5 Tips to Score the Best Deals on Amazon Prime Day!

Is Amazon your favorite store? Is Amazon a verb in your house? This year Amazon Prime Day will last four days, Tuesday July 11th & thru Friday July 11th! Some deals are starting early! For these four days, Amazon is marking down tons of hot items, but only for Prime Members! It’s Black Friday pricing, and other retailers are following along.

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Prime Day is one of the reasons why having a great budget set up, where you set aside an amount from each paycheck to use toward holiday and Birthday gifts is really nice.  I’ve already got half of my Christmas Budget funded, so I can pounce on any deals I’ve got on my list right now with the cash I have on hand.  No waiting until the last minute for me!  If you’d like to be like me next year and use Amazon Prime Day for your Holiday Shopping, check out my post on How a YNAB Budget Changed Our Lives Forever.

In years past, I felt like there were lots of items that were priced lower on Amazon Prime Day than Black Friday.  For real.  And the best ones sold out in less than 5 minutes.  Also for real.

So how can you snag the best deals for Amazon Prime Day?  Two words, Be Prepared!

I’m going to give you some tips on how to get prepared for Amazon Prime Day so you don’t miss out!

Step 1: Become an Amazon Prime Member

You can’t get the good deals if you’re not a Prime Member. No worries! You can sign up for a 30 Day FREE Trial of Amazon Prime. We’ve been Prime members for many years now, and it was something I really struggled with making a decision on for about a year. I didn’t really like paying for something that would save me money. In the end, it’s been totally worth it. I don’t buy everything on Amazon, but I do buy enough that the Free Shipping is worth it. Also, you get nice perks like streaming movies, music, digital photo storage, and lots of discounts & special offers. There is a ton of value, and the 1 day shipping has really come in handy quite a few times.

Like my Christmas Budget, I budget for my Prime Subscription in my YNAB budget.  Currently, Prime is $139/year plus tax.  We get 24 paychecks per year, so each time we get paid, I put aside $6.27 in my Subscription Category.  When the Prime Membership renewal charge comes through, I already have the cash reserved to pay for it.

I would suggest starting your free trial now so that you don’t have to worry about it when the Prime Day Deals start.  You don’t want to waste time signing up for Prime when the deals are live, because that TV on your list for the great price will be gone when you’re done. Plus, early deals and new, member-only offerings start before Prime Day!

Step 2: Make a List

The Wish List feature in my Amazon account helps me stay organized.  I never actually send it to anyone (although I guess I could), I just use it to keep track of things I want to buy for people, or my house, or me!  When you add items to your wishlist, Amazon keeps track of the price it was when you added it.  If the price drops, you’ll see the % decrease right there on your wish list!

I keep a separate Amazon Wish List for each person on my gift list. I also have a Stacy’s Savings Storefront on Amazon where I have Idea Lists that include all of my favorite things! This makes shopping a breeze! Whenever a big sale like Amazon Prime Day or Black Friday come around, I can easily check my list to see if anything on there is part of the sale.

Step 3: Know What Categories Are Included

The individual items change each year, but the categories that go on sale are fairly consistent. You can definitely count on Amazon Devices having a good discount. One of the better deals in the past has been the Echo devices. I love listening to my favorite radio station without static on my Echo, as well as Spotify Playlists, podcasts & Christmas Music. My kids like it for jokes and homework checks. A few years ago, I ordered 4 additional Echo Dots for around the house.

You can also find awesome deals on TVs (the coveted Frame TV?), Electronics, Small Appliances, Tools, Toys, Clothing, Beauty, Home Decor and more! This is a great time to shop for Christmas gifts, birthday gifts, wedding gifts, or even stocking a dorm room!

Step 4: Earn FREE Amazon Gift Cards!

One of the ways I save money for Amazon Prime Day is with Free Amazon Gift cards!  Swagbucks has all kinds of easy ways to earn points which I then redeem for FREE Amazon Gift Cards.  It’s usually good for $25-50 a month, depending on how much time I have.  I’ve been using this site for almost 8 years now, and these gift cards to supplement my holiday budget.

You can do all kinds of things on Swagbucks to earn points for Gift Cards!  Some of my favorites are searching, surveys and special offers.  I always try to complete the Daily To Do List.  That’s usually enough to get me a Free $25 Gift Card per month, with a little left over.  If you start now, think about all of the FREE Amazon Gift Cards you’ll have saved up for Prime Day next year!

Sign up with my link and get $3 Free to start!  Also, check out the other sites I use to earn FREE gift cards and cash everyday!

Step 5: Comparison Shop!

Amazon Prime Day has become such a big deal, that their competitors are taking note.  Last year, Target held a HUGE Black Friday in July Sale, and Walmart cut prices on tons of items.  Sometimes it pays to shop around!

You can also check CamelCamelCamel.com to see if the price on Amazon is its lowest price.  I use this website anytime I’m shopping on Amazon to make sure I’m getting the best price.  If its not the lowest price, I can set up a tracker to email me when the price falls below a certain amount. It’s a really great way to save some cash!

Step 5: Be Ready!

When Amazon Prime Day starts, you have to be ready to go!  Make sure to check out Amazon’s Prime Day Page.  They post all of the deals there & when they go live. These Lightning Deals are very limited time only, and also limited to the quantity on hand.  Some sell out in minutes.

Here’s an image to pin for next year, because you know you’re going to need it!

With these steps, you should be more than prepared to tackle Amazon Prime Day! What things are on your Prime Day List?  Please tell us in the comments. Maybe I need to add them to my list!

Follow me on Instagram to find out what I get on Prime Day!