Amazon Black Friday Sales Surpass Cyber Monday

Consumers have long wondered whether it’s better to shop on Black Friday or Cyber Monday — and according to data from one retail analytics firm, the answer depends on what you are buying. Judging by multiyear price tracking and industry data, the edge goes to Black Friday — often by a significant margin — with Cyber Monday working as encores for many offers already seen, plus a handful of new but less well-rounded offers.

Bottom line: Who wins at Amazon, Black Friday or Cyber Monday

Typically, Black Friday sees more all-time lows on Amazon, better category coverage, and deeper stock levels behind headline products. The items are probably still strong, but Cyber Monday decisions almost always see the rare discount become even rarer. In many instances, prices level off as Monday arrives or come back up somewhat when stock gets thinner.

Why Amazon Front-Loads Its Better Prices

The way Amazon runs events blurs the old boundaries. Doorbusters begin weeks early, surge through the Black Friday weekend, and dribble into Monday with less new to offer. That cycle rewards early shoppers: Lightning Deals and limited coupons typically clump on Black Friday when both traffic and conversions spike, helping Amazon clear inventory at the slimmest margin possible ahead of Monday.

Another factor is category control. Amazon-owned devices (Kindle, Fire TV, Echo) regularly plummet to their lowest, or near-low prices by Black Friday, where they are used to anchor the site’s front page and provoke Prime sign-ups. Those tags often linger into Monday, but the morning is when stock is most abundant and bundle offers are at their best.

The data and trackers that shape Amazon deal trends

Adobe Analytics has routinely named Cyber Monday the top online shopping day for revenue in the U.S., lately pushing over $12 billion, with Black Friday lagging behind on total dollars spent. But revenue share is an artifact of where consumers check out — not necessarily where the Amazon-specific price floor is most punishing. And on Amazon, third-party price-history tools like Camelcamelcamel and Keepa tend to flag the weekend before Monday as when the most items hit their all-time low.

Salesforce’s holiday reports also indicate that discount rates reach their apogee throughout Cyber Week, though promotional depth focuses on the Black Friday weekend. Huge brands are the most visible and aggressive on those days, when they compete for placement at the top of search results and on deal pages on Amazon. This is combined with Amazon’s scale — Insider Intelligence estimates it has about 38% market share in e-commerce in the United States — to create heightened competition for those positions.

Category trends to watch during Black Friday and Cyber Monday

• Amazon Devices: Kindles, Fire TV Sticks, Echo speakers, and Eero routers generally receive their biggest discounts on Black Friday. Deals often repeat on Monday, but it’s Friday when you’ll find the add-on bundles (gift cards, smart plugs) more frequently.
• Headphones and TVs: The flagship sets and noise-cancelling models from the likes of Sony, Samsung, or Bose usually bottom out Friday, on occasion matching Prime Day lows. Mondays generally bring restocks or mid-tier models at the same prices, rather than new lows.
• Computers and Storage: Black Friday is the most wide-ranging on laptops, monitors, and SSDs. If anything, accessories (keyboards, mice, cables, and hubs) are the best on Cyber Monday as sellers go in heavy with volume but slightly smaller markdowns.
• Gaming and Toys: On Friday, console bundles and top game titles are most likely to publish the best deals; these will often sell out. Monday can bring B-tier games, digital credits, and more accessory kits.
• Home and Kitchen: We regularly see the most popular appliances (air fryers, robot vacuums, espresso machines) going for a year-low price on Black Friday. Cyber Monday may feature less popular brands, or refurbished products at the same percentage off, but those top models might have sold out.

How to play it for the biggest savings on Amazon deals

• Check the real price history: Use Camelcamelcamel or Keepa to confirm that a “deal” actually represents an all-time low. If it’s Friday, buy — waiting always helps, unless you’re relatively agnostic about brand or specs.

What to shop for now: top discounted products

The most popular products on the internet have been discounted already during Black Friday (unless, of course, they’re sold out). Here are our top picks:

• ‘Mordecai’ by Charles Portis
• Amazon
• Apple AirPods Pro
• Wi‑Fi Nespresso De’Longhi
• Pixar Disney+ subscription
• People Switch Trivia Party Game
• Catch-A-Shmoo
• The Sidemen Book
• Anthropologie
• Vans
• Sales on desktop monitors — surprising!
• Indeed
• Milwaukee MILM18FCO
• TurlyWurly Seamless Undies

Considering buying more?

Shop if you missed it: limited quantities remain

While quantities last, and at these prices they won’t last long:

• Save Monday for fillers: Load up on cables, chargers, cases, microSD cards, streaming subscriptions, and software. Many of these things are the same or slightly better deals than on Friday with less likelihood of being sold out.
• Return and coupon exposure: Amazon is known to lengthen return windows around the holidays. Clip on-page coupons, stack Subscribe & Save for more savings, and watch for Lightning Deals with limited windows.

The verdict on Amazon Black Friday versus Cyber Monday

If you stumble across a bona fide all-time low on Amazon this Black Friday, don’t hold out for Cyber Monday to drop the other shoe. Historically, Black Friday serves up better overall breadth and depth of deals, while Monday gets a bit shoddier (it’s the grubby stage where many Black Friday prices are reused with less living-room furniture for sale). Cyber Monday isn’t completely useless — especially if you’re buying accessories and digital goods — but for most major Amazon purchases, Black Friday is the safe bet.