The Great Holiday Debate: Uncovering The Best Deals Before And After Christmas

The holiday season is a great time for shopping, with many deals to be found. While Black Friday and Cyber Monday are well-known for their bargains, there are also plenty of deals to be found before and after Christmas. In fact, some sources claim that the sales and clearance deals right after Christmas might be even better. So, if you don't mind waiting until after the holidays to do your shopping, you can find some excellent deals.

After-Christmas sales are a great opportunity to stock up on holiday decor, wrapping paper, and gifts for the following year, as retailers try to clear their inventory. You can also find discounts on clothing, electronics, home goods, and more. However, it's important to note that the selection may dwindle over time, so if you wait too long, you might miss out on certain items.

Planning and making a list are crucial to maximising your savings during after-Christmas sales. Knowing what you want to buy and when the sales start can help you take advantage of the best deals.

Holiday decorations

The best time to shop for holiday decorations is right after the holidays, with some stores offering discounts of up to 90% off. Stores like Home Depot, Target, and Walmart are known for their impressive clearance sales, with prices dropping even lower as time goes on. However, the selection may be smaller, so there's a trade-off between deeper discounts and a wider range of choices.

If you're looking to buy holiday decorations at a discount, it's best to shop in physical stores rather than online, as retailers may have trouble selling their discounted items online due to low inventories.

• Big Lots: 50% off all seasonal items, including lights, ornaments, trees, and wrapping paper.
• Crate & Barrel: Up to 60% off on seasonal merchandise, with deeper discounts on Christmas-specific items.
• Home Depot: 75% or more off ornaments, wreaths, Christmas trees, and other decorations, with many items available for online purchase and store pickup.
• Sears: Up to 70% off artificial trees, holiday lights, indoor and outdoor decorations, with free shipping on many items.
• Target: 50% or more off holiday costumes, ornaments, and decorations.
• Walmart: A wide range of Christmas clearance deals, such as discounted tree toppers and other festive items.
• Yankee Candle: 50% or 75% off seasonal items, with bigger discounts on Christmas-themed goods.

Clothing and outerwear

If you're looking to buy clothing and outerwear, you may be wondering if it's better to shop before or after Christmas. Here are some things to consider:

Before Christmas

The lead-up to Christmas is a popular time for shopping, with many retailers offering sales and promotions to attract customers. This includes major shopping events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, which can offer great deals on clothing and outerwear. If you're looking to buy gifts for others or treat yourself, this can be a good time to find discounts.

After Christmas

On the other hand, waiting until after Christmas to buy clothing and outerwear can also have its benefits. Many retailers hold after-Christmas sales to clear out excess inventory, and this includes winter clothing. Retailers start stocking spring styles as early as February, so they will begin marking down cold-weather items in the new year. This shift in inventory means you can often find deals of up to 60% off on items like jackets, sweaters, boots, and scarves. Additionally, the period after Christmas is when you'll find the biggest discounts on holiday-themed clothing, such as ugly Christmas sweaters.

So, when is the best time to buy clothing and outerwear? It depends on your specific needs. If you want to take advantage of the biggest sales events and have a wider selection to choose from, shopping before Christmas might be preferable. However, if you're looking for discounts on winter clothing specifically and don't mind a smaller selection, waiting until after Christmas could be the better option.

Fitness gear

If you're looking to buy fitness gear, it's worth waiting until after Christmas to make the most of the sales.

Many people make New Year's resolutions to get in shape, and retailers capitalise on this by offering discounts on fitness gear in January. Stores such as Sears, Sports Authority, and Dick's Sporting Goods start offering incentives and coupons from 26 December onwards, and these deals tend to run through the New Year.

You can find deals on both small- and large-scale equipment, such as kettlebells, pull-up bars, running shoes, sports bras, workout headphones, water bottles, treadmills, ellipticals, and stationary bikes.

If you can wait a little longer, you might find even better deals on second-hand items. Many people buy fitness equipment with the best of intentions, only to lose momentum and try to offload it a few months later. You can often find "almost-new" fitness equipment at a fraction of the price on sites like Craigslist or at garage sales.

If you're in the US, you may also find that prices drop even further in February, as about 80% of Americans will have ditched their New Year's resolutions by then.

Electronics

In the past, the best day of the year to score deals on electronics typically fell on 27 December. However, retailers are not expected to have a lot of excess inventory this year. So, while there will still be deals, the selection may be more limited.

If you can't wait until after Christmas, there are still some pre-Christmas discounts to be found. In the month before Christmas, you can find discounts of 10% to 20% on electronics. The best pre-Christmas discounts are usually found during the traditional price-slashing window between Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

For the greatest savings, it's worth waiting until the "Cyber Five" period – the five days between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday. Cyber Monday itself is expected to have the best deals on electronics this year. For TVs, look out for discounts on Black Friday, while computers are likely to be cheapest on the Saturday after.

Gift sets

If you're looking to buy gift sets, it's better to wait until after Christmas.

Retailers start transitioning holiday stock to the clearance aisles on 26 December, so right after Christmas is a great time to start preparing gifts for next year. You'll find discounts on cosmetics, fragrances, and other small pre-packaged gifts like makeup sets, bath sets, and hot chocolate kits.

In the days after Christmas, you can grab these gift sets for up to 50% off at retailers like Sephora, Ulta, and Macy's. Amazon also tends to have unexpected discounts and, during its 2023 after-Christmas sales, offered up to 50% off on select beauty and self-care items.

If you can wait a little longer, you might find even better deals. In the first week of January, retailers will be desperate to get rid of whatever holiday items are left in stock, so you could find discounts of up to 90%.

So, if you can wait until after Christmas, you'll almost certainly find some great deals on gift sets.

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