WASHINGTON D.C., DC — While the holidays are about festive spirits, gatherings with family and friends and sharing goodwill, they have also become a bargain hunters paradise while shopping for the ones you love.
The personal finance website WalletHub is spreading cheer by breaking down Black Friday deals offered by 21 major U.S. retailers to give shoppers the most bang for their buck. WalletHub surveyed nearly 5,000 deals from 2021 Black Friday ad scans to identify stores offering the biggest discounts in various product categories such as “Appliances,” “Jewelry” and “Toys.”
Here is who provides the biggest average discount for holiday shoppers:
Best Black Friday Retailers (Avg. % Discount)
- Macy's (58.51%)
- JC Penney (57.63%)
- Belk (56.69%)
- Kohl's (49.32%)
- Office Depot and OfficeMax (42.85%)
- Lenovo (40.29%)
- Nordstrom (33.21%)
- Walmart (31.60%)
- HP (31.34%)
- Big Lots (29.19%)
Among WalletHub's notable findings and trends:
- Macy’s has the highest overall discount rate at 58.51%, whereas Ace Hardware has the lowest at 11.73%.
- The overall average discount for Black Friday is 32%. Consumers should aim for this discount amount or higher to avoid Black Friday traps.
- The “Apparel & Accessories” category has one of the biggest shares of discounted items, 18.40% of all offers, whereas the “Consumer Packaged Goods” category has the smallest at 3.47%.
Traditionally, Black Friday deal hunting has involved getting up early, standing in endless lines at stores and trying to find deals while battling hordes of other shoppers - all in the name of savings. WalletHub researchers say COVID changed that, with online Black Friday shoppers topping the 100 million mark for the first time ever. In-store shopping numbers reflect that, dropping 37%.
For more on the holiday shopping survey and which retailers offer the best buys in which categories, check out the full report on the WalletHub website.