Labor Day sales 2021: early deals now live, plus what to expect on the day

The official Labor Day sales 2021 are less than a week away but leading retailers are already dropping promising early bird deals. Home Depot, Lowes, Best Buy, and a number of leading mattress brands have already updated their sites with a ton of great promotions. Mattresses, appliances, grills, and other traditional Labor Day staples are all up for grabs right now with juicy price cuts and free delivery options.

Positioned between the bigger Amazon Prime Day and Black Friday events, the yearly Labor Day sales are essentially the last stop before the big ‘Holiday deals’ season starts in November. Even though it’s generally considered a smaller event definitely don’t write it off – it’s quite simply a great time to bag a bargain on anything from laptops to grills.

If you’d like to know what to expect on Labor Day itself, here’s a FAQ sheet, courtesy techradar.com:

When do Labor Day sales start?

Labor Day falls on September 6th this year and that’s when the best deals will be concentrated. That said, a number of retailers have already launched their Labor Day sales page to help you prep and get a jump start on the weekend deals. Walmart, Best Buy, Amazon, and other leading retailers haven’t posted their Labor Day sales just yet, but it’s likely we’ll see things heat up quite quickly from this week onwards and definitely on the prior weekend to Labor Day.

Who has the best Labor Day sale?

Amazon: number one for cheap electronics, though sells everything
Best Buy: cheap 4K TVs, plus excellent savings on all types of laptops
Walmart: especially good for cheaper laptops and budget Chromebooks
Home Depot: bundle savings on appliances, plus patio furniture, grills
Lowes: excellent for power tools, lawnmowers, lighting, and appliances
Overstock: huge inventories of clearance furniture, bed & bath, patio items
Nectar: often bundles in accessories worth up to $400 with mattresses
Purple: free gifts, plus seasonal savings on premium mattresses
Saatva: bundle savings when you spend over an amount on a mattress

Competition is going to be stiff across the board, but the best retailer for you is going to depend heavily on what’s featured on your Labor Day shopping list. For appliances, furniture, grills, or other ‘end of summer’ items’, then you’ll definitely want to check out Home Depot, Lowes, or Overstock. These retailers have inventories of literally thousands of home and garden items, so they should be your first stop.

If you’re looking for electronics in general then Amazon, Walmart and Best Buy are likely to have the biggest sales this year. Amazon’s particularly good for headphones and Apple products, while Walmart and Best Buy are fantastic for cheap 4K TVs and entry-level laptops. Speaking of laptops, both Dell and HP should have awesome own-brand sales across their sites over Labor Day too, which will be particularly good if you’re spending a bit more. Lastly, if you’re looking for mattress deals over Labor Day, then Nectar, Sealy, Saatva, and Purple to all have excellent promotions running at their respective sites.

Does Amazon do Labor Day sales?

Yes and no. It’s unlikely that Amazon will run its own event that’s specifically labeled a ‘Labor Day sale’, but it is likely it’ll be participating in some form or another. It’s a big day for online shopping in general so you can expect Amazon will be offering up plenty of price cuts – especially if rival retailers like Best Buy or Walmart are running big events on the day. Put simply, if you’re looking for cheap laptops, TVs, headphones, or anything electronic then you should have plenty to check out at Amazon on Labor Day.

What items get discounted for the Labor Day sales? 

The Labor Day Sales traditionally cover things like appliances, both outdoor and indoor furniture, and home items in general. You’ll also find awesome sales on things like mattresses as well as end-of-summer items like BBQ grills. As you’d expect, it’s also a great time to pick up clearance patio furniture for next year at places like Lowes and Home Depot – which normally have free delivery too.

As with any online shopping event, the Labor Day sales will also have a ton of cheap tech deals to check out too. Expect retailers like Best Buy and Walmart to come out the gates with some really cheap laptops and 4K TV deals – which are always favorites for our readers in particular. You should also see discounted headphones and smart hubs too – especially if Amazon joins in as sales on its own devices are pretty much a given on any sales event.

Home Depot, Lowe’s, Best Buy and Amazon tend to have the widest selection of deals in the Labor Day sales covering pretty much all the bases. Last year we did see quite a few more specialized retailers like Dell, Lenovo, and HP join in too, which were particularly good for laptop deals.

When do the Labor Day sales end?

Most of the primo Labor Day sales tend to end on the midnight running into Tuesday September 7, however, we’ll probably see things gradually wind down throughout the week. In some rare instances, such a Home Depot’s Labor Day appliances sale we may even see a longer sales period – up until September 16 in last year’s case.

In 2020, the Labor Day sales started about a week before the actual date, although most of the top-dollar deals launched over the prior weekend and of course Labor Day itself. In general, those shopping for appliances tend to have more time to consider their purchases, while shoppers looking for cheap tech like laptops, TVs, and tablets have a shorter purchase window overall.

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