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There are several shopping days throughout the calendar year (like Prime Day) that require a little extra attention and effort here at PCMag Deals. But the final one of 2025 is also the biggest: Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving (and through the weekend, and often into he entire week that starts with Cyber Monday) brings a flood of customers who are drawn in with the promise of epic discounts and getting their holiday shopping done early. Our job is simple: to find you the best bargains out there. Below you'll find all of the key details and dates to make your Black Friday shopping experience efficient, economical, and, dare we say, fun.
And be sure to check out all of the best early Black Friday deals we've found so far!
What Is Black Friday?
The first official day of the holiday shopping season, Black Friday arrives on the day after Thanksgiving every November. Black Friday sales began in the 1950s, with newspapers using it as a negative term to describe the excessive traffic from the holiday weekend. People soon started noticing that retail sales were also up that day, and by the 1980s, the term was in use across the country, with the "black" now used to describe the black ink of a positive balance on your books.
When the dot-com boom brought shopping online, retailers started using "Cyber Monday" to refer to the first Monday after Thanksgiving, but that term's not used as much anymore, with "Black Friday" now referring to the whole three-day weekend and Monday. The sales have spread to many countries worldwide with some changes. In the United Arab Emirates, they refer to it as "Yellow Friday," while in Wales, it's called "Dydd Gwener y Gwario Gwirion," which translates to "Silly Spending Friday."
When Is Black Friday 2025?
Black Friday will hit this year on November 28, 2025. Like last year, it's arriving late in the month, so the holiday shopping season will feel shorter than normal (unless you start shopping early, which we strongly recommend). Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, Thanksgiving Weekend, and Cyber Monday are often referred to collectively as "The Turkey 5," so you'll be able to hunt for deals across all five days, and we'll be covering the entire thing.
When Specifically Do Black Friday Deals Start?
Every retailer is different, and they all have their own plans to capitalize on Black Friday. However, one thing they have in common is that they all start putting deals live before Thanksgiving even starts, sometimes as early as October. Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart usually start sales on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving (November 26), with others dropping bargains even earlier on Monday (November 24). Many retailers will already have their landing pages up and teasing deals on the first of November. We expect to see so-called "Early Black Friday Deals" all throughout November, but we'll only share them with you if they're actually serious discounts.
Where Should I Shop On Black Friday?
There are no specific retailers that are objectively better or worse than another during the Turkey 5. Some basic rules do apply, though. Larger businesses are going to be able to offer lower prices due to economies of scale, but smaller retailers do get in on the act with deals on exclusive products. We'll be monitoring Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and Target Black Friday Deals, along with manufacturer outlets like Apple, Dell, HP, and Lenovo.
What Time Do Stores Open on Black Friday?
Online retailers are always open and most online Black Friday sales begin at midnight on their specified days, but this isn't universal. If you feel like heading to a brick-and-mortar location for physical-only deals, many retailers set special early access holiday hours for the sale. Target, Walmart, and Best Buy locations will all open at 6 a.m. on November 28. It's important to call in advance to stores you're planning to visit early to make sure they are participating.
Does Amazon Have Black Friday Sales?
Black Friday is one of Amazon's biggest sales outside of Prime Day. This year, they're running sales and discounts from November 20 at 12:01 AM PT through December 1. Early deal teases include up to 50% off on a wide range of Amazon devices like Echo smart speakers, Fire TVs, Blink cameras and more; big discounts from brands like JBL, Canon, and Bose; and deep cuts on robot vacuums. They're also pushing the Amazon Haul ultra-budget hub with an event from November 10-11. We wouldn't be surprised to see the first ever discounts on Nintendo Switch 2 consoles, along with top games for both Xbox Series and PlayStation 5. If you're a Prime member, you will be able to snag even better prices on select items.
Does Apple Have Black Friday Sales?
Every year, Apple runs its own Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals events both at physical Apple Stores and online. Many of their most popular products get discounts, including iPhones, MacBooks, AirPods, Apple Watches, and more. We already know that Apple products can get expensive, so if you're doing your holiday shopping early, Black Friday is the time. One caveat: you're not likely to find the newly-released iPhone 17 or iPhone Air models on sale yet.
Does Best Buy Have Black Friday Sales?
Best Buy is often our first stop for pure tech-related shopping on Black Friday weekend. I wouldn't be surprised to see console hardware deals on the PS5/PS5 Pro and Xbox Series X, and possibly the Switch 2, to grab their share of holiday gift shopping on big-ticket items. Laptops and tablets are also worth keeping an eye on at Best Buy, as they have a solid selection of gaming machines with new Nvidia 50-series GPUs. Finally, portable Windows gaming handhelds like the ROG Ally will probably see good discounts. They're also folding in doorbuster deals every weekend as part of the pre-Black Friday promotion.
Does Walmart Have Black Friday Sales?
Walmart is going big this holiday season, with a trio of events throughout November. The first phase kicks off the weekend of November 14, for a three-day sale on thousands of items. Walmart+ members shopping online can get in five hours early, at 7 p.m. ET on November 13. Next up, the actual Black Friday week, starting on the 25th, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, and ending on Sunday, the 30th. Finally, the online-only Cyber Monday sale on December 1. The sneak peeks for Walmart+ members will happen on those sales as well. They've already dropped some hints on what we'll see, including Apple products, Walmart-exclusive product lines like onn. TV sets, Dyson vacuums, and more.
Does Target Have Black Friday Sales?
Target just dropped their Black Friday flyer, and it's stuffed with information about their plans for the holiday. They're promising massive discounts on tons of categories, but the ones that are most interesting to us are deals of as much as 50% off on small appliances, including robot vacuums. Tech is also going to be a hot spot, with offers on TVs, speakers, and more. Target also typically offers a Holiday Price Match Guarantee, where they match the lowest price at Target on items purchased between Sunday, 11/1 and Wednesday, 12/24.
Is Everything On Sale On Black Friday Worth It?
Unfortunately not. Most major retailers crack down on scummy tactics during big sales, but others do not. Marketplaces like Amazon and Walmart that allow third-party sellers can sometimes sell products with inflated "retail" prices that aren't even a deal with a discount, or are underpowered, badly built, and not worth the time you spent to click on "Add To Cart." On-page reviews can help give you more information, but even those can be compromised. You can always turn to PC Labs for ultra-detailed, unbiased teardowns if you have questions.
We put together a robust guide on how to avoid Black Friday rip-offs that has advice on products to avoid, tips to figure out how good a discount really is, timing your purchases, and doing your research. It's definitely worth reading before you start shopping.
What Black Friday Deals Can We Expect?
While it's too soon to predict the numbers, Black Friday typically brings the best prices of the year on Apple products like AirPods and iPads, with price matching across most retailers. Many gaming consoles also see pre-holiday sales to lure in parents looking to gift their gamers a new machine for Christmas (or Channukah, or whatever they celebrate). Productivity-oriented hardware, like business laptops, typically doesn't see discounts as large, but there are still deals to be found.
Black Friday is the most popular shopping day of the year, and retailers drop prices to boost traffic as high as they can. But even with those discounts, the prices you'll see might not be the lowest of the year. Many of the items we cover can rise and fall in price depending on the whims of the market. Sometimes, we'll even see discounts earlier in November that are deeper than what you finally get on Black Friday.
In general, we advise you to keep an open mind, make a wishlist of items you're interested in, and compare prices across different retailers to find the best offers. Use our deals page to track early sales and snag your stuff when prices are at their lowest. Black Friday can save you a ton, but you have to be smart about it.
Check out our in-depth coverage of all the Early Black Friday deals, steals, sales, and discounts that we've found so far!