With summer officially upon us, dedicated online shoppers are already wondering: when is Amazon Prime Day? Well, mark your calendars, because Amazon’s officially announced this year’s Prime Day extravaganza starts on July 15 and runs through July 16.
For those who have been sleeping on Prime Day, it’s Amazon’s invented holiday in July. Similar to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, you can get insane deals on all sorts of things. Basically, if you’ve been holding off on upgrading your outdated but costly electronics, Prime Day is the day to splurge. TVs, computers and Amazon’s own line of products is typically deeply discounted on Prime Day.
In order to help you save the most (time/money/stress/effort/etc.), we’ve put together this guide. It’s packed with all the hacks you could need to get the most savings possible on Prime Day – or any day, for that matter.
Amazon Prime Day tips and tricks
1) Sign up for Amazon Prime
As the title suggests, these deals are only valid for Prime members. So if you’re not already a member, you can sign up today for a free 30-day trial. In addition to exclusive deals, you’ll receive free two-day shipping and access to Amazon Instant Streaming. After the trial has expired, the Prime annual membership is just $99. But if you’re a student, you gain free access to these Prime perks for six months and get 50 percent off the annual membership fee!
2) Be familiar with the deals ahead of time
Head on over to the “Today’s Deals” tab to check out the deals before they’re even live. You should also be accustomed to Amazon’s lingo.
Prime Spotlight Deals: These are equivalent to the limited supply, price-slashing doorbusters. Once sold out, the item will return to regular price or be completely out of stock.
Lightning Deals: Just like lightning, these deals are gone in a flash. Valid for a few hours, you’ll be able to watch the percentage of deals claimed right beside a timer. This allows you to literally watch the deal sell out (or timeout). But once the deal is 100 percent claimed, you can join a waitlist for the item in case someone backs out or more stock suddenly becomes available.
Prime Savings and Deals: These are the all-day sales, only limited by available stock. The “see details” link is an important hack when it comes to these sales. By clicking the link, you’ll not only learn more about the advertised deal (duh) but you’ll be introduced to other items included in the sale.
3) Download the app
Nowadays, there’s an app for everything. So, Prime Day? Yeah, there’s an app for that. It’s the regular ol’ Amazon app, except it’s even handier on Prime Day. From now through Prime Day, you can tap the banner in the app for a sneak peek of select Prime Day deals. You can also make a watchlist in case any of the stuff you’ve been eyeballing is included in the sale. Also, if you turn on notifications, the app will let you know if they go on sale! Sweet!
4) Enable 1-click shopping
In the amount of time it takes you to fill out your shipping and billing address, the deal you’re trying to seal can disappear. Just like that, sold out at the blink of an eye. Even if the deal is in your shopping cart, it’s not a guarantee. That’s what makes one-click shopping so valuable. The feature allows you to fill out your shipping and billing information beforehand, so you can make purchases in, well, one click.
5) Do not sleep in. I repeat, DO NOT SLEEP IN.
The early bird gets the worm, right? Well, the early shopper gets the best deals. And even though you’re shopping online and get to bypass the stampedes and annoying IRL shoppers that will fight you over a bike, there’s still traffic. And lots of it. Like Los Angeles-style traffic, except you’re also racing against a clock. So the earlier you’re up and at ’em, the better chances you have to score some pretty sweet deals. You can always nap later.
6) Check in with your friends at the Daily Dot.
We’ll be covering the event live and scouring the best deals so you don’t have to. Regardless of what time you decide to rise and shine, we’ll be shopping ’til we start dropping. So if you’re anxious you may miss such a deal it’s practically a steal, worry not. We’re here to help you find exactly what you’re looking for. Consider us your personal Prime Day shoppers.
Happy shopping!
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