Last year we saw Amazon Prime Day pushed back from its usual summer spot due to the world's ongoing health crisis meaning it brushed up against Black Friday season. There's no doubt Amazon will want to bounce back in a big way with Prime Day 2021 so we're expecting a huge event this time around.
Prime Day is the exclusive sale every Amazon Prime member should look forward to each year. There are thousands of products on sale during the event from every category plus a whole bunch of promotions giving you extra Amazon credit, extended free trials of Amazon services, and much more just for being a Prime member. The savings during the event are enough to make it worth paying for a Prime membership each year.
What is Amazon Prime Day?
Amazon Prime Day is. in essence, a huge site-wide sale held at Amazon each year. Usually held in the summer months, it represents a rare opportunity to score some stellar savings on products before the usual fall shopping season rolls around.
It started off as a one-day event, hence the name, but it has morphed into something bigger over time. In 2018, it went to a 36-hour sale for the first time and expanded even further to 48 hours in 2019. Thankfully for those of us that cover the deals, it remained at 48 hours for 2020.
Amazon states that Prime Day is a bigger event than Black Friday and Cyber Monday which may well be true for the e-commerce giant, though that's only counting Amazon's data and not all of the other retailers that take part in Black Friday madness.
Prime Day, as you might have expected, is exclusively for Amazon Prime members with deals, price drops, and promotions only available to subscribers. If you wanted, you could use Amazon's 30-day Prime free trial to get in on the sale, though the free 2-day shipping, Prime Video, Amazon Music, photo storage, and other year-round benefits may keep you subscribing beyond the sale period.
Amazon Prime 30-day Trial | Free at Amazon
All of Amazon's Prime Day deals are exclusively available to Amazon Prime members only! If you're not a member yet, you can start a free 30-day trial to gain access to all the deals and the two-day sale, as well as free two-day shipping, the Prime Video streaming service, and more.
How does Amazon Prime Day work?
Prime Day works similarly to other limited-time online sales, though you have to be logged in with an Amazon Prime account to see a lot of the deals and discounted prices.
Amazon also has a tendency to release its deals in batches throughout the event with a whole bunch to start off the sale and others announced and added periodically to keep people coming back for more. Some deals are limited in supply and others are limited in time so it's first come, first served.
We expect that Prime Day 2021 will be a similar format, though we're yet to hear anything official on that front.
When is Prime Day 2021?
During its April earnings call, Amazon acknowledged Prime Day 2021 for the first time and confirmed that the event will be taking place this quarter. That would be earlier than previous years given that Q2 ends with June. It's also a move to bring the event back to its summer schedule after last year's event got pushed back to October.
Amazon CFO Brian Olsavsky stated that the move to earlier in the year is out of concern for transportation slowdowns in July and the potential impact of the Olympics in Q3 2021.
We had heard rumors of a June date prior to this official word, while there are still other suggestions that we could get a double dosage of Prime Day with a summer sale and a second event in October. We'll update this page with more info on that as it comes to light. For now, prepare for June!
When do Prime Day deals begin?
Though Prime Day 2021 has been confirmed for Q2, there's no set date just yet. Once we get an official kick-off, we'll be able to confirm when the deals will begin. The majority of the Prime Day deals are expected to go live at 3am ET on the day of the event as is standard practice for Amazon.
That being said, Amazon usually kicks things off a day or two prior to the official event with a bunch of early Prime Day deals so keep an eye on this page for those nearer the time.
Will Prime Day 2021 be delayed?
While the outlook on the global health situation is still uncertain in various parts of the world, all signs indicate that Prime Day will not be delayed this year, especially with Amazon now confirming it will take place at the slightly earlier timeframe which we expect to be by the end of June. Other sources are suggesting a summer event followed by a fall event for double the Prime Day hype.
Prime Day was initially launched as a way to juice sales in the summer months when, historically, people didn't shop online as much while they waited for fall and pre-holiday deals. We expect Amazon is wanting to get that summer boost back as soon as possible and shipping processes have also improved since last summer so some of those issues are unlikely to impact the event again. On the other hand, given how successful the October 2020 event was, Amazon may want to cash in pre-Black Friday once again.
Best Prime Day deals & sales in 2021
Though Prime Day is now confirmed for summer, we're still a little while away so Amazon hasn't yet announced any early Prime Day deals just yet. Despite that, we can say with certainty that Prime Day 2021 will bring with it stellar deals on Amazon's first-party devices like Echo smart speakers, Ring video doorbells, Fire TV streaming devices, Kindle e-readers, and more.
Based on years past, we also anticipate amazing offers on popular products like Instant Pot, DNA testing kits, iPads, tech accessories, and more.
Be sure to sign up for Amazon Prime ahead of the event so you can be among the first to snap up the deals as they go live.
What were the most popular Prime Day deals in 2020?
Despite taking place just a month before Black Friday, Amazon Prime Day 2020 was still a huge event with Prime members saving more than $1.4 billion during the two-day sale.
Outside of its own devices, Amazon indicated that iRobot Roomba robot vacuums, MyQ's Smart Garage Door Opener, and LifeStraw's Personal Water Filter, were among the most popular items with its buyers.
Based on our data, we can also say that the below were some of the biggest sellers:
- Apple AirPods Pro on sale for $199
- SanDisk and WD Storage on sale at up to 35% off
- Bose QuietComfort 35 II Wireless Headphones on sale for $199
- Echo Show 5 with Blink Mini Smart Security Camera for $50
- 23andMe Health + AncestryService DNA Test down to $99
- Fire TV Stick 4K as low as $25
- Sony WH-1000XM4 Noise-Cancelling Headphones with $25 gift card for $298
- Echo Dot (3rd Gen) with 6 months of Amazon Music Unlimited for $19
- Spend $40 or more on Amazon gift cards and receive $10 in credits to use on a future purchase
What deals do we expect during Prime Day 2021
The offers above are just a small selection of the many excellent deals that Prime Day brought to Amazon customers.
There's no doubt that there will be a huge Echo sale, tons of Fire TV deals, discounted Fire tablets, and more of Amazon's first-party products seeing their prices slashed during Prime Day 2021. These are the sort of deals Amazon has most control over and the products they can use as an exclusive draw to the event.
This year, we expect to see deals again on these popular products as well as some additional Nintendo Switch offers, iPad savings, and maybe even some sweet AirPods Max deals.
Will Apple products be discounted on Prime Day?
Apple itself doesn't participate in Prime Day directly, though its highly-coveted products are often some of the most sought-after during the sale.
Now Amazon happily sells Apple devices, we've seen deals on Apple Watch and AirPods models during the sale in the past as well as some killer iPad and Mac price drops making the event one of the best times of year to upgrade your Apple gear.
We'll, of course, keep you posted on all of the best Apple deals.
- Best Apple Watch deals
- Best Apple TV deals
- Best AirPods deals
- Best iPad deals
- Best MacBook deals
- Best iMac deals
Will other retailers try to participate in Amazon Prime Day?
Unlike Black Friday which is pretty much universally participated in by retailers, Prime Day's whole premise is to be an Amazon-exclusive sale for Prime members.
That doesn't mean other retailers don't try to get in on the fun, though. In years gone by, we've seen stores like eBay go all-in with their own competing sale at the same time and other retailers like Walmart, Target, Best Buy, B&H, and Newegg will be price matching a lot of the deals during the event.
Do I need to be a Prime member to get Prime Day deals?
In short, yes. Amazon Prime Day deals are available exclusively to Prime members so you need to have an active membership to take advantage of all of the great deals.
That being said, being on the free 30-day trial counts as an active membership so you could sign up for that just before the deals kick off and get your fix of savings for free.
When should I sign up for an Amazon Prime trial ahead of Prime Day?
Amazon's Prime trial period runs for 30 days, though you can only take advantage of the trial period once. When we know the official start date for Prime Day 2021, the best thing to do is sign up for the trial so it overlaps the one or two days' worth of Prime Day sales.
Since you've got 30 days to play with, you can always keep yourself occupied with Prime Video, Amazon Music, and various other services that are included in that membership. You may even decide to keep on subscribing to Prime once your trial is over.
Should you shop Prime Day deals or wait for Black Friday 2021?
In 2020, Prime Day was held only six weeks before Black Friday so a lot of shoppers were wondering if it would be better to hold out for the pre-holiday sales to begin.
What ended up happening was Prime Day 2020 kicked off, a bunch of other retailers brought forward their Black Friday sales to the start of November, and we essentially had a shopping season that blurred into one and lasted about eight weeks.
This year, with Prime Day moving back to summer, it's worth shopping the sale for the Prime-exclusive savings. Prime Day offers Black Friday-level pricing on a lot of products, especially Amazon's own gear, and we've seen deals show up during Prime Day in the past and then never come back around during Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Prime Day gives you a shot to shop early while getting the best prices so it's kind of a no-brainer to make the most of it if you have a Prime membership.
What are the different types of Prime Day deals?
Amazon has a few different types of deals that it runs throughout the year, and Prime Day offers a varied mix of all of them. The main ones are Deals of the Day (formerly known as Gold Box Deals) along with direct price drops for Prime members. You'll also see some time- and supply-limited Lightning Deals as well as a fair share of coupons.
Here's a little more on how each type of Prime Day deal works:
- Deals of the Day: As the name suggests, these are Amazon's daily deals. These change every day throughout the year, but there are many more of them to choose from during Prime Day. Deals of the Day usually have plentiful supplies and last all day (or all event in the case of Prime Day), though we have seen them sell out and be cut short early in the past.
- Direct Price Drops: For the majority of products that are discounted during Prime Day, you'll simply visit the page and see a reduced price. For most things, you'll need to be logged into your Prime account to make the most of the deal or even see the lower price.
- Lightning Deals: Named as they appear and disappear in a flash, Lightning Deals are only around for a period of a few hours and are limited in supply as well as time. The best of these deals will sell out in minutes if not seconds so if you see one upcoming that you want in on, make sure you're ready.
- Coupon Deals: Coupons require a little more work in order to get the best price, though it's hardly rocket science. For some, there will be a checkbox on the product page that you simply click before you add the product to your cart for an automatic discount. Other coupon deals require you to enter an alphanumeric code provided by the seller during checkout for money off. If there's a coupon available, it's worth the few seconds of extra work to save.
No matter what product you are looking for or what category you are browsing, the deals could fall into any of those types so keep your eyes peeled on the details.
Will there be Prime Day exclusive products that launch?
For the last few years, Amazon has partnered with third-party brands and used Prime Day as a launchpad for new products — everything from tech and gaming, to home, kitchen, food, fitness, and more.
These tend not to be the highlight of the day, merely a neat added extra, though it is likely a trend that will continue. Around Black Friday, many brands release new products to try and grab some dollars from shoppers ready to spend, so it makes sense for it to be a feature of Prime Day too.
Which countries participate in Amazon Prime Day?
In 2020, Amazon offered Prime Day sales in 20 countries and it's likely that it will be the same (or more) this year. The countries that participated last year include Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
A history of Amazon Prime Day
Prime Day first occurred back in 2015 as an event to mark the website's 20th anniversary. Since then, it has become an annual summer sale event that has gotten a little bigger each year. In its first year, it was a one-day sale that offered a mix of discounts, though some of the most high-demand products didn't feature.
In more recent years, Amazon has used the sale to offer a ton of deals on its own hardware — usually the best prices of the year — while also serving up hundreds of thousands of deals across all manner of categories, brands, and products.
For the last couple of Prime Day events, we've also seen the timeframe stretch out. In 2018, it went from a one-day sale to a 36-hour event for the first time. Amazon and its shoppers clearly enjoyed the extra time as in 2019 it expanded even further to 48 hours, though that event was marred by a couple of hours of downtime at the beginning of the event due to excessive demand.
2020's event stayed at 48 hours, though it took place at the unusual time of October due to the ongoing pandemic which caused a lot of problems with supply chains, fulfillment centers, delivery, and even customer demand. Despite the delay and the proximity to Black Friday in November, the event was still the biggest ever according to Amazon with Prime members saving more than $1.4 billion during the two-day sale.
We expect the seventh iteration of the sale to remain at 48 hours in 2021 and it has now been confirmed that it is reclaiming its usual summer spot with a slightly earlier June timeframe expected.
Is everything that's discounted on Prime Day worth buying?
Without knowing the deals in advance, it's hard to say but, like all sales, it's worth having your wits about you to ensure you are actually getting a good deal on whatever you are buying.
Generally speaking, Amazon devices on sale will be at record-setting or record-equalling low prices and you'll see some stellar deals on TVs, laptops, gaming consoles, Apple devices, and more.
In our coverage of the event, we only cover the deals that are 100% worth your time and we regularly reference the percentage of discount, regular street prices vs MSRPs, historical all-time low pricing, any previous event prices, and more so that you know whether the deal is for you.
Be sure to keep it locked to this page for all of the best deals and check out our sister site Thrifter for deals galore during the event and all-year-round.
Let Thrifter help you
Prime Day just keeps getting bigger and bigger, and it's really hard to maximize your savings during these big events. The team over at Thrifter is full of professional deal hunters who will literally be providing around-the-clock coverage of everything on Prime Day. From the best savings, as they hit to roundups of what you should be buying, the team will aim to make it as easy as possible to find the best deals that are available from the first to the last minute.
Give them a follow on Twitter to keep up-to-date on all the best deals as they happen in real-time.
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