When do Black Friday toy deals start?
Black Friday 2026 falls on 27 November. On the 2025 pattern, toy deals start much earlier: Amazon ran Prime Big Deal Days on 7-8 October 2025, 52 days before Black Friday, and Walmart's first Black Friday event ran 14-16 November, a fortnight ahead of the day itself.
Walmart announced its 2025 dates on 27 October. Expect the same late-October announcement window in 2026.
When Black Friday toy deals started in 2025
| 2025 event | Dates | How far ahead of Black Friday |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon Prime Big Deal Days | 7-8 October 2025 | 52 days |
| Walmart announces its event dates | 27 October 2025 | 32 days |
| Walmart Black Friday Event 1 | 14-16 November 2025 | 14 days |
| Walmart+ early access, Event 1 | 13 November 2025, 7pm ET | 15 days |
| Walmart Black Friday Event 2 opens online | 25 November 2025 | 3 days |
| Black Friday | 28 November 2025 | - |
| Walmart Cyber Monday | 1 December 2025 | 3 days after |
The pattern that matters is not any single date. It is that the season ran roughly eight weeks and the Friday itself sat near the end of it. A shopper who waited for 28 November 2025 arrived after two separate multi-day sale events had already run.
The September baseline, so you can judge a November claim
Here is a citable number computed today rather than remembered: on 1 September 2026, 790 nostalgia toy and plush items from 40 US retailers carried a usable price, at a median of $23.63.
| Budget band | Toy listings priced | Cheapest | Median | Dearest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Everything | 790 | $0.75 | $23.63 | $5200.00 |
| Under $25 | 442 | $0.75 | $13.99 | $24.99 |
| Under $50 | 683 | $0.75 | $19.99 | $49.99 |
Write those medians down. In November you will be shown a struck-through price beside a sale price, and there is a specific problem with that: retailer list prices in product feeds are frequently placeholders. We have measured this — feeds carry repdigit list prices such as $999 and $9,999, and some advertisers mark down their entire catalogue permanently. A percentage off computed from those two fields is not a fact. A comparison against a dated September price is.
What to do with this, by shopper type
- Buying a specific character or model: buy early. Nostalgia toy ranges are shallow, the popular character sells out first, and it sells out before the price drops. This is the most common way Black Friday costs people money in this category.
- Buying "a toy" with a budget: wait. 442 of the 790 priced items here are already under $25, and the budget end is where the genuine November discounting happens.
- Buying vintage rather than new: Black Friday does not exist for you. Peer-to-peer sellers do not run coordinated sales, and the 1990s object you want is not in any retailer's Black Friday ad.
Last verified 1 September 2026. Price figures are computed from 807 nostalgia toy and plush listings by 40 US retailers in the CJ product feed on this date, 790 of them carrying a usable price; peer-to-peer listings are excluded from the retail rows. 2025 event dates are from Walmart's corporate newsroom announcement of 27 October 2025 and Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days announcement. Black Friday 2026 is a calendar fact.
Some links here are affiliate links. LinkToLooks has earned $0 from them to date — no network has approved us yet — so nothing on this page is picked to hit a payout.
Frequently asked
When do Black Friday toy deals start in 2026?
No 2026 dates have been announced yet. On the 2025 pattern, expect a major early event in the first half of October, retailer announcements in late October, a first sale wave in mid-November, and Black Friday itself on 27 November 2026.
When did Black Friday deals start in 2025?
Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days ran 7-8 October 2025. Walmart announced its events on 27 October and ran the first from 14-16 November, with Walmart+ early access from 7pm ET on 13 November. Black Friday itself was 28 November.
What do nostalgia toys cost before Black Friday?
790 toy and plush items from 40 US retailers were priced on 1 September 2026 at a median of $23.63, ranging $0.75 to $5200.00. 442 of them were under $25.
Should I wait for Black Friday to buy toys?
Only if you are buying to a budget rather than for a specific character. Ranges are shallow and popular characters sell out before prices drop, so waiting risks losing the item you actually wanted.
Is a struck-through price on a toy listing reliable?
Often not. Product feeds carry placeholder list prices, including repdigit values such as $999, and some advertisers show their entire catalogue as marked down permanently. Compare against a dated pre-season price instead.
Sources
- Walmart corporate newsroom, 27 October 2025 — the 14-16 and 25-30 November event windows, the Walmart+ early access times and the 1 December Cyber Monday date.
- Amazon, Prime Big Deal Days 2025 — the 7-8 October 2025 dates.
- Wikipedia, Black Friday (shopping) — the 2026 Black Friday and Cyber Monday dates.
- CJ Affiliate product feeds, US advertisers, queried 1 September 2026 — every price figure on this page.
Read next
Plush gifts under $30, priced today · Black Friday content calendar for creators · Are affiliate feed sale prices real discounts?