Are Amazons Cyber Monday prices better than Black Friday? Our shopping experts say the answer is clear.
As the holiday shopping season kicks into high gear, Black Friday and Cyber Monday have transformed from single-day events into a sprawling marathon of deals that stretch for weeks. This year, many consumers have found themselves grappling with the question of whether to shop early or wait until Cyber Monday for the best bargains. Traditionally, Black Friday was the day to score unbeatable discounts, often requiring early morning lines at brick-and-mortar stores. However, the landscape has evolved, with sales starting as early as Halloween, leading to a more chaotic and less defined shopping experience. For online giants like Amazon, this shift raises the stakes: are Black Friday deals truly better than those found on Cyber Monday?
According to shopping experts, including Mashable’s Sam Mangino, Black Friday often offers superior deals compared to Cyber Monday, especially for popular products from leading brands like Apple, Samsung, and Sony. For instance, shoppers can snag the Apple MacBook Air for $749, saving $250, or the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Plus for just $24.99, a $25 discount. Other notable deals include the Oura Ring 4 for $249 (saving $100), Hisense’s 65-inch U6 Mini LED QLED 4K TV for $547.99 (saving $300), and Apple AirPods 4 at a mere $69, which is a $60 markdown. With such compelling offers, it becomes clear why many consumers are encouraged to act fast, as popular items are likely to sell out or revert to their original prices before Cyber Monday.
Despite the urgency that surrounds these deals, shoppers are advised to approach their purchases with a level head. While the excitement of Black Friday can create a sense of urgency, it’s essential to make informed decisions. Tools like price trackers can help consumers understand the historical pricing of items, ensuring they are truly getting the best deal. As the Cyber Monday sales continue, it’s evident that many of the Black Friday deals are still available, but the window for securing these bargains is closing fast. As we navigate this extended shopping period, it’s crucial to remember that while Cyber Monday serves as a final chance to grab deals, the best prices often emerge during the Black Friday frenzy.
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
Best Lego deal
Lego Ideas The Insect Collection
$40
(save $39.99)
Get Deal
Best kitchen deal
Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker Machine
$67.94
(save $62.01)
Get Deal
Best robot vacuum deal
Eufy E20 3-in-1
$297.49
(save $202.50)
Get Deal
Best Bluetooth speaker deal
JBL Charge 6
$129.95
(save $70)
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. And now that we’re beyond the official Black Friday date, we can confirm that tons of them are still sticking around.
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,
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
. Now that Black Friday has officially come and gone, we’re still seeing a ton of deals hang on. It’s possible these will 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 officially started today, Saturday, Nov. 29, and it 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 as soon as possible. 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 Cyber Monday sale
and save up to 70% on popular gifts, gadgets, and more goodies.
