- Amazon Prime Day 2021 is set for June 21 and 22.
- The 48-hour sale kicks off June 21 at midnight PDT (3 a.m. EDT) and runs through June 22 for Prime members in select countries.
- Amazon VP: This year's event will have more than 2 million deals globally.
Amazon’s annual “Black Friday in July sale” is coming early.
Prime Day, which last year was the latest ever amid the COVID-19 pandemic, will be the earliest ever in 2021. The sale is set for June 21 and 22, Amazon confirmed Wednesday, releasing details of the two-day shopping event.
Several early Prime Day deals are now available. A way to earn a Prime Day credit and support small businesses returns for the second year starting June 7.
Jamil Ghani, vice president of Amazon Prime, said this year’s event will have more deals than ever before with more than 2 million deals globally with savings across every category.
Amazon Prime Day 2021:Here's everything you need to know
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And consumers are ready to shop.
In a survey of more than 1,300 consumers, analytics company Profitero found 63% plan to shop Amazon on Prime Day and a third will also shop competing sales. Nearly 60% of consumers said they plan to “price check” Prime Day deals on other sites before buying on Amazon.
Sarah Hofstetter, Profitero president, said consumers are looking for deals in categories that “have had some of the highest levels of inflation in the last year, such as home furniture, apparel and electronics.”
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The retail giant started its annual summer sale in 2015 as a way to reward members of its Prime subscription program. It has been held in July every year except for its delayed 2020 event.
According to RetailMeNot, last year more than 350 retailers promoted their own sales during Prime Day, which was 17% more than in 2019. The deal site says the average U.S. consumer plans to spend $594 on Prime Day with 92% likely shopping for back-to-school items during Prime Day.
"Don't forget that Amazon is not the only place to shop on Prime Day," said Sara Skirboll, RetailMeNot shopping and trends expert. You can shop at hundreds of other retailers and find great deals, in some cases even better."
Prime Day shopping credit
Starting Monday and continuing through June 20, Prime members who spend $10 on items sold by more than 300,000 small and medium sellers will get a $10 credit to use on Prime Day on almost any product on the site including small businesses.
Amazon offered the $10 credit last year but this year says more than double the number of sellers are eligible. The company said it will spend more than $100 million "to fuel the success of small businesses" for Prime Day and throughout the rest of 2021.
Find curated collections of Black-owned, woman-owned, military family-owned and more small businesses at Amazon.com/SupportSmall.
What time does Prime Day 2021 begin?
The 48-hour sale kicks off June 21 at midnight PDT (3 a.m. EDT) and runs through June 22 for Prime members in the U.S., Mexico, the U.K., the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Spain, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Portugal, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Japan, Italy, Germany, France, China, Brazil, Belgium, Austria and Australia.
Follow USA TODAY reporter Kelly Tyko on Twitter: @KellyTyko. For more shopping tips and deals, join us on our Shopping Ninjas Facebook group.
