The best back-to-school sales 2025: deals on laptops, backpacks, and dorm essentials

Back-to-school sales are unique from other big retail events in that they're generally not unified around a single date. Back-to-school sales typically run from mid-July to late August and continue through mid-September. Compared to events like Black Friday or Amazon Prime Day, that's a remarkably long period.

Throughout this time, you can expect back-to-school-themed sales to pop up with fair regularity at most of the big retailers. It's likely they'll keep the back-to-school branding off their sites until late August, but you'll generally see great sales on items like backpacks and laptops throughout the summer months.

Due to its vast inventory and its excellent range of daily deals, Amazon is probably the best overall retailer for back-to-school sales. It's a great place for everything from cheap Chromebooks to backpacks, and you can order them all at the same time, which is a plus.

For tech deals, Best Buy, Walmart, HP, and Dell are all fantastic options if you're looking for something computing-related. The former two, in particular, always feature super-cheap laptops and TVs - perfect if you're a student looking to furnish your dorm.

Lastly, in the past few years, Apple has run its own back-to-school themed promotions - one of the rare times the retailer actually offers deals throughout the year. Apple's products can be pricey, and you'll have to prove you're a student, but you often get some of the biggest savings of the year here, as well as some freebies included with your purchase.