Your ultimate Black Friday deals guide – 7 perks and tips that can help save you money

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The Black Friday deals have already arrived, and while we don’t expect the very best deals to land until Black Friday itself on November 28, now is a good time to start your bargain hunting and get prepared for some of the biggest deals.

So I’m here to give you some things to check off before you go on the hunt, as well as some advice on what to look out for. Let me know in the comments below if you have any questions or additional ideas.

Let’s get into it.

Create a wishlist

reMarkable Paper Pro Move tablet in front of a library of books, showing various writing screens and comparing the size to a Moleskine notebook — (Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

There are a lot of deals to peruse during this Black Friday period, so one way to not get lost in the deluge of discounts is to have a wishlist of the products you want to get if they get price sliced.

Naturally, I’d recommend checking out TechRadar’s own articles, which round up the best Black Friday deals (see below), as well as those that delve into categories like laptops and TVs. But these can also be cross-referenced with your own list to make sure you grab the deal you want and not end up distracted and spending too much.

Check these deals out now

Set a budget

Close-up hands counting money American dollars — (Image credit: NATNN / Shutterstock)

Speaking of spending, setting a budget is a wise thing to do when shopping for Black Friday deals. It can be tempting to snap up that air fryer or soundbar you’ve suddenly seen discounted. But if it’s not on your list, and you’ve not budgeted for it, then it might be a deal worth passing by.

Feel free to contact the TechRadar experts if you want some advice on what to buy and what to avoid, or wait until the next sales event.

Amazon Prime package with two credit cards on top — (Image credit: Shutterstock / Ascannio)

An Amazon Prime membership has a lot of perks, not least of all is speedy delivery, but it’s also a way to score extra discounts on products sold via Amazon. I’d say it's a must-have for Black Friday, especially if you want to rapidly grab a nice bit of tech yourself, like a pair of our best wireless earbuds, or want a fast way to do some Holiday shopping.

The neat trick here is to sign up for a free trial of Amazon Prime before Black Friday, so you can take advantage of the perks. And if you don’t feel the service is for you, you can cancel it before the trial ends and not have to swallow the full cost of a monthly or yearly membership.

Walmart Cyber Monday deals — (Image credit: Walmart)

Speaking of memberships, and one for US readers, I’d recommend signing up to Walmart Plus. Like Amazon Prime, it offers a lot of perks, from free shipping and access to Paramount+, but it also offers access to exclusive deals from the retailer.

What’s more, for a limited time, there’s 50% off a Walmart Plus membership, which brings its annual cost down to $49; that’s a solid deal in and of itself, and one Senior Deals Editor Mackenzie Frasier wholeheartedly backs.

Purple deals page with nutribullet, 955 solar, sony xm5, and two thinkpad — (Image credit: TechRadar)

This year, TechRadar is running a deal-centric newsletter, where we will flag some of the best deals we’ve seen, including ones that make for great impulse buys.

And while our website will hardly be empty of deals, this newsletter will give you a nice curated selection of deals we can thoroughly recommend, so do check it out.

Watch out for scams

A bank card skewered on the end of a fishhook in front of a white computer keyboard. — (Image credit: Getty Images / Peter Dazeley)

Unfortunately, the Black Friday deals period can be used by scammers to trick people out of their cash. I’d suggest using TechRadar's deals guides and roundups to be sure you’re scoring a deal from a legitimate source.

But I’d also recommend being very vigilant in what you’re buying and where it's from. Do be cautious of clicking on links served up in emails and social media from less-than-trustworthy sources, and do remember you’re likely safer buying from the big-name retailers than niche online ones.

Look for price comparisons

Extensi&oacute;n CamelCamelCamel — (Image credit: CamelCamelCamel)

Tools like CamelCamelCamel can help give you a clear idea of what the price of a product was historically and if its discounted price is indeed a bargain. The TechRadar Deals team and I use CamelCamelCamel a lot, and we’ll make sure to point out if a product has hit its lowest-ever price in our articles.

It’s handy to be smart about this, as the likes of Amazon do have a habit of showing an article's original RRP and then its discounted price, which could make a deal look more attractive than it actually is, given that said products may have been previously selling at a discounted price anyway.

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Roland Moore-Colyer is Managing Editor at TechRadar with a focus on phones and tablets, but a general interest in all things tech, especially those with a good story behind them. He can also be found writing about games, computers, and cars when the occasion arrives, and supports with the day-to-day running of TechRadar. When not at his desk Roland can be found wandering around London, often with a look of curiosity on his face and a nose for food markets.

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