When Is Prime Day? Plus, Prime Day Predictions for 2020

Just like festivals, concerts and international travel plans, Amazon Prime Day has been postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the past, Prime Day  — a highly anticipated, dynamic deal event that can only be accessed by Amazon Prime members —  has been held in July. As of Sept. 14 this year, Amazon has yet to reveal the dates of Prime Day 2020. 

When is Prime Day 2020? 

In the past, Amazon Prime Day has taken place in mid-July. Before the pandemic, predictions had forecasted that Prime Day would run from July 15 through July 16. However, the global pandemic has caused Amazon to push Prime Day dates back three times. 

The company has confirmed that Amazon Prime Day 2020 will occur but has delayed the event until “later” in the year. Prime Day was previously expected to run in September, but Amazon pushed the sale back another month. In an email to third-party vendors in October, Amazon advised sellers to save the week of Oct. 5 as a placeholder date but reminded them that definitive dates have yet to be announced. Recent rumors have speculated that Prime Day 2020 will run from Oct. 5 through Oct. 7, a month before Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. 

Amazon is unlikely to postpone Prime Day beyond October, as this would coincide with the holiday shopping season in November. We will update this post as soon as the official Prime Day dates are announced. 

Why was Prime Day 2020 postponed? 

In the early weeks of the pandemic, Amazon struggled to keep up with the flood of orders while establishing new safety procedures and keeping its Prime promise of two-day deliveries. Amazon has since been able to return to near-normal operations, in part by delaying Prime Day until the fall to give itself and its sellers more time to prepare.

How long is Prime Day 2020? 

Despite its name, Prime Day runs longer than a single day.  

But because official dates have not been confirmed, we can only speculate on the length of Prime Day 2020. Over the last three years, Prime Day has grown in length. Let’s take a look at the length of past sales: 

• 2019: Monday, July 15 at 12 a.m. PT through Tuesday, July 16 at 11:59 p.m. PT (48 hours)
• 2018: Monday, July 16 at 12 p.m. PT through Tuesday, July 17 at 11:59 p.m. PT (36 hours)
• 2017: Monday, July 10 at 6 p.m. PT through Wednesday, July 11 at 11:59 a.m. PT (30 hours)
• 2016: Tuesday, July 12 at 12 a.m. PT through 11:59 p.m. PT (24 hours) 
• 2015: Wednesday, July 15 at 12 a.m. PT through 11:59 p.m. PT (24 hours)

Were Amazon to stick with the 12-hour increase of the last two years, Prime Day would run for 60 hours in 2020. If the sale does indeed begin on the rumored Oct. 5 at 12 p.m. PT, the sale would end at 12 p.m. on Oct. 7. We’re also prepared for the event that the company will announce a “Prime Week” that would last for seven days. 

When will Amazon announce Prime Day 2020? 

The e-commerce giant has made no promises as to when it will announce the official dates of Prime Day 2020. To make predictions, we looked back at the announcement dates in the past:

• 2019: Amazon announces Prime Day dates on June 25 at 10 p.m. PT.
• 2018: Amazon announces Prime Day dates on July 3 at 10 p.m. PT. 
• 2017: Amazon announces Prime Day dates on June 29 at 9 p.m. PT.
• 2016: Amazon announces Prime Day dates on June 20 at 10 p.m. PT. 
• 2015: Amazon announces Prime Day dates on July 6 at 10 p.m. PT. 

Were the sale to indeed kick off in October, we’d expect Amazon to reveal the official dates in late September. 

What time will Prime Day 2020 start? 

If Amazon doesn’t stray from the trend established over previous years, Prime Day will begin at midnight on Oct. 5. The sale would run until 11:59 p.m. PT on Oct. 6 if Amazon sticks to the 48-hour length of last year’s sale. However, if Amazon continues its trend of extending Prime Day by 12 hours each year, the deals would run until Oct. 7 at 11:59 a.m. PT. 

Deals to expect on Amazon Prime Day

After analyzing data from previous Prime Days, our saving specialists have made some predictions regarding Prime Day 2020 deals. Here are the type of deals we expect to see during Prime Day 2020:

• Echo devices: During the last Prime Day, Amazon dropped prices on Echo devices by as much as 50%. Last year, the Echo Dot was among the Top 10 Prime Day products. During Prime Day 2020, we expect prices on Echo (full size) third-generation devices to fall as low as $59 ($40 off) and Echo Dot third-generation devices to drop to as low as $22 ($27 to $30 off). After reviewing last year’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday smart home and Echo deals, we also anticipate smart home “bundles” that couple voice assistants with security cameras, smart bulbs and other smart home devices.
• Amazon Devices: Along with Echo devices, you can expect to see heavily discounted prices on Fire and Kindle devices, in addition to discounts on Amazon brands like Ring and Eero. 
• Instant Pot products and air fryers: During past Prime Days, both Instant Pot products and various air fryer products have made prominent appearances at Prime Day. Expect to find basic Instant Pot Models under $50 and air fryers for as much as 30% to 50% off.
• Amazon subscription services: Over the last three years, Amazon has enticed users to subscribe to services like Amazon Music Unlimited, Prime Now or its grocery delivery service, Amazon Fresh. In 2019 and 2018, Prime Day included a four-month introduction to Amazon Music Unlimited for $0.99 per month. Last Prime Day, Amazon offered $15 off to new users of the Prime Now two-hour delivery service and Amazon Fresh. Also during Prime Day 2019, Kindle Unlimited users received three months free. Considering the mounting importance of at-home delivery services and entertainment, Amazon is likely to try and appeal to new users with new deals on subscriptions during Prime Day 2020. 
• Amazon brand clothing: Amazon offers its own clothing brands — including Lark & Ro, Amazon Essentials, Goodthreads, Mae and several others. The company tends to take advantage of major sales to push its in-house brands and we saw Amazon styles discounted as much as 50% during Prime Day 2019 and during Amazon’s more recent Big Style Sale in June. It’s likely that Amazon will continue to tempt shoppers with similar deals during Prime Day 2020. In addition, Amazon offers a service known as Prime Wardrobe, where users can try on items for free in their own homes. For health and safety reasons during the pandemic, Amazon may encourage shoppers to take advantage of Prime Wardrobe by throwing in discounts for new users. 
• Apple Watch Series 5: Last year’s Apple Watch model, Series 5, is already being offered for as much as $150 off by competing retailers. Prime Day is likely to offer similar price drops, in addition to deals on the newer Series 3 mode. 
• Last-generation gaming: Due to the upcoming release of PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, Amazon shoppers can likely take advantage of low prices on older consoles. Be aware that older, last-generation consoles may not be compatible with certain newer-model accessories. 
• Vacuums: They may not be the most glamorous of purchases, but vacuums have historically seen deep discounts on Prime Day. In particular, robot vacuums from Eufy and Roomba, and cordless stick vacuums from Dyson are expected to shine as some of the best vacuum deals. 

As soon as more Amazon Prime Day deals are announced, we will update this article so you, our loyal readers, are first to know. 

Does shopping with Alexa get you special deals? 

For the last three Prime Days, Amazon has offered exclusive perks to shoppers who use their Alexa devices — such as an Echo or Echo Dot. We’ve revisited the Alexa shopper-exclusive deals of past years below: 

• 2019: Amazon offers Alexa voice shoppers a smart plug for $4.99 and the Ring Video Doorbell 2 for $99.
• 2018: Amazon offers Alexa voice shoppers access to several deals launched the day after Prime Day.
• 2017: Amazon offers Alexa voice shoppers access to Prime Day two hours before other shoppers.

Many shoppers purchased Echo devices during last year’s exceptional Prime Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, so we expect Amazon to reward them with exclusive deals again during Prime Day 2020. 

Does Amazon Prime Day include Whole Foods?

Having acquired Whole Foods in August 2017, Amazon has offered Whole Food shoppers Prime Day shopping credits over the last two years. In 2019 and 2018, Amazon treated customers who shopped at Whole Foods during the days leading up to Prime Day with a $10 Amazon credit to use during the sale. 

In light of the global pandemic, we predict that Amazon will encourage shoppers to stay home by providing shopping credits to those who purchase Whole Food groceries online, rather than in store.