I began working at the Strategist in early September 2022, just a few weeks before Amazon’s first-ever October Prime Day — or, as it was called during its initial year, “Prime Early Access Sale.” Having never covered Prime Day to the extent that the Strategist team does, it was certainly a challenge, but it helped that Amazon had never held this particular event before. We were both newbies. Now that I have two October Prime Days and two regular Prime Days under my belt (not to mention the thousands of hours I’ve spent scrolling Amazon’s deals page both at the Strategist and in my former role as the shop editor at Dwell), I feel pretty confident in saying I know how to get the most out of shopping the sale.

To help you better navigate the sale this year, I’ve wracked my deals-obsessed brain and have come up with a list of tips, including which categories have the best deals, which you can safely skip, which deals tend to sell out fastest, and more.

Yes, I’ve written a guide on the best early October Prime Day deals to shop, but they’ve been very carefully selected based on my experience covering these sales. Amazon always discounts some of its in-house tech before the sale begins, and the deals don’t get better once Prime Day begins. Other brands are trickier, because sometimes the discount will get deeper once the sale begins. If I haven’t featured it in my roundup, it’s probably safest to wait.

Amazon’s tablets are especially good early deals this year. I haven’t seen them over 50 percent off in a long time.

I anticipate other TVs will go on sale soon, too, but this is a really good deal if you just want something under $200.

The main difference between the two is October Prime Day is billed as a kickoff to the holiday shopping season (July is just a big summer sale). That means you’ll find a lot of gift-y items, especially toys, in the upcoming sale. Beyond that, it’s a lot of the same deals on the same products. So before the sale starts, I suggest taking a look at our past Prime Day coverage and seeing what catches your eye. About 80 to 90 percent of those products will also be on sale next week, and at a similar, if not identical, discount.

In general, Prime Day is a good time to get more expensive products in any category, but especially in the kitchen category. You’ll find the best deals of the year on things like blenders and coffee machines — including some of the best deals you’ll ever see on Vitamixes.

During July’s Prime Day, our favorite fancy coffee maker was over 30 percent off, the lowest price we’d seen all year. Hopefully it’ll be back on sale again this time around.

… Especially if you’re in the market for something from Amazon’s in-house brands. I waited for months to buy my Kindle last October Prime Day, when I knew it would be on sale — and it was even more discounted than I expected it to be. Apple products are always discounted, too, including headphones, AirTags, and watches, all typically for better prices than you’ll normally find. And since the theme of “Prime Big Deal Days” (the sale’s official name) is holiday shopping, you’ll find plenty of giftable items in the tech category, like speakers and gaming consoles.

The Backbone One was its lowest price ever last Prime Day.

Another heavy hitter: My beloved Bose headphones were under $200 for the first time.

We always see dozens of vacuums on sale during Prime Day from some of our favorite brands, like Dyson and Shark. Our tech writer was particularly excited by all the robot vacuums on sale in July, and I’m predicting that those will be discounted again this October.

Our best overall robot vacuum, the Roomba j7+, was half off in July, which was its lowest price ever according to our tech writer.

The Prime Day fashion deals can be really good, but there’s a lot of junk you have to wade through to find them. I suggest checking out Shopbop’s storefront, where you can find a variety of designer and designer-adjacent apparel that has a good amount of stock (with no junk in the mix).

But no matter where you’re finding the fashion deals, be aware that the discount will vary by size and color. Oftentimes, a shirt is half off in one color and full price in another, or a pair of shoes is $50 off in size 8 but only $30 off in size 9. I have absolutely no idea why, but it’s something to note.

If there’s one thing in the fashion section you can trust to be on sale, it’s Levi’s jeans (and shorts and jean jackets). They go on sale every Prime Day, the deals are much better than what you’ll ever find on the retailer’s website, there’s often good size availability, and there are several washes to choose from.

Our best-in-class pair, the straight-leg Wedgie jean, was over 60 percent off in July, making them just $30.

I’m partial to the Ribcage jean myself, which I purchased last year while it was 40 percent off.

By far the widest range of deals will be in the beauty category. It’s the main category I shop from since there’s so much to choose from. The “premium” beauty category is especially good with fairly steep discounts on pricier beauty items. However, some premium items sell out in the first day, so you’ll want to be fast. I’d recommend adding items you hope will go on sale to your cart in advance so you’re ready to hit “purchase” early on day one.

Malin + Goetz discounted all its (normally quite pricey) products by 20 percent in July, which is not a bad deal for the brand.

Our best overall sunscreen goes on sale a few times per year, and you can be confident that it will probably be on sale for Prime Day, so it’s a good time to restock.

Of course, you don’t have to shell out for expensive skin-care products if you don’t want to. A lot of our best sellers last year were everyday beauty buys like face wash and micellar water. The prices don’t typically change on these items from day one, so don’t wait till later in the sale for a better deal. It’s not coming.

This snail mucin serum has been a Prime Day best seller for the last two years. It was much cheaper than we expected in July — just $10!

It’s not a bad idea to stock up on the basics, like our favorite face wash for oily skin.

There are always toothpastes, trash bags, toilet paper, hand soap, and a host of other household essentials on sale for Prime Day. The discounts are often quite good — in July, you could get 110 Glad trash bags for $17 (and many of our readers did!) — but even when they’re just 20 or 25 percent off, you’re still saving on something you already need and use. Definitely don’t miss the chance to stock up on teeth-whitening strips. They’re always the cheapest they get all year during Prime Day, and they’re consistently a top-purchased item by our readers.

The aforementioned trash bags, which were one of the most-purchased items among Strategist readers during July Prime Day.

Crest’s 3D Whitestrips are always in our top-ten best-selling products each Prime Day. They’re usually 35 percent off, which is the deepest discount you’ll get all year.

Let me start by saying this: You should never pay full price for an electric toothbrush or water flosser. They go on sale all the time. The question is
“When do they go on sale for the best price?” and the answer is Prime Day. I can reliably find a couple of our best electric toothbrushes on sale every Prime Day, and I usually find our favorite water flosser (in multiple sizes) marked way down too — both for lower-than-average prices.

Plenty of electric toothbrushes go on sale, but we suggest sticking to tried-and-true brands like Philips or Oral-B.

Our best-in-class water flosser will most likely be on sale again in October, as it was in July.

Sure, you can occasionally find a decent rug or futon if you search hard enough, but for the most part, the Prime Day furniture and décor deals are lacking. Luckily, if you’re after less aesthetic items, like air purifiers, mattresses, office chairs, and organization items, there’s often quite a lot to be found. Just be sure to pay attention to brands here. I don’t recommend buying an office chair from a brand whose name is a random combination of letters and numbers, but if you find one from a reputable brand, like Branch or Modway (both of which we’ve reviewed in our story on the best ergonomic office chairs), go for it.

The air purifier that several Strategist staffers (myself included) swear by was 32 percent off in July.

Amazon loves to inflate listing prices to make things seem like a far better deal than they are. Sure, that hand soap marked down to $3 from $7 seems like a good deal, but if you check Target, you’ll see that its regular price is $4. So when in doubt, Google the product to see what other retailers are charging and make sure you’re getting the best deal. Stay vigilant, folks.

Obviously, we all want the very best deal, which often means waiting to see if prices drop even further on the second day of the sale. Having covered four Prime Days already, I can tell you that it’s pretty rare a deal gets better on day two. Last year, Laneige’s brandwide discount increased from 20 to 30 percent off the second day of the sale, and Bissell’s popular steam cleaner got a few dollars cheaper, too. But those are the outliers. Generally speaking, it’s more likely a product will sell out before it gets cheaper — especially if it’s a big-ticket item like a Vitamix.

So my recommendation: If you really want something, buy it on day one before it sells out. If you’re willing to gamble, you can hold out till the morning of day two to see if the deal gets better (and hope the product is still available).

During July Prime Day, Laneige’s cult-y lip balm was even cheaper than the year before, and the sale price dropped a couple extra dollars on the second day of the sale.

In July, Vitamixes, which are always a popular buy, were totally sold out before day two of Prime Day even started.

The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.