Best Black Friday Deals?

Paseo Nuevo Mall (Photo: SantaBarbaraCa.com)

By edhat staff

The most anticipated shopping day of the year has arrived, but where are the best Black Friday deals?

Santa Barbara doesn’t have the best selection of “name-brand” or “big-box” stores that offer the best deals, so a lot of people travel to Ventura or even the Camarillo outlets. But, thanks to the accessibility of the internet, a lot of deals are available online too. 

In addition, retailers are switching up the tradition and starting their “Black Friday” sales much earlier. Many are offering even bigger price cuts or other discount promotions, both in-store and online, to stay ahead of their competitors. WalletHub surveyed nearly 7,000 deals from 35 of the biggest U.S. retailers’ 2018 Black Friday ad scans. They’ve listed the stores offering the largest advertised discounts in various product categories such as “Jewelry” and “Appliances.” 

Best Places to Shop on Black Friday

Belk, a large east coast department store, has the highest overall discount rate at 68.91%, whereas True Value has the lowest at 16.31%. Although, the overall average discount for Black Friday is 37%. Wallthub states consumers should aim for this discount amount or higher to avoid Black-Friday traps. The “Apparel & Accessories” category has the biggest share of discounted items, 23.28% of all offers, whereas the “Books, Movies and Music” category has the smallest at 0.82%.

A lot of the stores on this list are mostly located in different parts of the United States, so below we’re mentioning the stores that are operational in the tri-county areas. However, the deals are still available online if you feel like ordering from Belk, Stage, or Fred Meyer. Check out the full list here.

• JCPenney (65.1% avg discount)
• Kohl’s (60.8% avg discount)
• Payless Shoe Source (50.3% avg discount)
• Dick’s Sporting Goods (49.9% avg discount)
• Macy’s (48.7% avg discount)
• Sears (42.9% avg discount)
• Office Depot and Office Max (42.6% avg discount)
• Kmart (37.9% avg discount)
• Target (34.8% avg discount)
• Staples (32% avg discount)
• Walmart (29.9% avg discount)
• Jet.com (29.4% avg discount)
• Amazon (29.3% avg discount)
• Best Buy (28.7% avg discount)
• Costco (25.1% avg discount)
• Ace Hardware (21.9% avg discount)

Are you looking for a specific item? Some places are advertising the best deal, but below you can see which numbers actually stack up.