What Is Amazon Prime Day? 7 Tips to Find the Best Deals

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• Amazon Prime Day is a 48-hour deal event that offers discounts on thousands of products.  
• Amazon had two Prime Day 2022 sales — one in July and then the Prime Early Access Sale in October. 
• We’ll keep you posted with updates about when Amazon Prime Day 2023 is expected to occur. 

Amazon Prime Day is one of the best times of year to shop for deals and find savings on thousands of products from the e-commerce giant. 

You’ll need to be signed up as a Prime member to access the Prime Day sales, which typically include discounts on Amazon devices like the Echo Dot, in addition to common categories like tech, home, kitchen, fashion, beauty, and more. 

Here’s everything you need to know about Amazon Prime Day and how to find the best deals for you. 

Related: See Insider’s picks for the best credit cards to use on Amazon purchases.

When is Amazon Prime Day? 

Amazon’s second Prime Day event of 2022, called the Prime Early Access Sale, ran from October 11 to 12. The first Prime Day of 2022 took place on July 12 to 13. It was the first time Amazon had two Prime Day sales in one year. 

Prime Day usually runs for 48 hours on two consecutive weekdays, like Tuesday and Wednesday. Check back here for updates on when Prime Day 2023 will occur. 

History of Prime Day dates

What once started as a small event to celebrate Prime members has grown into a full-scale shopping holiday. Here’s a complete rundown of the history of Prime Day dates: 

Is Prime Day only for Prime members?

Amazon’s Prime Day deal events are exclusive to Amazon Prime members. In addition to access to Prime Day, Prime membership includes tons of other perks, most notably free two-day shipping and free access to streaming services like Prime Video, Prime Music, and more. 

While Amazon Prime costs $15 a month or $139 a year, there is a free 30-day trial for new subscribers. The trial grants you access to the sale — just remember to cancel your membership after the event if you don’t anticipate using your Prime membership often enough to make the annual fee worth it.

For non-members, there are many competing sales from other retailers to consider. Major retailers like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy offer their own deals during Prime Day. Though these sales aren’t as splashy, they deliver similarly low prices on tech and home goods and don’t require a Prime subscription.

Is Prime Day worth it?

During the two-day event, thousands of products are put on sale, and not all of them will pique your interest. Given the number of deals — many of which go up and sell out in an hour or even minutes — the sale can get overwhelming pretty quickly.

Prices for Amazon devices like Kindles, Fire TVs, and Echo devices are typically the lowest on Prime Day. Beyond that, you’ll find deals across categories like household essentials, beauty products, electronics, and more. 

All that said, whether or not Prime Day is worth your time ultimately depends on what you’re shopping for. There are plenty of deals worth exploring, and the tips below will help you find them.

How are Prime Day deals organized? 

Amazon runs several different types of deals that run for varying lengths of time. You’ll only score the discount when you place an order while the deal is live during the event.

Prime Day deals are typically broken up into two types:

• Deals of the Day: These deals last 24 hours only. They typically feature Amazon’s best-selling products. This means many deals on the first day of the sale may not be available on the second day. 
• Lightning Deals: These flash deals are run on specific items and are offered for a short period of time. They usually last for a few hours, or until the item sells out. New Lightning Deals pop up as frequently as every five minutes. 

Are Prime Day deals the same on both days?

Over the 48-hour event, Amazon releases thousands of sales. There are some deals that span both days, but some deals sell out quickly. If you shopped on the first day of Prime Day, you can expect a whole new set of fresh deals on the second day. 

Can you return Prime Day deals?

Yes, you can return Prime Day deals. Amazon’s return policy for items bought during Prime Day is the same as it is any day of the year. The majority of items, including Amazon devices, can be returned in 30 days. However, there are some items you can’t return, including grocery products and gift cards — so be sure to read the fine print. 

7 tips for getting the best deals on Prime Day

Make no mistake: Amazon Prime Day is a big shopping holiday. And if you want to set yourself up for success, there are a few tips to keep in mind. 

1. Prepare a wish list

Between the big-ticket sales and limited-time Lightning Deals, Prime Day is chock-full of impulse buys. It’s smart to go into Prime Day with at least some idea of what you want to buy (and save on). 

For making a shopping list, we like Amazon’s Wish List feature. You can add all the items you’re interested in, and keep track of what you actually want. As an added bonus, you can set up Alexa or the Amazon mobile app to alert you when a deal goes live for any of the items on your list. 

2. Price-check everything

One of the most common Prime Day questions is “how do I know if I’m getting a good deal?” The answer is only if you research the product’s price history. 

For understanding the real value of any deal, we recommend using the free tool CamelCamelCamel, which allows you to track the price history of everything on Amazon. We’re also big fans of Keepa, which has a browser extension that actually offers a price history chart directly on each Amazon product page. 

3. Take advantage of the Amazon mobile app

Amazon’s mobile app is a great way to keep track of items and set up notifications. The app can send you a push notification 5 minutes before the deals start, which is especially useful if you’ve set up a wish list (see above). 

4. Get deal notifications from Alexa

A new feature in 2022, Alexa can now alert you to deals and, even make the purchase for you. The smart voice assistant can now alert you when eligible products in your Wish List or shopping cart are on sale. Here’s how to set up Alexa to give you deal notifications. 

Once enabled, you’ll see a yellow ring light or a pop-up notification on your Echo device. From there, you can ask Alexa for more details or order the item for yourself. 

5. Get free Amazon credits and subscriptions

Before and during the Prime Early Access Sale, Amazon offered a few ways to get free credits or subscriptions. Here were all the ways to take advantage of free credits and trials during the Prime Early Access Sale:

6. Compare prices with other retailers

For non-members, there are many competing sales from other retailers to consider. Major retailers like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy offer their own deals during Prime Day. Though these sales aren’t as splashy, they deliver similarly low prices on tech and home goods and don’t require a Prime subscription.

7. Bookmark Insider Reviews’ Prime Day coverage

The Insider Reviews team works around the clock to help you find the best deals. During the Prime Early Access Sale, we featured up-to-the-minute coverage on the best Prime Early Access Sale deals and the best deals under $50.