defined parameters of time.
SEE ALSO:
Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday: Which day is better for shopping?
These days, Black Friday sales start as early as Halloween, lasting for weeks before the actual day happens, which raises a very real question: Is Cyber Monday still a thing? And for an online-only retailer like Amazon, where most folks do their online shopping, is it better to shop on Black Friday, or wait until Cyber Monday to score the best deals possible?
Here’s what our shopping spidey-sense, based on many collective years of covering these sales, leads us to believe.
Will Amazon have better deals on Black Friday or Cyber Monday?
In our experience, Black Friday deals at Amazon tend to be better and more plentiful than Cyber Monday savings,Â
or
 they tend to be on par. In the years we’ve worked this sale, very rarely have we seen additional price cuts or brand new deals cropping up for Cyber Monday. While Amazon does try to hold back a couple of deals for Cyber Monday, they’re often quite lackluster, and rarely include the most popular products from brands like Apple, Samsung, Sony, Ninja, and Nintendo.
Now that the holiday shopping season begins so early, Black Friday has started to feel like the grand finale, with Cyber Monday being a sort of encore. This year, we’ve seen tons of products hit record-low prices in the days leading up to Black Friday, like
$69 Apple AirPods 4
and the
DJI Mini 4K drone for $60 off
. If there is to be an additional price drop, it’ll likely happen on Black Friday, and then either hold steady until Cyber Monday, or go back up in price. (If it doesn’t sell out in that time, which often happens.)
Mashable Shopping Reporter
Sam Mangino put it perfectly when she wrote
, “Think of Cyber Monday as your last chance to shop deals, not your best chance.”
SEE ALSO:
150+ Amazon Black Friday deals: Score the best live deals on AirPods, Kindles, Legos, and TVs
Amazon’s Cyber Monday
sale also starts on Saturday, Nov. 29, and runs through Monday, Dec. 1, essentially making Amazon’s sale one long Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend. With that, we anticipate deals gradually phasing out come Monday and Tuesday.
When to buy a deal on Black Friday
With the above in mind, we recommend grabbing a good deal on Black Friday. Popular items, like
great Apple deals
or
Kindles
, are especially likely to sell out or go back up in price. Mangino, who covers the e-reader beat year-round, said, “I suspect hot ticket items like Kindles won’t get a Cyber Monday discount and go up to their standard prices.”
If this a little stressful to hear, we get it. As reporters monitoring these sales day in and day out, we know that there’s a
lot
of shopping fatigue and messaging about the urgency to buy deals as fast as possible this time of year (more than anyone should reasonably be subjected to, TBH!). While we’re not necessarily recommending
rushing to buy every amazing deal you spot
, Black Friday does remain the best time of year to find really, really good deals. And that’s taking into account those can’t-miss “sale prices” that can be found year-round.
SEE ALSO:
Mashable will send the best Black Friday deals directly to your phone — how it works
If you’re feeling unsure about a deal you’ve added to your cart, we recommend 1) Checking out
Mashable’s Black Friday coverage
, and 2) consulting a price tracker like
camelcamelcamel
, which can give you a full view of an item’s price history, as well as any record-low prices it’s hit before.
Looking for the latest Amazon deals?
See the biggest discounts at Amazon’s epic Black Friday sale
and save up to 70% on popular gifts, gadgets, and more goodies.