How to Tell if a Prime Day Discount Is Actually a Good Deal

Amazon Prime Day is one of the biggest shopping events of the year, but figuring out what’s a deal and what’s just marketing can be confusing.

As with any sale, consumers should keep in mind that a large discount doesn’t necessarily equate to a good deal.

A $150 markdown on a TV with a $500 list price could seem irresistible, but you’re only really “saving” that amount of money if the same item isn't available anywhere else at a similar or lower price.

Also, there’s a good chance that the sale item you're interested in had some discounting on Amazon before the Prime Day event. The two-day shopping holiday likely won’t be the last time there’s a discount on that item, either.

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What to know about Amazon Prime Day 2024

The 2024 Amazon Prime Day event takes place from July 16 to July 17. The first sales go live at 12 a.m. PDT (3 a.m. EST) on Tuesday, July 16, and new deals drop periodically over two days. The deals are available exclusively for members of Amazon Prime, the online retailer's subscription service that costs $14.99 a month or $139 per year for most members.

Prime Day 2024 is expected to drive $14 billion of online spending, which would be a record and a 10.5% increase from last year, according to a report from Adobe Analytics. Amazon says that its 2024 Prime Day features "millions" of deals.

“Strong spend will be driven by steeper discounts this year, expected to range between 9% and 22% (off listed price). Adobe expects electronics to have the biggest discounts at 22% (last year, discounts for electronics peaked at 14%),” the report said.

That means there will be some genuinely good deals, but you’ll have to do some research to find them.

Are Prime Day deals good?

Here are some strategies to use to figure out if Amazon discounts are truly good deals — and if the product at hand is worth buying, period:

Use price trackers and price comparison tools

Using a price tracker is a smart and simple way to analyze if a Prime Day deal is actually a deal. A site like Keepa or CamelCamelCamel can show you the price history of the item you’re interested in, allowing you to see how the Prime Day price compares to what’s been available in the past.

More importantly, you should check how an item’s Prime Day price stacks up against what competitor retailers are offering (assuming the product isn’t exclusively available on Amazon).

There are a couple of ways to do this. Scroll down on the item listing, find the model number and copy and paste it into a Google search. Alternatively, install a browser extension like Capital One Shopping, which will run a price comparison for you in fewer steps.

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Look closely (but not exclusively) at Amazon products

According to shopping experts, the best deals on Prime Day are usually found on Amazon's own products, like Kindle e-readers, Fire tablets and Fire TVs. But third-party retailers also participate in Prime Day, and they're incentivized to offer discounts to feature prominently on the site. So don't limit yourself to Amazon items.

In addition to normal Prime Day sales, Amazon has invite-based Prime Day deals, including a 30% off promotion for Peloton exercise bikes, for example. Prime members must request an invitation to shop these items, which are expected to sell out.

Beyond electronics, here are several other shopping categories expected to have large Prime Day discounts, according to Adobe Analytics:

• Apparel: 20% (versus 12% last year)
• Home/furniture: 17% (versus 9% last year)
• Toys: 15% (versus 12% last year)
• Televisions: 14% (versus 5% last year)
• Appliances: 12% (versus 7% last year)
• Sporting goods: 11% (versus 6% last year)
• Computers: 9% (versus 8% last year)

Avoid impulse buys

Ultimately, a deal is only worth it if the discounted price offers good value to you. Shoppers commonly make the mistake of impulse buying things because they don't want to miss a fleeting sale. Before you buy, pause and ask yourself the common-sense questions:

• Do I really need this?
• Is it exactly what I want?
• Can I afford it?
• Does the price seem reasonable for what it is?

While there's a seemingly endless number of blogs online telling you what you should buy, many of these guides aren't trustworthy. A site may be earning a commission to recommend one product over another, and sometimes it's unclear if the products have been tested by the author.

Your best bet is relying on a reputable source like Consumer Reports that takes the time to test many different options in various item categories. It's also worthwhile to look at reviews from other shoppers to learn more about the item on sale and if it's a good value.

Browse sales beyond Amazon

Amazon may host the marquee online deal event of the summer, but it's not the only retailer launching massive sales in July. Walmart, Best Buy and Target are among the other major retailers promoting huge sales around the same time as Amazon's Prime Day.

The discounts are often just as good and sometimes even better than what you'll find at Amazon — and if you're not shopping at Amazon, there's no requirement to be a Prime member to take advantage of the sales.

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