Amazon’s annual Prime Day event, which runs this week, promises to offer huge deals on household goods, toys and electronics.
It says that Prime members can snap up a bargain on hundreds of goods, promising savings of as much as 50 per cent.
However, data from price comparison site Idealo suggests that Prime Day might not actually be the best time to buy, especially if you’re looking to get ahead of the festive period.
We’ve looked at this year’s deals and whether it’s worth waiting until Black Friday instead, as well as some top tips for making the most of this week’s Prime deals.
Amazon’s Prime Day which runs this week offers huge discounts on big ticket items
Is Prime Day the best time to buy big ticket items?
Amazon claims that customers can ‘save big’ on Prime Day, which runs on 10 and 11 October.
However, the daily average prices for a selection of categories before and after last year’s Prime Day from comparison website Idealo shows that might not always be the case.
Data shared with This Is Money shows a number of items were actually cheaper before the sale.
For example, a console which sold for around £292 on Prime Day last year was actually on sale for £8 cheaper the day before, while a month before it was selling for £30 less.
Similarly, a sound bar speaker which sold for between £366 and £369 on Prime Day was being sold for £316.40 a month earlier.
Some households wait until Prime Day to buy bigger-ticket items like fridges, but Idealo’s data again shows that they may not need to wait until Amazon’s sale.
On 1 September 2022, the average price for a fridge on Amazon was £838.81. The price then crept up to between £850 and £860, until it jumped to nearly £870 just before Prime Day, when it sold for between £866 and £872.
So, while you might think you’re getting a good deal, it might be because there have been price hikes in the days before the sale.
The good news is that in the immediate days after, prices tend to stay at a similar level with some big-ticket items reducing significantly.
| Item | Cheapest price before Prime Day | Prime Day price | Cheapest price after Prime Day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fridge | £838.81 (1 September) | £866.75 (11 October) | £861.42 (14 October) |
| Console | £262.26 (10 September) | £292.14 (11 October) | £291.64 (13 October) |
| Air fryer | £170.78 (19 September) | £178.41 (11 October) | £177.26 (16 October) |
| Tablet | £576.85 (8 October) | £576.99 (11 October) | £557.94 (18 October) |
| Laptop | £1,141.36 (6 September) | £1,219.91 (11 October) | £1,129.11 (19 October) |
The average price of a tablet was £576.99 on Prime Day last year, and the price actually fell to £557.94 on 18 October before rising to over £600 by the end of the month.
Similarly, Idealo’s data shows that laptops which sold for between £1219.91 and £1,248 during Amazon’s sale fell to £1,129.11 a week later.
The best deal to be found was on DSLR cameras, which tend to sell for around £2,000. Last year, the cameras sold for £1,820 on Prime Day, £8 more than they had the day before and nearly £71 a month earlier.
Customers could have bagged an even bigger bargain if they’d waited a week, though, as the price dipped to £1,624.
A spokesperson for Idealo said: ‘The advice we always give consumers is that while it’s useful to do your research on which deals might be worth having in advance, if there is something you really want a good deal on for Prime Day then using Idealo’s price alerts is the best way to make sure you don’t miss a good deal on, before or after the event.
‘It also allows you to compare Amazon’s deal with what other retailers are selling it for right now to see if it’s really a deal.’
Other websites such as CamelCamelCamel and Keepa offer a similar service.
Which products ARE a good deal on Prime Day?
While some Prime Day deals might be too good to be true, there are still genuine savings to be made.
A Ninja Air Fryer which usually retails for £169.99 is on sale for £99.99 today, a 41 per cent discount, and the cheapest on offer across all retailers at the moment.
AO World and Very.co.uk have the same air fryer on sale for £132.99 including delivery, according to Idealo’s website.
Amazon is selling a 43 inch Samsung TV for £299 today, down from £349 and £30 cheaper than Argos’ current deal.
Similarly, you can get a heavily discounted Shark cordless vacuum for £279.99 from Amazon while others sell the same product for £329.
While Prime Day might offer some great deals for customers today, it is worth shopping around to see what other retailers can offer.
For example, a second generation Ring Doorbell is on offer for £59.99 on Amazon, the same price as on offer at Very.co.uk and Curry’s, although you will have to pay a small delivery fee unlike with Prime.
A Canon RF 50mm lens has been discounted from £219.99 to £168 for Prime Day but it’s on sale for £155.99 on techinthebasket.co.uk.
Amazon is selling a Ninja Air Fryer at a steep discount and beating other retailers’ deals
Is it worth waiting until Black Friday?
Prime Day has become an annual event, anticipated as much as the Black Friday sale in the last week of November.
While Amazon might offer some good deals in its October sale, Idealo’s data shows that there are some items that are worth waiting for.
These tend to be bigger, electronic items like TVs, which on average retailed for £,1036 in October 2022. This fell 8 per cent, or £86 to £950 in the Black Friday sale.
Similarly laptops which sold for £850 in October 2022 were on sale for £829 on Black Friday last year, while you could make a £23 saving on speakers if you held out another month.
However, there were some items that were worth snapping up on Prime Day, notably tablets which actually rose by nearly £13 between October and Black Friday.
You are likely to get a better deal on Amazon goods like Kindles and the Echo Dot speaker on their designated Prime Day, as these are unlikely to be discounted further ahead of Christmas.
Nick Baker, telecoms expert at Uswitch.com said: ‘Amazon’s ‘Big Deal Days’ provide a timely warm-up for the mass retail sales around Black Friday. Last year’s figures show how varied and huge Prime Day sales can be.
‘According to official Amazon stats, the online retailer sold 300,000 pairs of headphones, 200,000 TVs, 100,000 laptops, 650,000 cleaning products and over a million toys.
‘But with Black Friday just around the corner, some might be better holding out for another round of pre-Christmas discounts across a range of premium products.
‘With a monthly fee of £8.99 for a Prime subscription and occasional opportunities for lower prices through alternative retailers, you should explore your options and crunch the numbers to secure the most cost-effective deal.’
