Don’t Break Your Budget on Black Friday

Black Friday – named for the day that’s expected to put retailers “into the black” for the year – is both a curse and a blessing for shoppers. It’s true, some stores may offer worthwhile discounts on a few of the gifts on your list. But the deluge of sales and promotions, both in stores and online, can easily overwhelm even the most disciplined and budget-minded among us.

Last year, battered by inflation and hungry for discounts, Americans spent a record $9.8 billion on Black Friday – and that was only online purchases, according to an Adobe Analytics study.

And the fact that $5.3 billion of those sales came through mobile devices may illustrate the growing influence of social media and influencers, who are perfectly positioned to inspire impulse buys. Adobe predicts that U.S. shoppers will spend even more money on this year’s Black Friday deals as retailers aggressively cut prices to attract shoppers weary of high prices.

So what? Unplanned holiday spending sprees cause real financial strain. Setting a holiday spending limit will help you avoid overstretching your budget and going into debt. And it’s worth noting that the truly great deals are few and far in between – especially on the hottest products, notes Wirecutter. In fact, most of the stuff featured in Black Friday promotions are only nominally discounted or go on sale regularly. Sure, there are quality deals out there on Black Friday. But almost none of them are worth breaking your budget.

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Photo Credit: iStock/SethCortright

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