The Black Friday 2026 countdown is on: Our top 7 hacks for finding the best deals

Tackle your holiday shopping like a pro this year. By Christina Buff Christina Buff is a Nashville-based freelance writer for who covers shopping with a splash of entertainment. If you’re ever wondering what streaming service you need to watch something (and the cheapest way to sign up for it), she’s your girl. Read Full Bio on November 4, 2026 Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Flipboard All products featured here are independently selected by our editors and writers. If you buy something through links on our site, Mashable may earn an affiliate commission. Prepare yourself for Black Friday shenanigans with these tips. Credit: Mashable Photo Composite Black Friday is no longer just a day; it's a season. While the day after Thanksgiving once marked the start of the holiday shopping schedule, it's now just the peak of a month-long deals extravaganza. Retailers kick things off as early as Halloween and keep the deals coming all the way through Cyber Monday. It's a lot.Going into the chaos of Black Friday without a game plan is risky — and a great way to end up with buyer's remorse. If you're unsure of what exactly you're looking for this season, you might want to take a glimpse at all of the major retailers' ad scans to get an idea of what's popular, what's getting discounted, and when the best time is to buy certain items. We recommend checking out our gift guides for inspiration as well. And while planning your Black Friday attack, be sure to set a budget to prevent overspending. Knowing what you're looking for is only the first step. Shopping like a well-oiled machine is where things get tough, but we've got you covered with our top hacks for securing the best deals on Black Friday 2026 (and beyond). With an overall hunger for savings amidst RAMageddon price increases, we're going to let you in on some of our secrets. Here are some of our best tips for shopping during Black Friday 2026.1. Utilize wishlists to track price dropsIt's easy to get click-happy when you see all of the sparkly discounts in front of you. Do yourself (and your budget) a favor and utilize the wishlist feature on each retailer's website you plan on shopping. Every product page has an "add to list" button, so you can start adding all of your must-have products into one central place well before the big day. Not only will this help keep you more organized and less click-happy, but it's also one of the easiest ways to track price drops on your top items and seamlessly scoop them up before they're gone. Amazon's wishlist feature is particularly clutch, as it lets you rank items based on priority, add notes, and compare the current price to when you added it to the list. 2. Download apps from Walmart, Target, Amazon, Best Buy, and moreWe all know millennials like to make big purchases on their desktops, but it's not a bad idea to download the mobile apps from major retailers for Black Friday — particularly Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Amazon. They'll be plastering their biggest deals across the screen, making things organized and easy to navigate even on a bumpy commute or at a loud relative's house. The apps will also give you access to exclusive app-only perks, like wishlist alerts, personalized suggestions, scan-and-go features, and more. The Amazon app will even show you deals on recent items you've searched. It's like it knows you too well.3. Verify a product's MSRP on the brand's websiteBefore you spend your hard-earned cash, make sure you aren't being duped into thinking a discount is better than it is. How? Cross-check the product listing with the actual manufacturer's website. If you can't find the exact product on the brand's website, you can also cross-check the price with competing retailers. We've seen product list prices fluctuate on Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, and Target, which can either make discounts appear better than they are or downplay how good a deal actually is. A good rule of thumb is to just verify it for yourself. This Anker Solix power station below is a great example. While Amazon lists the MSRP at $1,199, highlighting a 43 percent discount, a quick search on Anker's website shows the MSRP for the same power station is actually $999.99. While the sale price is the same on both websites, the discount isn't quite as good as it appears on first glance. Mashable Light Speed Left: Amazon's listing for the Anker Solix S2000 power station lists the MSRP as $1,199. Credit: Screenshot: Amazon Right: Credit: Screenshot: Anker 4. Check price-tracking tools like CamelCamelCamelWe'll let you in on a little secret. Our secret weapon during major sales (particularly at Amazon) is the free price-tracking tool CamelCamelCamel. The best tech deal this week The Apple iPhone 18 Pro is free right now with T-Mobile This genius tool lets you see the historical data on the sale prices for a particular item. At a glance, it gives you an idea of how good that deal is (or isn't). You just plug a product's Amazon listing into the search bar or use the Camelizer browser extension to get instant insight into the product's price history over the last weeks, months, or even years. Even if you're shopping elsewhere, you can get an idea of a product's price history before purchasing.Walmart offers a similar tool called Camelmart, if you prefer to shop there or want to compare prices. CamelCamelCamel's price history for the XM6 headphones shows they're currently at their best price ever. Credit: Screenshot: CamelCamelCamel 5. Check the shipper and seller on each productAmazon, Walmart, Target, and Best Buy are all home to thousands of third-party sellers, which can be both a gift and a curse. Many of these third-party sellers are perfectly legit; some are even operated directly from brands themselves. However, there are also some sellers with not-so-great reviews, which is why Mashable tries to recommend products shipped and sold directly from Amazon, Walmart, Target, or Best Buy whenever possible.For example, Samsung recently raised prices on its Galaxy S26 Ultra smartphones, but these phones are listed with discounts at Amazon. However, when you check the "Sold by" section, you'll see the seller is actually an entity called ReNew Pros (We Record Serial Numbers). Most shoppers probably don't even realize they're not buying directly from Amazon. This seller only has a 76% positive customer rating at Amazon, which is useful information if you're considering a purchase. Credit: Screenshot: Amazon You can check the shipper/seller on each product page, though the text can be easy to miss. On Amazon, look under the "Buy Now" button or search the page for the phrases "Ships from" or "Sold by" to see the actual seller. On Walmart, it lives under the shipping options, and on Best Buy, it lives directly under the product listing. Target will only list the shipper/seller if it's a third-party.6. Follow Mashable's shopping experts' Black Friday coverageMashable's Black Friday page is the hub for pretty much every Black Friday sale that matters, with links to all of our coverage, including spotlight deals broken down by retailer (Walmart, Amazon, Best Buy, Target, etc.), as well as by categories like TVs, robot vacuums, Amazon devices, or kitchen appliances. This will save you from wasting time skimming websites on your own and getting overwhelmed. If there's a great deal you need to know about, we've got you.We'll be updating these lists regularly before, during, and after the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shenanigans, so check back for all the latest and greatest deals that drop. Stores also love to throw in sneaky coupon codes or freebies. These can be easy to miss when you're in a hurry to order, so we'll let you know when we spot one.If you'd rather not be glued to the internet this season, you can also sign up for the Mashable Deals newsletter to stay in the loop via email or text. Mashable Deals By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. 7. Shopping on Amazon? Take advantage of Alexa's exclusive featuresIf you own a newer Echo smart speaker, you can take advantage of exclusive features. Open up your Alexa mobile app and turn on the advanced deal alerts feature (you'll find it under More > Settings > Notifications > Amazon Shopping), then check the Deal Recommendations and Shopping Recommendations. If you already have a wishlist organized and ready to go, you'll get a pop-up alert or a yellow ring light on your Echo speaker whenever Alexa finds out about an upcoming deal on one of the items on your list. Alexa will even let you know if an item on your wishlist is going on sale up to 24 hours before the sale goes live, so you can plan accordingly.Amazon has also put work into its Alexa for Shopping feature this past year, so don't be afraid to utilize it. The tool is available on the app, desktop website, and Echo Show devices and combines Amazon's AI assistant Rufus with Alexa+. It's like having a personalized AI co-pilot assisting you with any questions you may have during your shopping experience. You can ask it direct questions about product features, view up to a full year of price history for specific items, or even have it set alerts to notify you of discounts. Christina Buff is a Nashville-based freelance writer for who covers shopping with a splash of entertainment. If you’re ever wondering what streaming service you need to watch something (and the cheapest way to sign up for it), she’s your girl.Christina received a B.S. in Business Communication (concentration in writing) from Stevenson University and began her professional journey writing and editing press releases. Since then, she’s written content for a marketing agency, blogged for celebrities, and covered local news, politics, women’s lifestyle, fashion, beauty, and just about everything in between for various publications.When she’s not writing, she’s probably enjoying live music, studying human design, or embroidering and upcycling clothes. You can follow her on Instagram at @touchinfinity.