Black Friday 2022 is coming even closer now and we've already heard from some retailers who are starting their end-of-year sales extravaganzas early. That means you won't have to wait until November 25 for the first batch of Black Friday deals as the holiday shopping period is now longer than ever before.
And that's where our guide to Black Friday 2022 comes in. It includes all the key info you need, including the latest news we have about this year's sales and an analysis of all the best deals from last year. We've also shared our top buying advice so you can make the most of the event during this time of high inflation and cost of living squeeze.
Because of the situation we find ourselves in, we think retailers will need to go the extra mile to entice us to spend during what is traditional their busiest and most crucial time of the year. Stock levels are high but discounts will need to be large in order to encourage the most spending. We've already seen that spending was actually down 1.3% on Black Friday itself last year, according to Adobe Analytics (opens in new tab). However, that was made up by the fact that consumers spent $109.8 billion during November as a whole – up 11.9% compared to the previous year.
Our main prediction is that this year's Black Friday deals will be spread out over an ever longer period. There are already signs of that coming true, as Target will be running a Deal Days event from October 6 - 8. We've also got the Prime Early Access Sale on October 11 - 12 at Amazon, which will be an exclusive sale for its Prime members. There could be lots of early bargains to be had during these events.
Below you'll find more of our predictions for this year's sale. Read on for how to find the best Black Friday deals, the top retailers to follow and a look back at last year's biggest bargains. We continue updating this page with all the latest news in the months ahead, so make sure to bookmark this page as your one-stop shop for Black Friday 2022.
Black Friday 2022: key information
When is Black Friday 2022?
Black Friday 2022 falls on November 25 this year. The actual date shifts, but the day of the week stays the same: it's always the Friday after Thanksgiving.
At last year's sale, retailers kicked off their Black Friday deals earlier than ever due to concerns around shipping delays and supply issues. While we don't know for sure what will happen during this year's sale, we do think the trend of retailers offering early Black Friday deals is here to stay.
Why is it called Black Friday?
Let’s take a history lesson to find how why they call it Black Friday: the first known mention of Black Friday related to this shopping experience was in November 1951, when the journal Factory Management and Maintenance (opens in new tab) used it to describe people calling in sick the day after Thanksgiving so they could have an extra day off work.
At the same time, US police were using the phrases “Black Friday” and “Black Saturday” to describe the horrendous traffic that occurred at the beginning of the pre-Christmas shopping season.
In 1961, the local government moved to change the shopping season to “Big Friday” and “Big Saturday,” but it never caught on. The notion that it was the time when retailers moved 'back into the black' was seen far later and clearly an attempt to bring positivity to the term.
Black Friday Deals 2022: our predictions
We can make predictions of what we think Black Friday 2022 will bring based on last year's sale event. Due to concerns around shipping delays and supply issues, we saw retailers like Best Buy and Walmart launch Black Friday deals earlier than ever, with Amazon kicking things off in early October.
Typically retailers reserve their best deals for Black Friday proper, but last year we saw the best deals leading up to Black Friday. This might be why, according to Adobe Analytics (opens in new tab), spending was down 1.3% on Black Friday compared to last year, and Thanksgiving Day stayed flat. Consumers have spent $109.8 billion in November alone, which was up significantly (11.9%) compared to 2020. This falls in line with the trend of early sales, which drew consumers to make earlier purchases and not wait for Black Friday to snag a deal online.
So what does this mean for Black Friday 2022? It all depends on if retailers will face the same shipping and stock supply issues that plagued last year's sale. There's little indication this could be the case again, but we still expect the trend of earlier sales to stay.
While it's still early to know exactly what kind of deals we'll see during Black Friday 2022, we can make predictions on what brands and products we'll see come November. According to Adobe (opens in new tab), the hottest items at last year's Black Friday sale included AirPods, the Apple Watch, laptops, TVs, consoles, and toys from brands like Hot Wheels, Paw Patrol, and Nerf. Amazon's top Black Friday sellers consisted of its own devices like the Echo Dot, Fire TV Stick, and smart bulbs, and some interesting items included the Revlon one-step hair dryer and the Colorfulkoala yoga pants.
Considering there have been many new product launches over the last 12 months – including new Apple devices, TVs and laptops – expect to see older models with some of the largest reductions this year. There's an outside chance that some of the newer items are also reduced, but these discounts are unlikely to be as common or as large as last-generation models.
Black Friday 2022: our buying advice
Where to find the best Black Friday deals?
Most online retailers offer Black Friday deals, but it's our job to sort through the thousands of offers to find the very best bargains from the bunch. You'll typically find the best Black Friday deals from big-name retailers like Walmart, Best Buy, and Target, with Amazon leading the pack.
Amazon is a Black Friday favorite, not only because they offer record-low prices but because they offer discounts on a wide variety of categories. So whether you're looking for tech items like laptops, TVs, or AirPods or searching for discounts on clothing, kitchen appliances, or toys - Amazon is likely to offer Black Friday deals on the product you're after.
Other retailers that offer impressive Black Friday deals include Best Buy, Walmart, Target, Dell, Home Depot, Lowe's, and Overstock. It can be overwhelming with so many retailers and promotions, but that's where our deal expertise comes in. We go through every retailer to pick out the very best Black Friday deals so you can make sure you're getting the lowest price available. We also keep a live list of the best Black Friday sales from all the top online retailers, so you can easily jump to the offer you want.
If you don't want to wait till November to shop for Black Friday deals, we've included the current sales from the top online retailers just below.
Amazon: daily deals on tech, home items, clothing, and more (opens in new tab)
Best Buy: savings on 4K TVs, laptops, and headphones (opens in new tab)
Dell: save on best-selling Inspiron and XPS laptops (opens in new tab)
Home Depot: save on tools, appliances, furniture, and more (opens in new tab)
Kohl's: save on clothing, shoes, and accessories for the whole family (opens in new tab)
Lowe's: appliance deals from Samsung, Whirlpool and LG (opens in new tab)
Overstock: big savings on furniture, decor, and appliances + free shipping (opens in new tab)
Target: save on furniture, tech, and clothing for the whole family (opens in new tab)
Walmart: save on TVs, laptops, kitchen appliances, and more (opens in new tab)
How to get the best Black Friday deals in 2022?
Homework really helps. Some retailers up prices from August through to October so they can offer supposedly amazing discounts on Black Friday, so don’t be fooled by such moves.
They’re particularly prevalent in expensive consumer electronics such as TVs or laptops with product numbers rather than names, with products that were dropped down to a great bargain price suddenly being pushed back to their MSRP again.
It’s also a very good idea to be flexible: for example, if you're interested in a Samsung 4K TV it’s best to think about the features you want rather than a specific model number: the BRV553ABD34-82C-9218-X may not be discounted on Black Friday 2022, but an almost identical set with the specification you want probably will be.
So do your research on what matters and we’ll do our best to give you the right comparison needed.
However, don’t be fooled into thinking that something that looks like a five-star set is the same but cheaper - certain elements (often with regards to screen quality or image processing) won’t be as high quality to achieve that lower price point.
When to shop for the best Black Friday deals?
Early holiday shopping is going to be a smart move for Black Friday 2022, as we saw the best deals were launched in the weeks leading up to day itself last year. When it came to the big day, we were left disappointed as there weren't many new offers.
Wee noticed also best-selling items like the AirPods Pro, the Apple Watch, MacBooks, and Amazon's own devices were out of stock in the run-up to Black Friday proper as folks took advantage of the early low prices. We also saw surprising price increases on certain items, including the AirPods Pro and MacBook Pro, which is unusual based on previous years.
Ultimately, if there's a good offer even in the weeks leading up to Black Friday then you should feel confident that you can take advantage of early Black Friday deals at the big-name online retailers.
Last year's best Black Friday deals
Taking a look back at last year's Black Friday deals can help us get an idea of what will be on sale during Black Friday 2022. We've listed a few key products from the most popular categories below, including TV, laptops, smart home devices and appliances from all your favorite brands like Apple, Samsung, Roomba, Keurig, Instant Pot and more.
