When Is Prime Big Deal Days 2026? Dates, Times and How the Deals Drop

Prime Big Deal Days 2026 runs Tuesday, October 6 and Wednesday, October 7. According to Amazon, the event starts at 12:01 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time on October 6 and ends at 11:59 p.m. PDT on October 7, giving Prime members 48 hours of exclusive deals across more than 35 categories. New deals drop three times a day, at midnight, 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. PDT, and you need a Prime membership to shop them. If you are not a member yet, eligible shoppers can start a free 30-day trial before the event begins.

This guide collects everything you need to plan around the sale: the exact start and end times in every US time zone, how the three daily deal drops work, what Amazon has said about categories and early deals, how Prime Big Deal Days differs from Prime Day in the summer, what membership costs, and how to get ready so you are not scrambling at midnight. The details come from Amazon’s own Prime Big Deal Days 2026 announcement and its official event FAQ, both of which we read in full.

The short answer

• Dates: Tuesday, October 6 and Wednesday, October 7, 2026.
• Start: 12:01 a.m. PDT on October 6, which is 3:01 a.m. on the East Coast.
• End: 11:59 p.m. PDT on October 7.
• Length: 48 hours.
• Who can shop: Prime members only.
• Deal drops: new “Today’s Big Deals” at midnight, 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. PDT each day.
• Scale: more than 35 categories, with early deals on some Amazon products already live.
• Where: 22 countries, with dates that may vary outside the US.

What Prime Big Deal Days is

Amazon’s FAQ describes Prime Big Deal Days as its fall shopping event, offering Prime members 48 hours of exclusive deals across more than 35 categories, from electronics, fashion and home to toys, beauty and everyday essentials. Amazon frames it as a kickoff to the holiday season, with savings on fall entertaining, Halloween, early holiday gifting and seasonal favorites.

In practical terms, it is the second big Prime-only sale of the year. The first is Prime Day in the summer. The October event arrives about seven weeks before Black Friday, which makes it the earliest large sale where you can realistically check off holiday gifts, stock up for Halloween, and pick up anything you have been waiting to buy on discount.

Exact start and end times in every US time zone

Amazon gives its times in Pacific Daylight Time. Converted to the main US time zones, the event window looks like this. Daylight saving time is still in effect in early October, so these are daylight times where applicable.

The practical upshot: East Coast shoppers do not need to stay up for a midnight launch, because the event opens in the early hours of Tuesday morning local time and the final evening runs past midnight into Thursday. West Coast, Alaska and Hawaii shoppers can catch the opening the evening before or at midnight.

How the three daily deal drops work

The biggest change to plan around is the drop schedule. Amazon says new deals will appear throughout the 48 hours as Today’s Big Deals, which it describes as limited-time offers featuring some of the best savings on the season’s newest models and brands. New drops launch three times daily, at midnight, 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. PDT.

Amazon notes that deals are available only while supplies last and suggests checking back at each drop for the latest offers. Over two days, that means six drops in total. If you are hunting for something specific, the 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. PDT drops fall in normal waking hours for most of the country, which makes them the easiest to watch.

Which brands and categories Amazon has named

Amazon has not published a full deal list ahead of the event, but its announcement and FAQ name several brands and categories.

• Drop brands: Shark, Princess Polly and Soundcore by Anker are named as brands in the Today’s Big Deals drops.
• Headline categories: beauty, tech, kitchen, fashion and home, plus first-time deals from brands new to Amazon.
• Fall hosting: charcuterie boards, slow cookers, entertaining sets and cozy home items, with UGG, NEST New York and Barefoot Dreams named.
• Halloween: costumes, candy, party supplies and decorations.
• Groceries: Same-Day grocery deals, with savings Amazon says reach up to 75 percent on select items.
• Gifting: the Amazon Holiday Shop and the Top 100+ Toys list.

The FAQ adds that members can shop hundreds of thousands of deals at 45 percent off or more from brands including Sony, Tarte and adidas. For a category by category game plan, see our guide to what to buy on Prime Big Deal Days.

Early deals before October 6

You do not have to wait for the event to start saving. Amazon’s FAQ confirms there are early deals, and its announcement says Prime members can start saving ahead of the event with deals on Amazon devices, Kindle, Amazon Music and more, including savings through Amazon Haul.

Early deals are worth checking, but they are not automatically the best price you will see. Amazon’s own tools can help you judge, as covered below. If a device you want is already discounted, compare that price with its recent history before buying early or waiting for the event itself.

How it differs from Prime Day

Amazon’s FAQ explains the difference directly. Both events are exclusive to Prime members, but they happen at different times of year. Prime Day typically takes place over a four-day period in the summer, while Prime Big Deal Days is a two-day fall event designed to kick off the holiday shopping season. Both offer millions of deals, but the fall event leans on seasonal savings for fall entertaining, Halloween and holiday gifting.

If you are trying to decide between the October event and the November sales, our comparison of Black Friday and the Prime events walks through where each one tends to be stronger, and our guide to Prime Big Deal Days versus Prime Day explains how the October event differs from the summer one.

Do you need Prime to shop the sale?

Yes. Amazon’s FAQ is explicit: you need a Prime membership to access deals during Prime Big Deal Days. Non-members can browse Amazon as usual, but the event pricing is reserved for members.

That is why many shoppers start a free trial shortly before the event. Amazon says eligible customers can start a free 30-day trial at amazon.com/prime, and that you will not be charged unless you keep Prime after the 30 days. Our step by step guide on how to get an Amazon Prime free trial explains eligibility, timing and how to cancel if you decide not to keep it. If you would like to start one now, you can start a free Prime trial on Amazon (paid link).

What Prime costs in 2026

Amazon lists these membership prices and options in its announcement and FAQ.

Amazon adds that young adults and higher education students who sign up can stack an exclusive 5 percent cash back on eligible deals in beauty, apparel, PCs, electronics and personal care during Prime Big Deal Days.

The two discounted memberships in more detail

Amazon describes both discounted options as providing the same benefits as a regular membership at about half the cost, which matters if you want Prime for the event but are watching every dollar.

• Prime for Young Adults: open to people aged 18 to 24 and to higher education students. Amazon says eligible new members can try it for six months at no cost, then pay 7.49 dollars a month or 69 dollars a year. Members earn 5 percent cash back for a limited time on beauty, apparel, electronics and personal care, and during Prime Big Deal Days that cash back stacks on eligible deals.
• Prime Access: for recipients of qualifying government assistance programs and income-verified customers. Amazon lists 13 programs, including SNAP EBT, Medicaid, WIC, SSI, TANF, the National School Lunch Program, LIHEAP and SSDI. Eligible new members get a 30-day trial before the 6.99 dollar monthly charge, and eligibility must be reverified every 12 months.

What else the membership includes

Because you have to join Prime to shop the event, it helps to know what else comes with it. Amazon’s overview of Prime benefits lists free shipping on more than 300 million items in the US, Prime Video, Amazon Music with access to over 100 million songs in shuffle mode, unlimited full resolution photo storage with Amazon Photos, a rotating selection of Kindle books, and Grubhub+ delivery perks. Amazon Family lets a household share one membership among two adults, four teens and four children under 13.

Whether those extras justify keeping Prime after a trial depends on how you shop and stream. If you only want the event, a trial may be enough. If you order often or already pay for streaming elsewhere, the membership can pull its weight year round.

Can you shop it outside the US?

Amazon says Prime members in 22 countries can shop Prime Big Deal Days: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. It also notes that dates may vary by country, so check your local Amazon site if you shop outside the US.

Amazon’s tools for tracking deals

Amazon is promoting Alexa for Shopping as the way to keep up with the event. According to its announcement and FAQ, you can:

• Set deal alerts for specific products or categories, and receive daily updates when new matching deals appear.
• Set a target price on an item and get notified when it drops, or turn on Auto-Buy so Alexa purchases it at your target price.
• Check price history using the “Price History” link on product pages, which Amazon says shows up to 365 days of pricing insights on hundreds of millions of products.
• Check your saved lists by asking whether any items on your list are on deal.

Price history is the most useful of these for judging a deal, because it shows whether a “big deal” price is genuinely low or simply back where it sat a few weeks ago. We cover these tools in more detail in our guide on how to prepare for Prime Big Deal Days.

Delivery during the event

Amazon’s FAQ says millions of items are available with Same-Day or Next-Day Delivery in more than 10,000 cities and towns, and that more than 90,000 home essentials are available with 1-hour and 3-hour delivery through its Same-Day network. It also describes Prime Air drone delivery in as fast as 30 minutes in select suburban areas and Amazon Now 30-minute delivery across dozens of US cities.

For most shoppers, the relevant point is simpler: event purchases ship with normal Prime delivery, so Halloween items bought on October 6 or 7 have plenty of time to arrive. Grocery deals, Amazon says, come with free delivery for Prime members on orders over 25 dollars in most areas.

Halloween and holiday timing

The October dates make this event particularly useful for Halloween. Amazon’s announcement highlights its Top 100+ Deals on Halloween finds, including costumes, candy, party supplies and decorations. With Halloween falling on a Saturday in 2026, buying on October 6 or 7 leaves more than three weeks for delivery and returns.

If candy is on your list, our guides on when to buy Halloween candy for the best price and how much candy to buy per trick-or-treater can help you avoid buying too much or too early. For gifts, buying early also means you are not relying on late November shipping, when demand is highest.

How to get ready this week

1. Check your membership. If you plan to use a free trial, start it before October 6, and note the date it ends.
2. Build a short list. Add the specific items you actually want to an Amazon list. Amazon’s FAQ recommends a Wish List so you can spot price drops and deal alerts quickly.
3. Look up prices now. Check the price history of each item so you know what a genuinely good price looks like.
4. Set alerts. Use deal alerts or target prices for the items you care about most.
5. Set a budget. Decide your total spend before the event, not during it.
6. Note the drop times. Put the midnight, 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. PDT drops in your calendar in your own time zone.
7. Download the app. Amazon’s FAQ suggests the Amazon app for quick access to deals and order updates.

A simple two day plan

• Monday evening, October 5: confirm your membership is active, review your list, and note the current price of each item.
• Tuesday morning: check the first drop from midnight PDT when you wake up, and buy anything on your list that hits your target price.
• Tuesday 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. PDT: check the next two drops in your own time zone, focusing on your list rather than browsing.
• Wednesday: repeat for the three final drops, then check your alerts once more before the event closes at 11:59 p.m. PDT.
• After the event: review your orders against your budget, and set a reminder for your trial end date if you started one.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Starting a trial too late. Leave a margin before October 6 so any account issues are sorted in time.
• Trusting the discount badge alone. A high percentage off an inflated list price is not a real deal. Check price history.
• Buying because it is on sale. Stick to your list. A deal on something you do not need is not a saving.
• Forgetting the trial end date. If you do not want to keep Prime, Amazon says you can cancel before the trial ends to avoid charges.
• Waiting for a perfect price that never comes. Deals are available while supplies last, so if a price is genuinely good for an item you need, it may not come back in stock.

Our guide on how to spot a fake discount was written for Black Friday, but the same warning signs apply to any big sale.

Is it worth waiting for Black Friday instead?

It depends on what you are buying. The October event has a timing advantage for Halloween, early gifts and anything you need this fall. Black Friday, which falls on November 27 in 2026, draws discounts from many more retailers at once, which helps if you want to compare stores. One practical approach is to split your list: seasonal and gift items in October, and larger comparison purchases in November.

If you are on the fence about the membership itself, our analysis of whether Prime is worth it just for Prime Big Deal Days works through the math.

What we will update

Amazon’s FAQ says to check back for updates as the event gets closer, and it has not published the full list of deals yet. We will update this guide if Amazon announces new details, such as additional brands in the Today’s Big Deals drops or changes to times. The dates and times above are taken from Amazon’s own announcement as of September 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Mark October 6 and 7 in your calendar, convert the three daily drop times to your own time zone, sort out your membership before the start, and go in with a short list and price history already checked. That is most of the work done before the first deal goes live.