9 Surprising Things You'll Find on Sale During Black Friday

Who cares about laptops and TVs when you can get wine and hard drives?

Published November 3, 2017

BY:
JEFF SOMOGYI

Contributing Writer

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It's a easy to say that the biggest categories for Black Friday deals will be TVs, laptops, and clothing.

But because everything goes on sale for Black Friday, you can use this time to stock up on almost any item. From wine to flash drives, here are nine unexpected things on sale during Black Friday.

Apple Products

This won't be shocking for devout DealNews readers, but many people are still surprised you can get a deal on an Apple product during the Black Friday season. In fact, we'll likely see up to $150 off iPads, up to $450 off Retina MacBooks, and several iPhone deals this year.

You'll just need to shop at resellers to get those deals. (Think Target, Best Buy, and phone carriers such as Verizon.) Apple devices tend to carry the same doorbuster appeal as ridiculously cheap big-screen TVs, so these deals are excellent at drumming up publicity.

Wine

While you won't see a huge swath of wine deals, you'll likely find at least one or two extremely noteworthy discounts on wine from a major online or nationwide seller.

For example, last year Wines 'Til Sold Out held a Magnum Marathon, discounting a new bottle of wine every 20 minutes or less. And the year before, Astor Wines & Spirits took 15% off everything. Also be on the lookout for discounted shipping from online vendors.

Beauty Items

According to our Black Friday predictions research, stores will offer coveted beauty deals during this time. Look to stores like Amazon or Target for deals on beauty or wellness boxes, a few of which offered 100% of the price back last year as Amazon credit. Plus, Macy's has previously offered Editors' Choice-worthy deals on higher-end brands like Philosophy.

Last year, MAC started its big sale the day after Cyber Monday, and Tarte held its sale over the weekend.

You can shop for beauty deals on days surrounding Black Friday, too. Last year, MAC Cosmetics started its big sale the day after Cyber Monday, and Tarte Cosmetics held its sale over the weekend.

Luxury Items

Once upon a time, luxury brands wouldn't be caught dead hosting Black Friday sales. But these days, you're almost guaranteed to see at least the outlet branches of some big names — like Last Call by Neiman Marcus — offering special promotions.

Music

Retailers have offered a slew of free MP3s and discounted albums in years past. Last year, for example, Microsoft Store offered MP3 albums for 99 cents each from artists such as Frank Ocean, Chris Stapleton, and Blink-182. And in previous years, Google Play has offered a selection of pop and '90s hits for free.

Money

A number of deals will come with free credits that can be used toward future purchases — for instance, Kohl's Cash often makes many of that retailer's Black Friday deals stand out. We'll also see some stores offer discounted gift cards; iTunes gift cards in particular are a popular option.

Plus, you can snag free gift cards if you if you're savvy with Alexa devices. Last Black Friday, Amazon offered Prime members a $10 Amazon gift card for free if they bought a product from an Alexa-exclusive deal costing $20 or more.

Cars

Look for discounts or sizable gift cards of around $1,000 with your purchase, but keep in mind that these discounts aren't springing up for just this specific holiday. "Black Friday lines up nicely with the annual year-end inventory clearance process that dealers begin late in Q3, and that's what is really driving value at this time of year," says an analyst from Kelley Blue Book.

Drugstore Items

Usually, the individual items discounted in a drugstore's Black Friday ad aren't all that exciting or special, but sitewide discounts certainly are. Look to vendors like Walgreens or CVS for coupons that slash 25% to 30% off the things you'd buy anyway.

Storage Deals

Technically, hard drives and the like fall into the computer and electronics categories, which are standard Black Friday fare. But very few people think to stock up on storage deals during the savings event. It's a shame, though, because this is an excellent time to score external and internal hard drives, SSDs, and flash drives.

Excited for Black Friday deals? Consider subscribing to the DealNews Select newsletter to get a daily recap of all our best deals; you never know when a Black Friday price will be released! You can also download our app, visit the Black Friday Hub for the latest ads, or check out all our blog articles for more buying advice.