The Holiday Deal Calendar — When Each Major Retailer Drops Its Best Codes

A month-by-month look at when the best discounts hit at major US retailers, so you can time your bigger purchases.

January

Post-holiday clearance is the most underrated discount window of the year. Apparel, toys, electronics, and home goods all see 50-70% off as retailers clear leftover inventory. Macy's, Kohl's, Target, and Old Navy run the deepest cuts.

February

Presidents' Day weekend is the season's big mattress, appliance, and large-furniture sale. Wayfair, IKEA, Lowe's, and Home Depot all run aggressive promotions. It's also a strong window for winter-clearance outdoor gear at REI and Patagonia.

March

Spring fashion launches arrive at the same time as the early-spring sale on winter inventory. Lululemon's "We Made Too Much" tends to refresh aggressively this month. More stacking resources →

April

Tax refund season fuels a wave of mid-tier promotions across electronics and home. Apple typically refreshes its education-pricing promos in late April for the following school year.

May

Memorial Day weekend is the year's second-biggest furniture and mattress sale. It's also the strongest window for grills and outdoor furniture before the summer season begins.

June

Father's Day promotions across menswear, tools, and electronics. Travel deals start showing up for late-summer trips. Watch for Adidas, Nike, and Lululemon menswear-focused promotions.

July

Amazon Prime Day (typically mid-July) drags the entire ecommerce industry into a multi-day discount war. Target Circle Week, Walmart+ Week, Best Buy, and Wayfair all run competing promotions in the same window.

August

Back-to-school season — apparel, electronics, dorm essentials, and laptops see their second-biggest discount window of the year. Apple's formal back-to-school promo runs through early September.

September

Labor Day weekend wraps up the summer sales and kicks off the early fall fashion drops. Outdoor and patio inventory hits its deepest discount of the year as retailers clear for winter inventory.

October

Pre-Black Friday "early access" promotions start appearing in the second half of the month. Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days and Target's Deal Days run head-to-head in mid-October.

November

Black Friday week (the full week, not just Friday) is the year's biggest discount window, hands down. Cyber Monday extends the same prices through the following Monday.

December

Hannukah, Christmas, and end-of-year clearance overlap into the deepest single discount stretch of the year. Anything not sold by Dec 31 enters January clearance, so retailers price aggressively starting Dec 26.

Where to go next

• How to Stack Coupons and Cashback (The Complete 2026 Guide) — The full DealPulse playbook for combining promo codes, cashback portals, store credit, and rewards cards into one checkout flow.
• Rakuten vs. TopCashBack vs. Ibotta: Which Cashback Portal Wins in 2026? — A side-by-side comparison of the three cashback portals every US shopper should keep installed — base rates, payout cadence, and best-fit retailers.
• The Best Cashback Credit Cards for Stacking on Top of Promo Codes — How to pick the credit card layer of your stack — by category bonus, annual fee, and portal compatibility.
• The Free Shipping Loophole Guide — How to Hit the Threshold Without Filler — Practical tactics for clearing free-shipping minimums without buying things you don't need or paying for shipping at all.
• The Browser Extensions Every Stacker Should Install — A no-fluff list of the cashback, coupon, and price-history extensions worth keeping in your toolbar — and the ones to delete.