Black Friday 2026 falls on Friday, November 27, the day after Thanksgiving. If you were planning to wait until then to start comparing prices, you’re already behind: Best Buy opened its holiday sales season today, October 30, 2026.
Why the date keeps moving
Black Friday has no fixed spot on the calendar. It’s simply the Friday after Thanksgiving, which Congress set in 1941 as the fourth Thursday of November. In 2026, that Thursday is November 26, according to the 2026 federal holiday schedule.
That puts this year near the late end of the range, and the rest of the long weekend follows the same math:
- Thursday, November 26: Thanksgiving
- Friday, November 27: Black Friday
- Saturday, November 28: Small Business Saturday
- Monday, November 30: Cyber Monday
- Tuesday, December 1: GivingTuesday
The late date also shrinks the runway to the holidays. Only four weeks separate Black Friday from Christmas Day, which is one reason retailers keep pushing their sales earlier.
Best Buy didn’t wait for November
Best Buy said its DoorBOOsters, a Halloween-themed round of doorbuster deals, start October 30. From there, the calendar builds in stages. Early Black Friday deals arrive November 6, with new ones dropping every Friday, and the main Black Friday event runs for 10 days starting November 19.
If you like shopping in person on the holiday itself, plan around one detail: Best Buy stores will be closed on Thanksgiving Day. The company said deals will still be available on BestBuy.com and in its app.
Best Buy also stretched its return window. Most purchases made from October 30 through December 31 can be returned through January 15, 2027, or through January 31, 2027, for My Best Buy Plus and Total members. That gives you room if a gift bought this weekend turns out to be the wrong one.
The sales spread out, but the Friday still matters
Starting early has become the norm. The National Retail Federation counts the holiday shopping season from November 1 to December 31 and forecasts sales will reach about $1.01 trillion this year, a 4.2% increase over 2025.
The Friday itself hasn’t lost its pull, though. The NRF still treats it as part of the five-day stretch from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, the weekend many shoppers plan their biggest purchases around.
With deals arriving in waves for almost a month, the most useful move is simple: write down what the items on your list cost right now. When a “Black Friday price” shows up in November, you’ll know whether it’s actually lower.
Mark November 27 on your calendar, but check prices on your list this weekend first.
