Date, Deals & Top Tips

With the holidays on the horizon already, many are beginning to wonder Black Friday 2021 will look like. It’s the biggest deals event of the year, and one of the most popular times to buy Christmas gifts at bargain prices.

The pandemic meant Black Friday 2020 was a somewhat different affair, with many retailers choosing (or being forced to) close their doors and direct all customers online. In June 2021, Walmart announced that it would once again close all its US locations on Thanksgiving Day. The retailer usually kicks off Black Friday sales on the evening of Thanksgiving. It’s likely other US retailers will follow suit, given how prominent Black Friday is in the States.

Here we’re answering all your questions around Black Friday season and making major predictions on what to expect this year, so you’re fully prepared to snap up the best Black Friday deals on laptops, phones, Apple devices, and anything else you’ve been waiting to get your hands on.

When is Black Friday 2021?

This year Black Friday is on 26 November, one day after US Thanksgiving.

How many days is Black Friday?

The boundaries of when Black Friday starts and ends is no longer as well-defined as it used to be. Traditionally, the event lasted one day, whereas now, Black Friday deals begin as early as October.

Some retailers like Amazon and Currys PC World often have early Black Friday deals with top discounts arriving a week or two before Black Friday.

Best deals online right now

Should you wait for Black Friday? Will deals really be better?

With deals rolling in earlier and earlier, you don’t really need to wait until 26 November to get your hands on an excellent offer. We’re confident that solid discounts will start appearing well before then. 

One quick and dirty trick is to keep an eye on Amazon. Given its prominence, you can pretty accurately glean when sales from other retailers will start by following Amazon’s sales schedule. While Amazon doesn’t often provide notice before a big sale, unless it’s Prime Day, you can be certain if Amazon has deals on a certain product so too will other retailers.Thankfully, for shoppers this means you should be able to get low prices everywhere!

Last year it held Prime Day from 13 to 14 October effectively kicking off the end of year sale season. This year, Amazon’s Prime Day arrived earlier than usual, over 21 to 22 June – but that could suggest another October Prime Day may be on the cards. Amazon has previously considered having a second autumnal Prime Day, though it’s unclear whether that’s still the case. Still, given how profitable the event is for the retailer, it’s entirely possible.

Whether or not Amazon has Prime Day ahead of Black Friday sales, or whether it dives right into Black Friday deals in November, it’s unlikely prices will reduce further on 26 November. Past years have shown retailers generally spread out excellent deals in the week leading up to Black Friday – effectively turning the day into a week-long event.

In fact, if you wait too long, stock might even sell out by the 26th. Our advice is clear: if you see a drastic discount on that Apple Watch or Nintendo Switch console you’ve been eyeing, you should pick it up! And if prices do go lower on the day…

…Take advantage of price-matching

Remember to hold retailers accountable to their prices. Many retailers, such as Currys PC World offers price-matching against other retailers, whether online or in-store.

In past years, Currys has promised its early Black Friday deals won’t have lower prices on Black Friday itself. If you’ve bought an item from Currys and found a cheaper price elsewhere within 7 days, Currys will refund you the difference.  Keep track of Black Friday deals at Currys here.

While Amazon doesn’t have a price-matching policy, it does have a strong returns policy. You can return most new and unopened items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. You also have the statutory right to cancel and order within 14 days of delivery. If you find your purchase has a lower price just days later, you can always cancel your first order and buy the same item at the lower price and send the original purchase back (if you’ve received it already). Again, be sure it’s unopned, unused and undamaged.

We’re certain retailers will continue spreading deals all through the month of November instead of concentrating all their best deals on Black Friday itself. The added benefit of distributing deals over the month is that it also prevents frenzied crowds from gathering in stores and shopping centres.

Will Black Friday happen this year? Will coronavirus cancel Black Friday?

With uncertainty around whether restrictions may return later in the year, many are asking: Is Black Friday 2021 canceled?

Last year in the US, where Black Friday typically sees large crowds gather outside shops before doors open, Walmart decided it would close all its stores on Thanksgiving Day. Two other major US retailers, Target and Kohl’s, also followed suit. Walmart will be doing the same this year.

Limiting in-store shopping doesn’t mean Black Friday sales are canceled. It does indicate, however, that a lot of the shopping experience will be happening online.

Last year Walmart served Black Friday deals over the entire month of November in three separate deals events. Similarly, Target launched its Black Friday deals all through November with new offers each week.

Black Friday will just happen differently and shoppers keen on bagging a top deal on an iPad, AirPods, or the new PS5 or Xbox Series X will need to be more prepared for changes, some of which we’re predicting below…

Top 8 predictions for Black Friday 2021

1. Restricted in-store sales

In the UK, depending on whether or not the country returns to a lockdown, and where in-store Black Friday shopping is typically less frenzied than in the US, we might see large retailers restricting in-store traffic as opposed to shutting down entirely like Walmart.

That might mean shoppers will need to queue one or two meters apart outside stores. Elderly and at-risk shoppers may have a scheduled window ahead of other shoppers, similar to the restrictions supermarkets had in place when the UK’s lockdown began in March 2020.

While it’s no longer illegal to be unmasked indoors, you might be denied entry if the retailer has set its own preferences and restrictions.

2. Rise of click and collect

Retailers might also encourage click-and-collect instead of in-store browsing and shopping. This might be include incentives like discounts or bundles.

In the same vein, contract-free delivery might be encouraged to limit people from going in-store with free next-day delivery promo codes on electricals or order values above a certain amount.

3. More QVC-style live shopping deals (keep an eye on social)

This year Currys PC World introduced liveshopping to its site, appropriately called LiveShop. To compete with Prime Day it launched exclusive discounts on Google Nest and Pixel devices which were avaialble only to those who watched the stream.

Liveshopping e-commerce isn’t new. It’s a huge multi-billion dollar business in China, but it’s only just picking up in the global West. Over Prime Day, Amazon US had exclusive discounts through influencer-hosted live shopping events via Amazon Live.

Some brands have also started offering additional discounts through its Instagram and social feeds, so we’d recommend following (if only temporarily) all your favourite brands.

4. More ways to pay: Buy Now Pay Later

Another effect of the pandemic and online shopping has been a surge in Buy Now Pay Later purchases. Services such as Klarna, ClearPay and PayPal Credit allow you to split payments into 3-4 chunks or delay payments without interest (or late…