Black Friday often sees shoppers flocking to stores and online retailers in search of the best bargains.
A new study from WalletHub took note of which retailers are offering the greatest deals this year. To determine its findings, WalletHub collected product price data from each retailer's official website, Amazon.com and BlackFriday.com.
Rankings were assigned according to the overall difference in prices between October 21 and November 18 and the advertised price on 2024 Black Friday ads.
A deal was considered good if the price offered by retailers was lower than the price on Amazon.com, whereas a higher price indicated a lousy deal.
According to WalletHub's study, Costco had the highest percentage of "good deals" at 94 percent. Next was Belk, with 90 percent, and then JCPenney, with 76 percent.
The report rated 73 percent of The Home Depot's deals as good. Kohl's followed closely behind, with 72 percent.
The study also revealed which product types were worth waiting until Black Friday to buy. Jewelry was at the top of the list, with a 37 percent additional discount for waiting. Apparel & accessories followed this at 31 percent, then consumer packaged goods with 28 percent.
The appliances and furniture categories both saw 27 percent discounts. Computers, phones, and consumer electronics saw the lowest additional discounts of the categories examined, with discounts of 19 and 20 percent, respectively.
"Consumers should carefully consider promotions for products with a limited supply. This tactic creates demand based on artificial scarcity and often triggers impulse decisions based on a fear of missing out, not an actual need for the item," warned Matthew Gilbert, lecturer of marketing at Coastal Carolina University.
"Consumers can judge if these deals are legitimate by identifying products they want to get and thoroughly researching them ahead of time," Gilbert told WalletHub.
He said Black Friday deals are only worthwhile if they offer discounts on items you already intended to purchase: "If you are tempted to buy something just because you feel it's a great deal, you're being persuaded to buy something you don't need and don't want."
Investment bank Morgan Stanley said shoppers are remaining "selective" in what they buy ahead of Black Friday as many still struggle with the effects of inflation.
Although inflation is significantly lower than its June 2022 peak of 9.1 percent, it remains slightly above the Federal Reserve's 2 percent target. In October, consumer prices increased by 2.6 percent compared to a year earlier, up from 2.4 percent in September. This marked the first uptick in annual inflation in seven months.
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