How to shop early and still get the best deals

On Nov 13, 2021

If Black Friday — the biggest shopping day of the year — is no longer the day after Thanksgiving, is it still considered Black Friday?

This year, instead of one-day doorbuster deals, the discounts are rolling out well before Thanksgiving week, spurred by a number of challenges, including supply chain setbacks and a labor crunch.

These obstacles, which are slowing the delivery of everything from consumer staples to hot holiday toys, will only get worse before they get better, according to Moody’s Analytics economist Tim Uy.

With limited inventory in stores and longer shipping times, consumers are more motivated to kick start their holiday shopping as early as they can.

If you can’t afford to wait, you can still get the some of the best prices of the season. Here’s how:

Some Black Friday deals are already out

Big-name retailers like Amazon, Target, Best Buy and Walmart are already marking down hot holiday gifts by as much as 50%.

For example, Amazon is now offering half off an Echo Show and 30% off a Samsung 4K Smart TV with Alexa Built-in on its early Black Friday deal page.

At Target, some of the best holiday deals so far include buy two, get one free on movies, video games and books and Beats wireless headphones marked down to $100 from $200.

Walmart’s Black Friday Deals for Days has a 55-in 4K Roku TV for $228 and the Keurig K-Compact for $35.

J.C. Penney and Macy’s also lowered the price of kitchen gadgets, clothing, jewelry and bedding (this fleece throw is just $16) and Kohl’s will take 30% off Lego sets, among other popular toys, starting Nov. 21.

Small businesses aren’t waiting for Small Business Saturday, either.

For example, after fire pits became one of the hottest items of 2020, Pit Command is marking all fire pit tools down by 20% sitewide.

There are many more unique finds already such as 20% off on Etsy or look local and benefit from a personalized shopping experience and a selection that’s guaranteed in stock.

How to make sure you still get the best price

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to ensure you’ll still get the lowest price on almost everything you’re buying, even if you are a little early to the holiday shopping season.

Use a price tracker or browser extension: Savings tools like Cently which automatically apply coupon codes to your online order, and PriceBlink, which pinpoints the cheapest buying option across multiple retailers, help track discounts and price drops, says consumer savings expert Andrea Woroch.

You can also set sale alerts on your gift list through Amazon Assistant or use browser extensions like Karma to monitor product prices, she said. “Just create a list of products you want and it will alert you in the event they detect a price drop.”

Look for a price match guarantee: This year, many retailers are also offering some…