Amazon may have started Prime Day, but Walmart and most other online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores hold major sales at the same time. Walmart may not have caught up to Amazon’s online sales volume, but that’s not for lack of trying. Its multitude of physical stores also plays a major role in Walmart’s Prime Day campaign. If you’re planning to score awesome Prime Day deals this year, don’t overlook the sales at Walmart that may match and likely in some cases even beat Amazon’s Prime Day deals prices.
When Will Walmart Prime Day Sales Happen?
In past years we’ve seen Walmart try to match or eclipse Amazon’s Prime Day events. We now know that the official Amazon Prime Day will be held on June 21 and June 22, with preliminary sales starting June 2 and June 7, respectively. So this year Amazon extended the sale by scheduling early sales on select products and by focusing on particular types of resellers, leading up to the major sale when more than 2 million products will be on sale worldwide, according to Amazon.
Walmart won’t be able to start its Prime Day sale (whatever they’ll call it) earlier than Amazon, but that doesn’t mean anyone can expect Walmart to just roll over. We fully expect Walmart will announce something about its big summer sale by the end of this week, so by June 4. We’ll update with that info when we get it.
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It’s slightly amusing to watch major retailers attempt to out-position their competitors for Prime Day. They do the same thing around Black Friday, which officially falls the day after Thanksgiving. In recent years we’ve seen many merchants begin their Black Friday sales in mid-November. However, the main event always has the best sales on the greatest number of products.
Whether or not you follow the details of who promotes their Prime Day deals first, the most significant sales will still happen on Prime Day itself. So, for Amazon, we now know that Prime Day 2021 is on June 21 and 22. You can take it to the bank that Walmart and other participating retailers will also run their best sales on the same two days.
What to Expect From Walmart Prime Day Sales?
Walmart isn’t likely to change their merchandise offerings just for Prime Day, so we can look at how Walmart’s product selection differs from Amazon to understand how the two merchant’s sales will differ. Neither Amazon nor Walmart sells everything to consumers. Amazon sells a much wider range of products than Walmart overall. Walmart’s greater focus on home essentials, furniture, and TVs is the everyday difference between the two mega-retailers and that will be the same during Prime Day.
If you have been waiting for Prime Day to buy a new 4K TV, for example, check Walmart first. Walmart sells a much greater selection of TVs than Amazon and regularly beats Amazon in sales prices. Amazon will have a select number of unbeatable 4K TV prices, such as for Fire TVs — Fire TV is an Amazon brand. Walmart’s 4K TV selection will be much broader than Amazon’s, however, so if you’ve already decided on a specific brand, size, and model, your chances of finding it available and on sale at Walmart are better than any other merchant. So price check the Walmart deals against Amazon, Target, and especially Best Buy (the second best source for 4K TV deals), but start with Walmart.
Home goods. Amazon will likely outprice and have a wider selection than Walmart on Instant Pots during Prime Day, but Walmart will focus on just a few models with killer prices. It’s the same with other small kitchen appliances: During Prime Day Amazon will have wider selections of air fryers, coffee makers, toaster ovens, and so forth, but Walmart will have a tight selection of the most popular models at rock bottom prices.
On the other hand, neither Walmart nor Amazon are good places to find deals on major appliances like refrigerators, stoves, dishwashers, or laundry sets. If you plan to shop for those appliances, check Best Buy, Home Depot, and Lowe’s.
Fun fact: Walmart sells more bananas than anyone else in the world. We don’t, however, expect Walmart Prime Day deals on bananas.
Should I Buy from Walmart During Prime Day?
You absolutely should buy from Walmart during Prime Day. That is, if you know what you want, approach the sales event with a shopping strategy, and stick to a budget. Prime Day is a big deal across participating merchants — regardless of what they call the sale — and Prime Day excitement and promotion can give the impression that everything on sale is an astounding value and an amazing deal. That’s not the case.
Be careful when you buy Prime Day deals, not only to price check with other retailers but also to find out about the specific products. Walmart, like all other electronics retailers, for example, sells new 4K TVs that may be from earlier model years. There’s nothing wrong with buying a four-year-old TV if it meets your needs and the price is right (I did just that two years ago. I knew it going in, I got a great deal, and I’ve been happy ever since.) If you don’t check and assume that your new (older) TV will match specs with this year’s models, you could be disappointed. Caveat emptor, indeed.
So don’t hesitate to buy from Walmart during Prime Day, especially if you’re shopping for 4K TVs, other entertainment electronics, smartphones and cellular service deals, and home essentials. Just be sure you know what you’re buying.
