How to Shop October Prime Day, According to Our Deals Editor
I began working at the Strategist in early September 2022, mere weeks before Amazon’s first-ever October Prime Day — or as it was called during its initial year, “Prime Early Access Sale.” I’ve since covered four October Prime Days (now officially called Prime Big Deal Days) and four regular Prime Days (including the four-day sales bonanza that is summer Prime Day), so I feel pretty confident in saying I know how to get the most out of shopping the sale, from which “early deals” are worth it to which deals you might find at an even cheaper price during Black Friday.
Below, I’ve racked my deals-obsessed brain and come up with a list of tips, including which categories have the best deals, which you can safely skip, which deals tend to sell out fastest, and more.
Save products you want to buy in advance
You can add them to your Amazon cart, of course. Or, to keep your cart from being cluttered, use our product-save tool, which lets you save items you see on the Strategist to your New York Magazine profile. You’ll be able to see their up-to-date prices there, and you can easily shop from there, too.
October Prime Day deals aren’t that different from regular Prime Day deals
The main difference between the two is October Prime Day is billed as a kickoff to the holiday-shopping season; the one in June or July is just a big summer sale. That means you’ll find a lot of gift-y items, especially toys, in the upcoming October event. Beyond that, it’s a lot of the same deals on the same products. So before the sale starts, I suggest taking a look at our past Prime Day coverage and seeing what catches your eye. About 80 to 90 percent of those products will also be on sale in October, and at a similar, if not identical, discount.
Treat so-called “early deals” with caution
I’mkeeping tabs on the best early October Prime Day deals. It’s a lot of the same stuff that was on sale earlier this month, now with a “shop early deals” sticker. So it’s probably safest to wait right now — but I’ll have a post up soon with everything that’s actually worth a look.
Double-check the original price to make sure it isn’t inflated
It happens across the internet these days: inflated list prices that make a discount appear bigger. Sure, that hand soap marked down to $3 from $7 seems like a good deal, but if you give it a quick search you might find that its regular price is listed elsewhere as just $4. So when in doubt, Google the product to see what other retailers are charging. We do our best to vet everything we feature, but stay vigilant, folks.
Big-ticket kitchen items are a good place to start
In general, Prime Day is a good time to get more expensive products in any category, but especially in the kitchen category. You’ll find the best deals of the year on things like blenders and coffee machines — including some of the best deals you’ll ever see on Vitamixes.
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Our favorite fancy coffee maker usually goes on sale for over 30 percent off. Hopefully it’ll be back on sale again this time around.
Same goes for tech …
… Especially if you’re in the market for something from Amazon’s in-house brands. I waited for months to buy my Kindle during 2023’s October Prime Day, when I knew it would be on sale — and it was even more discounted than I expected it to be. Apple products are always discounted, too, including headphones, AirTags, and watches, all typically for better prices than you’ll normally find. And since the theme of October Prime Day is holiday shopping, you’ll find plenty of giftable items in the tech category, like speakers and gaming consoles.
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Apple AirPods 4
AirPods go on sale throughout the year, but they’re usually a touch cheaper during Prime Day. And given that there’s a new AirPod on the market, we suspect the older models will be even cheaper this October Prime Day.
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Another heavy hitter: My beloved Bose headphones usually go under $200 for Prime Day.
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This little airplane device makes a great gift and is usually at its best price on Prime Day.
Vacuum deals are abundant
We always see dozens of vacuums on sale during Prime Day from some of our favorite brands, like Dyson and Shark.
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Our best overall robot vacuum (it also mops!) is sure to be on sale.
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This delightful upholstery cleaner is always at its best price on Prime Day (that is, under $90).
Pay careful attention when searching for fashion deals
The Prime Day fashion deals can be really good, but there’s a lot of junk you have to wade through to find them. I suggest checking out Shopbop’s storefront, where you can find a variety of designer and designer-adjacent apparel that has a good amount of stock (with no duds in the mix).
But no matter where you’re finding the fashion deals, be aware that the discount will vary by size and color. Oftentimes, a shirt is half off in one color and full price in another, or a pair of shoes is $50 off in size 8 but only $30 off in size 9. I have absolutely no idea why, but it’s something to note.
When in doubt, get the Levi’s
If there’s one thing in the fashion section you can trust to be on sale, it’s Levi’s jeans (and shorts and jean jackets). They go on sale every Prime Day, the deals are much better than what you’ll ever find on the retailer’s website, there’s often good size availability, and there are several washes to choose from.
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Levi’s Wedgie Straight Jeans
Our Best in Class pair, the straight-leg Wedgie jean, usually goes on sale — and often for over 50 percent off.
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Levi’s Ribcage Straight Ankle Jeans
I’m partial to the Ribcage jean myself, which I purchased a few Prime Days ago while it was 40 percent off.
Add premium beauty items to your cart in advance, and don’t dillydally
By far the widest range of deals will be in the beauty category. It’s the main category I shop on Prime Day since there’s so much to choose from. The “premium” beauty category is especially good, with fairly steep discounts on pricier beauty items. However, some premium items sell out in the first day, so you’ll want to be fast. I’d recommend adding items you hope will go on sale to your cart in advance so you’re ready to hit “purchase” early on day one.
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Clinique’s Almost Lipstick in Black Honey was one of the most-purchased products by Strat readers during this year’s summer Prime Day. (It was 30 percent off, which is a great deal for the makeup-bag staple.)
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Laneige’s lip masks and balms (also very gift-y!) were the most popular products during last year’s October Prime Day. They were 30 percent off, which is also a best-of-the-year deal on the brand.
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Our best overall sunscreen goes on sale a few times per year, and you can be confident that it will probably be on sale for Prime Day, so it’s a good time to restock.
Stock up on drugstore beauty, too
Of course, you don’t have to shell out for expensive skin-care products if you don’t want to. A lot of our best sellers last year were everyday beauty buys like face wash and micellar water. The prices don’t typically change on these items from day one, so don’t wait till later in the sale for a better deal. It’s not coming.
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This snail-mucin serum has been a Prime Day best seller for the last three years. It usually goes on sale for somewhere between $10 to $13.
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It’s not a bad idea to shop for the basics, like our favorite face wash for oily skin.
If you don’t need anything new, stick to household essentials and everyday basics
There are always toothpastes, trash bags, toilet paper, hand soap, and a host of other household essentials on sale for Prime Day. The discounts are often quite good, and even when they’re just 20 percent off, you’re still saving on something you already need and use. Definitely don’t miss the chance to stock up on teeth-whitening strips. They’re always the cheapest they get all year during Prime Day, and they’re consistently a top-purchased item by our readers.
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This Dawn dish-spray bundle has been a top seller with Strategist readers during Prime Day several times now. It also doubles as a stain remover in a pinch.
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Crest’s 3D Whitestrips are always in our top-ten best-selling products on Prime Day. They’re usually 35 percent off, which is the deepest discount you’ll get all year.
Now is the time to get that electric toothbrush or water flosser
Let me start by saying this: You should never pay full price for an electric toothbrush or water flosser. They go on sale all the time. The question is
“When do they go on sale for the best price?,” and the answer is Prime Day. I can reliably find a couple of our best electric toothbrushes on sale every Prime Day, and I usually find our favorite water flosser (in multiple sizes) marked way down too — both for lower-than-average prices.
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Plenty of electric toothbrushes go on sale, but we suggest sticking to tried-and-true brands like Philips or Oral-B.
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Our Best in Class water flosser will most likely be on sale for half off or more.
Prime Day is not the time to buy nice-looking home objects — but it is the time to buy air purifiers and office chairs
Sure, you can occasionally find a decent rug or futon if you search hard enough (and senior writer Lauren Ro always does, so follow her for her vetted picks), but for the most part, the Prime Day furniture and décor deals are lacking. Luckily, if you’re after less aesthetically pleasing products, like air purifiers, mattresses, office chairs, and organization items, there’s often quite a lot to be found. Just be sure to pay attention to brands here. I don’t recommend buying an office chair from a brand whose name is a random combination of letters and numbers, but if you find one from a reputable manufacturer like Branch or Modway (both of which we’ve reviewed in our story on the best ergonomic office chairs), go for it.
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The air purifier that several Strategist staffers (myself included) swear by is always nicely discounted.
If you really want something, buy it the first day of the sale
Obviously, we all want the very best deal, which often means waiting to see if prices drop even further on the second day of the sale. Having covered many Prime Days, I can tell you that it’s pretty rare a deal gets significantly better on day two. One year, Laneige’s brandwide discount increased from 20 to 30 percent off on the second day of the sale, and Bissell’s popular steam cleaner got a few dollars cheaper, too. But those are the outliers. Generally speaking, it’s more likely a product will sell out before it gets cheaper — especially if it’s a big-ticket item like a Vitamix.
So my recommendation: If you really want something, buy it on day one before it sells out. If you’re willing to gamble, you can hold out till the morning of day two to see if the deal gets better (and hope the product is still available).
Shop around
For better or worse, Prime Day has become its own internetwide shopping holiday. Lots of brands run competing sales with equally good discounts. I’d keep an eye out for good deals on clothing and furniture, in particular, since Amazon often has a more limited selection in those categories. We’ll be rounding up all the best deals during Prime Day across the whole internet, so follow our coverage to make sure you don’t miss a single good deal during the sale. You can also subscribe to the Strategist Deal Freaks Daily newsletter to have extra-special deals sent straight to your inbox during the sale, and to our regular email newsletter for tons more newsletter exclusives.
The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
