The Best Time To Buy Anything: A Timeline of Hotspots for Deals and Discounts Year-round

Key Findings

• Although deals on computers and software products from brands like Lenovo and Samsung peak around Black Friday, there are more savings to be found in the early summer as well.
• In our previous analysis of annual coupon trends, June was a dead month. This time around, we found that June is the best month for deals on a wide variety of products including airline tickets from brands such as CheapTickets and CheapOair, cosmetics, and outdoor cooking supplies.
• If you’re looking to book a stay in a hotel, try November – more deals on hotel stays occur in November than any other month.
• Deals for office supplies are especially common on Saturdays.
• Looking for home improvement products? Shop in October, November, or on any given Thursday for the best chance to snag deals.

A Look at Retail Pricing Trends

When planning purchases big or small, it pays to time your transactions carefully. Manufacturers and retailers adjust prices on a regular, recurring basis to maximize sales and move products in periods of low demand. In a previous piece, we scoured years of promotional sales data to determine the best times to buy specific products. Our past research revealed which months, and even days of the week, offered the most discounts and deals for certain items. This report helped consumers to quickly determine the optimal time to make a purchase.

Recently, we wondered if anything had changed since we first studied these industries that routinely offer discount pricing. For example, is it still best to buy airline tickets on a Tuesday or big appliances in the fall? We studied a new collection of data from 2011 to 2021 to better understand the current discount pricing trends of everything from cellphones to swimwear. Here’s a look at what we found.

A Year of Savings

As we reviewed the numbers, we discovered some product categories offer the majority of their best deals in a single month. For instance, car tires are best purchased in March, and furniture is most affordable in May. Other product categories, such as cellphones, hit their lowest price points multiple times a year.

Almost all categories showed a significant boost in total deals offered during the month of November, most likely due to the glut of deals around Black Friday and Cyber Monday. This modern phenomenon is especially pronounced for the following:

• Apparel and Accessories
• Computers and Software
• Electronics
• Home and Garden
• Sports and Recreation
• Travel
• Wireless, Broadband, and Cable

Besides the typical November boom, the summer months are often the best time to snag a deal. According to U.S. News & World Report, August is the best month to buy furniture, swimwear, and diamond engagement rings. It’s also when clothing, footwear, and school supply retailers are hard at work promoting back-to-school sales. Shopping by monthly trends helps consumers to budget better for big expenses and save more money, too.

>> Additional saving resources: Debt vs Savings Calculator

Daily Price Trends

After discovering which industry offered the best deals each month, we also wanted to see which day of the week would be best for buying products within those months.

We found some changes when we compared current data to our past research. Our study revealed that the best day to purchase airline tickets is now Friday instead of Tuesday. The best time to book a hotel room is also different. It’s now recommended to reserve rooms on Friday instead of Sunday. A recent study of travel trends by the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) concurs that hotels have lucrative deals on Fridays. The study also found that Thursday and Friday departure flights offer the cheapest fares. Booking airline tickets at least three weeks in advance and having flexible fly dates also helps travelers to save money.

Current Industry Trends

For an even clearer picture, we’ve compiled all current monthly and daily pricing trends for the top industries in one place below:

Apparel & Accessories

• Jewelry and watches go on sale most frequently in April.
• Kid’s clothes see the most deals in July and August.
• Outside of the holiday season, August sees the most deals for all apparel & accessories.
• Baby apparel has a huge spike in offered deals during the month of September.
• Shop outerwear in November.
• Look for plus-size clothing in December.

Business

• Deals peak in June and on Saturdays for office supplies.

Beauty, Health, & Wellness

• Deals for skin care products and vitamins/supplements spike in December and on Mondays.

Computers & Electronics

• Offers in these categories tend to peak yearly around Black Friday/Cyber Monday, but good offerings can also be found in early summer (June and July).
• Laptops are especially discounted in June.
• The most deals on cellphones can be found in July and November.
• Deals on computers overall are especially common on Sundays. For cellphones, try Mondays and Thursdays.

Home & Garden

• Overall, deals on home and garden products are most common in November. However, you should also look for savings in May and June, when deals spike before slumping in the summer.
• Look for home improvement goods in October, November, and on Thursdays.
• Deals on patio and outdoor products defy the Black Friday effect and are most common in May by far.

Sports & Recreation

• Most deals peak around Black Friday, but if you’re looking for outdoor gear, check in August or April and on Thursdays.

Travel

• July is the month with the most deals.
• Airline ticket deals are most common in April and June and on Fridays and Wednesdays.
• If you’re looking to upgrade your luggage, check deals in July.
• November offers the most hotel deals.

Conclusion

Buying a big ticket item at the lowest point of its price cycle saves a consumer a lot of money, but knowing when to pull the trigger isn’t always easy. Sometimes it’s as simple as following seasonal trends throughout the year or purchasing clearance items the day after a major holiday. Other times, product pricing trends are more difficult for the average shopper to track. Our study of the most plentiful deals by month and day makes it easier for all to understand and take advantage of current cost-saving trends.

Our Data

Data used in this analysis are from deals offered on Savings.com by diamond-level affiliates. All deals considered ended after January 26, 2011, and began before January 26, 2021. “Most common" deals for each month and day of the week were determined by identifying the month of the year or day of the week on which the most total deals in that product category had begun to be offered.

Data used in this analysis best represents patterns in offerings made by Savings.com affiliates on our service, and analysis does not consider type or magnitude of deal.