Black Friday is now one of the biggest shopping weekends in Canada, but a large sticker discount and a low price are not the same thing. A markdown is only real if the item sold for the “regular” price before the sale, and the main tactics behind fake deals (an inflated list price, a price raised in the weeks before the sale, a discontinued model cleared out under a new label) all work by changing the number the discount is measured from. This guide covers when the sales run, how to check a deal against the item’s price history, and where Black Friday tends to beat or lose to other sales. It is one of the site’s consumer guides to shopping, deals and everyday bills.
When is Black Friday in Canada?
Black Friday is the Friday after US Thanksgiving, which is the fourth Thursday of November, so it always falls between November 23 and 29. Canadian retailers follow the US date, not Canadian Thanksgiving in October.
| Event | When |
|---|---|
| Early previews | Many retailers start “early Black Friday” pricing in early November |
| Black Friday week | The week leading up to Black Friday |
| Black Friday | The Friday after US Thanksgiving |
| Cyber Monday | The Monday after Black Friday, focused on online stores |
| Boxing Day | December 26, the other big sale of the season |
Each retailer sets its own dates, so the same item can be discounted for a few days or for most of the month.
Real deals vs fake markdowns
How a fake deal is built
| Tactic | How it works |
|---|---|
| Inflated “regular” price | The list price is one the item rarely or never sold at |
| Pre-sale increase | The price goes up in October so the November “discount” looks larger |
| Old model clearance | Last year’s model is sold as a deal while the current one stays at full price |
| Made-for-sale products | A cheaper version built for doorbuster pricing, with a different model number |
| Countdown pressure | “Today only” or “limited stock” labels on sales that are extended or repeated |
How to check a price
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1 | Note the price of the items you want a few weeks before the sales |
| 2 | Look up the price history (CamelCamelCamel and Keepa track Amazon.ca prices) |
| 3 | Compare the same model number across stores with Google Shopping or the Flipp flyer app |
| 4 | Work out the discount against the price the item actually sold for, not the list price |
| 5 | Check the return policy and whether sale items are final sale |
If another store has the same item for less, many Canadian retailers will match it at the register. Which stores match, and their rules, are in the guide to price matching in Canada.
Which categories tend to see genuine discounts
Discounts tend to be real where retailers clear stock on a yearly cycle or use the sale to win customers for a whole product line:
| Tends to see real markdowns | Often not a real deal |
|---|---|
| TVs and large electronics | New releases and the newest tech, which rarely drop in their first months |
| Major appliances | Designer and fashion items marked down from inflated list prices |
| Mattresses | Furniture with a permanently “on sale” price |
| Winter clothing and outerwear | Products made specially for doorbuster sales |
Some purchases are usually cheaper at another time of year: holiday decorations after Christmas, winter gear in January clearance, and patio furniture at the end of summer. Clearance-driven categories are compared in the Boxing Day sales guide.
Black Friday vs Cyber Monday
Cyber Monday is the online-store version of the same weekend. Online-only retailers and software or subscription services often put their main offer on Monday, while big-box stores run most of their discounts from Thursday to Sunday, in store and online. An item listed on both days can be compared before buying, and a store that price-matches its own earlier price may adjust a Friday purchase.
Stacking cashback and card rewards
A sale price can be combined with a cashback app (a shopping portal such as Rakuten pays a percentage of the purchase), a promo code from coupon sites and apps, and the rewards on the card you pay with. Many credit cards also carry purchase protection or an extended warranty, which apply to sale items the same way as full-price ones; the card’s certificate of insurance has the details.
Card issuers sometimes run seasonal promotions in November, such as a waived first-year annual fee or a larger welcome offer. The terms are on the issuer’s own page, and the comparison of cashback credit cards covers the cards themselves. Banks also run savings-account and GIC promotions at this time of year; current accounts and rates are compared in the banking guides.
Keeping Black Friday inside a budget
A list made before the sales start, with a maximum price for each item, is the simplest way to keep a deal from turning into extra spending. Black Friday purchases are often holiday gifts, so they come out of the same money as the rest of December; a holiday budget puts the two together. A balance that isn’t paid off when the statement arrives starts to cost interest at the card’s purchase rate, which is explained in how credit card interest works, and that interest can cancel out the discount.