Black Friday 2021 in Australia has kicked off: grab a top bargain right now

Black Friday deals Australia 2021 best Black Friday sales

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(Image credit: Future)

By Ben Mansill , Dan Elsom , Rian Howlett

published 29 November 21

UPDATE: Black Friday has ended, but the deals and discounts have continued into Cyber Monday! For all the best new deals, head over to our Cyber Monday 2021 page.

Black Friday 2021 has clapped like thunder this year and is in full frenzy. Considering the sheer volume of offers available, it's bordering on mania. But the good news? You can shop it all from the comfort of your own home! Practically every retailer has Black Friday deals available online, and bargains have been flying off the virtual shelves in the lead up to the official date.

We at T3 have been truffle pigs these last few days, sniffing out where the best savings are to be had. Now, we're happy to show you the fruits of our labour, bringing you the best of the best deals to help you get cracker products at the lowest prices you'll see all year.

Black Friday is the perfect opportunity to get early Christmas shopping out of the way, and allows you to grab great deals before a pre-Christmas price hike. It's generally one of the savviest times to make large purchases all year. For the shopping fiends amongst us it also offers the best chance to unleash the deal-demon within. There is nothing in the retail year even close to Black Friday. Happy shopping!

Black Friday 2021 deals: top retailer links

Best 5 Black Friday deals still live

Anker Nebula Apollo projector | ~~AU$999~~ AU$595 on Amazon (opens in new tab) (save AU$404)

A portable project is an easy way to turn any wall, duvet on
a washing line, or large fence into a huge cinema screen.
All you'll need to do to organise a movie night for your crew is to gather them – just throw up a white sheet if you don't have a projector screen – and the Nebula Apollo will do its thing. It's got a max runtime of four hours per charge, has an HDMI and USB port to connect devices to play media from and can cast using AirPlay, Miracast and Bluetooth.

Series 9 Pro Electric Shaver with SmartCare Centre | ~~AU$749~~ AU$449 at Shaver Shop (opens in new tab) (save AU300)

Braun has built a solid reputation for producing excellent combinations of form and function. The Series 9 is light, ergonomically sound, waterproof to 5 metres and easy to clean. Giving you 50-minute battery life, from just a one-hour charge you're sure to be able to grab every last hair. This deal eases the blow to your wallet substantially, allowing your bank account to look as smooth as your face.

Black Friday Australia 2021: When is it?

Black Friday sales have crept across the world, but the day holds its roots in the American Thanksgiving holiday. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are traditionally the days immediately before and after Thanksgiving.

Black Friday Australia 2021 falls on November 26, with Cyber Monday on November 29. In 2020, Black Friday sales began at a minute past midnight on Friday, November 27. In most cases, the sales continue over the weekend and into the Cyber Monday sale, which kicks in immediately after.

It’s best to start looking earlier though, as you should expect retailers to offer plenty of discounts and deals in the week running up to Black Friday and the few days after as we head towards the Christmas period. We'll be updating this guide as those deals come in, you might even be able to snag some serious savings well before the rest of the pack. Once December strikes, be prepared for a drought on deals until Boxing Day sales start slashing prices down again.

Black Friday: The T3 Touch

For the T3 Australia team, we’ve been watching Black Friday sales intensely for a few years now. Throughout this time we've seen an explosion in the popularity Down Under. Being keen watchers from day one allows us to use our substantial knowledge base to all but guarantee we’re finding the best deals for you. We’ve learnt a few tips and tricks that will always be of use when hunting bargains down.

That is the reason for this guide. It was born out of our dedication to building an exceptional resource for all of Black Friday 2021’s top deals and shopping destinations. Online, in-person, we’ll do our best to catch them all. We'll have the latest information on retailers, discounts, special offers and a huge product list with the deepest discounts. If you look at how we fared last year, we hooked thousands of our readers with some great laptops, headphones and a whole host of other goodies.

After the madness that was Amazon Prime Day 2021 in June this year, we realised that the people are keen, incredibly keen, to snap the lock off their wallets and go ham with investing into an office/games room/home that gives nothing but good times. Seriously, Prime Day this year was the biggest ever event from Amazon in terms of deals and engagement. We can only expect the exact same from Black Friday this year.

As such, now is the time to get deals ready. Below you'll find details on the Black Friday Australia 2021 date as well as what to expect during the sale. There's a section dedicated to tips and tricks for the best deals and a guide to getting a free Amazon Prime account, which is really useful to have during the event.

This is a golden goose, laying eggs of opportunity for savings, for the perfect Christmas pressies, or to treat yourself and grab something glorious for you and you alone!

How to get a free Amazon Prime account for Black Friday 2021

Amazon Prime Black Friday deals Lightning deals — Getting a free Amazon Prime account is a crucial step in getting many of the best Black Friday deals.

The truth of the matter is that if you want to be in on the ground floor for many of Amazon's best Black Friday deals then you need to be an Amazon Prime member.

Amazon Prime members get an exclusive 30-minute early access window to ALL Lightning Deals, which is normally the only way to grab one of the hot products before they all sell out. As such, becoming a member of Amazon Prime is essential for scoring many of the best Black Friday Australian deals.

Luckily, Amazon Prime is available on a 30-day free trial (opens in new tab), so our advice to you if you don't have a membership is to sign up before Amazon's Black Friday Deals Store opens, bag the deals you want with preferential access, and then, if you don't want to continue with the benefits a Prime membership delivers, then simply cancel the trial. You won't have spent a cent, but will have bagged Amazon's best Black Friday deals.

Black Friday Australia 2021: Will Amazon prices drop?

The short answer to this question is yes. The longer answer, though, yes they will but they might not be as low as they've been in some deals during the pre-Black Friday shopping period.

This is because retailers like Amazon are spreading out their deals this year more than ever before in an attempt to make up for the sales disruption they suffered back in 2020. As such, you will find huge discounts on certain products that are not bested come Black Friday, and you might not even see the same price.

So if you see a big discount beforehand on a product you've had your eye on, we recommend you grab it (after doing your research of course), as you will get the item you want for a good price, and avoid the possibility of paying more come Black Friday.

The best deals from Black Friday 2020

Below is just a few of the many deals that were available during the Black Friday sales in 2020, but they give you an idea of what to expect.

We also saw massive discounts across major retailers, such as up to 40% off games and gaming accessories with Microsoft, 50% off fitness tech with Rebel Sport, appliance and TV savings with Harvey Norman and The Good Guys, as well as savings across a range of Dyson products, and many, many more.

Black Friday Australia 2021: shopping tips and tricks

It's easy to become overwhelmed by the avalanche of deals and offers during the Black event, so being properly prepared and heading into the deal-a-thon with a clear head and a firm idea of what you want to pick up is crucial.

To help you in this we've put together this small selection of tips and tricks, which will almost certainly help you have a successful Black Friday, Black Weekend, and Cyber Monday 2021.

1. SET UP ALERTS AND SWITCH ON NOTIFICATIONS

You should consider setting up tailored alerts to help you keep on top of the items that are most important to you. Amazon offers notifications that allow you to track price drops on relevant products, while Google Alerts and Twitter Notifications both help you keep an eye on offers across a wider range of retailers.

It’s also worth following key brands on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as many will promote their best offers across these platforms. Make sure you have push notifications turned on so you can snap these deals up as soon as they are published.

2. CHECK PREVIOUS PRICES

Some Black Friday deals might look fantastic at face value, particularly when listed alongside the RRP or the price the product was first listed at. However, prices can fluctuate and a higher-than-usual pre-sale price can make a deal look better than it really is.

3. ASSESS STOCK LEVELS

Many online stores offer the ability to check stock levels. Keep a close eye on this and prioritise the items on your list that have lower stock availability so you can lockdown those in-demand products.

4. READ THE SMALL PRINT

As tempting as it might be to speed through to the checkout, do spend a couple of minutes checking the small print before paying. You should look out for specific information on returns policies, as some retailers may offer refunds in a shorter window than usual or refuse refunds entirely, instead offering store credit - which isn’t ideal for those big ticket items like smartphones, laptops and TVs. This may also contravene Australian consumer protection laws, depending on the circumstances, so you may want to brush up on your rights.

5. USE SECURE PAYMENT METHODS

Different payment methods offer different levels of consumer protection. Credit card payments typically give buyers more protection than those made by debit card. It’s worth noting that if you use PayPal or another third party payment service you may not be as broadly protected as you might have versus paying with a major Australian bank's credit card.

Once you’ve decided that a deal is legitimate and you’re ready to pay, you’ll want to get through to the checkout as quickly as possible so as not to miss out. You can avoid any delays by registering with retailers you anticipate buying from in advance and setting up a user account - including card details and your billing and delivery addresses - as this will help guarantee a speedy checkout.

Black Friday Australia 2021: How to get the best Black Friday deals

To score absolutely top tier Black Friday deals you need to be prepared, which is exactly what this best Black Friday deals guide is designed to help you with.

Because the truth is that Black Friday 2021 promises to be a more intense fight than ever in terms of actually getting into a position to ring up top deals and then follow through and actually land them.

Research has shown (opens in new tab) that increasingly people are using Black Friday to shop for Christmas gifts, abandoning the traditional holiday shopping period in an attempt to bag a bargain. As such, there are more people trying to score deals than ever before.

There's also one extra factor that is sure to have an effect on the size and popularity of Black Friday this year – Amazon Prime Day. This year Amazon Prime Day was "the largest shopping event " in its history, meaning deals might be harder to lock down due to the demand.

We've got everything from basic information through to crucial advice that will ensure you don't get ripped off, though, so by reading T3's Black Friday 2021 guide you can make sure you're in the best possible place to identify a bargain and then ring it up quickly.

Black Friday Australia 2021: cashback and vouchers

It is worth remembering on Black Friday that cashback on purchases are sometimes possible. There are plenty of voucher deal sites as well that can offer some really nice discount codes, too - although be aware that these often don't stack on top of other deals. However, if you plan on doing your Black Friday shopping online then these can be valuable tools to keep in your deal-hunting tool belt.

Black Friday Australia 2021: how to know if deals are real

If you are new to deal hunting on Black Friday then being able to identify what is a real, bonefide Black Friday deal and what is a fake deal is absolutely key.

Luckily, if you pay attention to two main things then, more often than not, you can quickly establish whether you're bagging a bargain or not.

Firstly, many retailers use Black Friday as a good way to clear out their back catalogue of end-of-life or unpopular products. Now, this is not to say that this means the product is bad, far from it. You might actually be bagging a superb piece of tech that just happens to be about to be replaced by a slightly superior model.

Equally, though, that product that is being sold for a song might actually be about to be replaced by a significantly better model. For example, many people bought 4K TVs in Black Friday deals before HDR was introduced and, as the lifespan of TVs are so large, are still stuck with a non-HDR TV even now.

As such, it is imperative that you do your research before pulling the trigger on a Black Friday deal, and especially so if you are unfamiliar with the tech category. Now, as you would expect, this is hard to do on the fly, with many deals timed or limited stock, meaning you have to fire first to win the deal. Which is why you need to identify what deals (or deal areas) you are looking for in advance of the Black Friday sales.

This means that when you then see a deal, you can make a firing at the hip decision and rapidly identify whether to pull the trigger or not.

And, secondly, make sure you establish just how expensive a product was before its new deal price. This is especially important, as a favourite tactic of many more unscrupulous retailers is to artificially inflate the price of an item in the weeks or months running up to Black Friday, only then to reduce it back down to a supposedly discounted price point.