Amazon Prime Day 2020: These are the 9 hottest anticipated deals, according to shopping experts
Yahoo Life is committed to finding you the best products at the best prices. We may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page. Pricing and availability are subject to change.
It’s official: Amazon Prime Day 2020 will kick off on Tuesday, October 13 at midnight—and the deals will be coming at us fast and furious for two days straight. Last year’s Prime Day saw 175 million products sold and $7.16 billion in sales globally in just 48 hours, according to Digital Commerce 360.
“Amazon Prime Day is expected to be the number one shopping day in Q4, with 67 percent of people [polled] planning to make a purchase during the savings event this year,” Sara Skirboll, Shopping and Trends Editor of RetailMeNot, tells Yahoo Life.
Skirboll predicts Prime Day will even overshadow Cyber Monday and Black Friday—and since Prime Day usually takes place in July but was pushed to October this year, Amazon is expected to pull out all the stops to crush the holiday competition with unreal deals.
“The good news with Prime Day is that it's going to serve as a sort of kickoff for the holiday shopping season,” Julie Ramhold, Consumer Analyst with DealNews.com, tells Yahoo Life.
The not-so-good news? Narrowing down your purchases from such a tempting selection is going to take some serious self-control. Prime Day strategy is a real thing, people! So, before your shopping cart runneth over, read on.
We asked Skirboll and Ramhold for their best Prime Day 2020 predictions—and the smartest scores they suggest for shoppers. Which deals typically offer the most bang for your buck? What’s expected to sell out the quickest? And are there any items you’d be a fool to pass up?
Here are the Prime Day goodies on their don’t-miss lists.
Previous-generation Amazon devices
“Prime Day historically brings the deepest discounts on electronics, especially Amazon’s own line of products like the Amazon Kindle, Fire TV and Fire tablets, and Echo. In fact, electronics remain the most popular item to shop for on Prime Day,” says Skirboll, adding that about 70 percent of consumers plan to snap them up this year. So, expect to see some electrifying Amazon device deals on Prime Day.
“Amazon just announced its fourth generation of the Echo and Echo Dot, but those won't be released until late October and early November,” Ramhold says. “We expect to see them trying to clear out inventory of the third generation versions. Already we've seen two [third-generation Echo] Dots for $40 as an exclusive Early Prime Day deal. We expect to see more deals on Prime Day, and there's a small chance we could see a special offer for Prime members wanting to pre-order the fourth generation Echo or Echo Dot, but I wouldn't bank on it.”
Fire TV and Fire Tablets
We’re expecting deep discounts on Fire TVs and Fire tablets for Prime Day 2020. “If you're in the market for a Fire tablet, Prime Day is the day to strike while the iron is hot. “Last year, a two-pack of the 9th generation Fire 7-inch tablets was $50—and $25 for a basic tablet is hard to beat,” says Ramhold.
Previous-generation smartphones
If you’re craving a new smartphone but don’t feel the need to have the latest version, Prime Day is your big opportunity. “You won't be finding deals on the latest iPhone—if the iPhone 12 has even been announced by then—but you could find solid deals on the iPhone 11 line, Samsung Galaxy S10 line and more,” says Ramhold. “Discounts will be even higher—up to 40 percent—but those could be more mid-tier devices than flagship-level handsets.”
Last year, for Prime Day 2019, Google Pixel phones were almost half price, Samsung Galaxy phones were slashed by $300, and discounts of up to $495 were available on iPhones. So if history is any indication, Ramhold’s prediction will be spot-on.
Kitchen items
“The home and garden category accounts for 40 percent of the deals we'll see on Prime Day, and kitchen items will make up a decent amount of those,” says Ramhold. “For instance, last year we saw items like a Dash Deluxe Rapid Egg Cooker for $18, a 45-piece flatware set for $21 and 100 plastic cups for $5.”
One of the biggest stars of Prime Days past has been the Instant Pot, and we’re expecting massive deals on those popular multi-cookers once again for Prime Day 2020. “There are usually a variety of sizes on offer, but we tend to see prices as low as $40 to $50 depending on the model,” Ramhold adds. “We're expecting more of these promotions this year, even though Prime Day is later than normal.”
Amazon Basics clothing and housewares
“While shoppers focus mostly on home devices, goods and appliances, there have historically been deals across beauty and fashion categories as well. Shoppers can likely look forward to savings on fashion for the whole family,” says Skirboll.
AmazonBasics is an in-house Amazon fashion brand that offers affordable, well-made clothes for women, men and children—and Ramhold expects major Prime Day deals on this label. “We're expecting a 30 percent discount for this line,” she says, adding: “AmazonBasics also includes things like sheet sets, office supplies, silicone baking mats, backpacks—and that's just barely touching the surface.”
Cleaning supplies
Disinfectant wipes, hand sanitizers and other germ- and virus-fighting supplies have been in hot demand all year, and experts expect Prime Day 2020 to offer discounts on these cleaning supplies in anticipation of the demand—but you’ll probably have to wake up early in the morning to make sure there’s enough supply to meet your order.
“Due to the pandemic and consumers remaining cautious of another shelter-in-place order, shoppers will be looking for Covid-related items such as cleaning supplies,” says Skirboll. In fact, 25 percent of those polled by RetailMeNot said they would be looking to save on these specifically.
That being said, the opposite could turn out to be true. Skirboll says Amazon might not discount these supplies as heavily as we hope “if the fulfillment centers are unable to meet the demand Prime Day could bring.”
Protective clothing and gear
According to RetailMeNot’s poll of Prime Day shoppers, protective clothing and gear also top the list of coveted items—17 percent of those surveyed expressed interest—so Amazon could come through with some pretty great deals on face masks, face shields, latex gloves and other Covid-related wearables.
If you don’t have the time to watch these deals like a hawk, though, Ramhold suggests downloading the Amazon mobile app. “Mark any deals you're interested in as ‘watching’ so that you'll receive a notification when they're about to go live,” she suggests. “This is my personal favorite way to do it, even if I look through the upcoming deals on my computer. With notifications coming to my phone, I won't be tethered to my computer on Prime Day.”
Home office supplies
Working from home has become the new reality of many Americans, so sales of home office gear have spiked this year. It’s likely Amazon will introduce home office deals to match this trending consumer behavior, say experts.
In fact, according to RetailMeNot’s survey, 18 percent of those polled were interested in home office supplies. But, “since the start of the pandemic, there has been a higher demand, hence a shortage, on a number of products as shoppers shifted to staying at home,” Skirboll notes. So if you find these deals, don’t hesitate to grab them as quickly as possible.
At-home fitness gear
Much like the closing of offices, the shutdown of gyms has renewed interest in home workouts for fitness-minded Americans. About 16 percent of those polled by RetailMeNot said they would grab Prime Day deals on home workout gear in a heartbeat. But the same supply versus demand for work-from-home and cleaning products holds true here, too, so only time will tell whether at-home fitness equipment will be a Prime Day 2020 standout.
If these deals do present themselves, they’ll certainly be some of the most desired—so start exercising your clicking finger from now to take advantage. And if they happen to be one of Amazon’s short-lived Lightning Deals—deals that last only a few hours during Prime Day—and you happen to miss it, don’t despair. Instead, “see if you can join the waitlist for the item,” Ramhold suggests. Often shoppers will throw items into their carts and then decide they don’t want them at checkout after all.
Read more from Yahoo Life:
Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.
Want daily pop culture news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Entertainment & Life's newsletter.
