Cyber Monday is upon us and if you are wondering when Cyber Monday ends, there are only a few hours left to grab a bargain in one of the year's biggest sales, so you'll need to be quick.
The last few days have seen many retailers slashing their prices for Black Friday, and the deals aren't done yet. In fact, we've been scouring the sales to bring you round ups of the best of the best bargains to help you get more bang for your buck:
Quick links to Cyber Monday sales
If you haven't got time to scour the sales, don't worry, we've done it for you. We've found the deals that offer the best value so you don't waste your money on a dud deal:
But as Which? research found that nine out of 10 Black Friday deals were actually cheaper at other times of the year, it's important to be savvy to make sure you bag a genuine bargain.
Personal finance expert Rachel Lacey says: "Always keep at the back of your mind that Black Friday and Cyber Monday is a retailer’s ruse to get us to spend more money. Yes, there will be bargains out there, but you could easily end up spending more than you can afford, quite possibly on things you don’t need or won’t get used.
"Don’t beat yourself up if you do get carried away though. If in the cold light of day you realise you’ve spent too much, you may be able to return items and get a refund."
When does Cyber Monday end?
Cyber Monday ends at 11.59pm tonight. While the date changes every year, Cyber Monday always falls on the first Monday after Black Friday.
In the past, Black Friday deals used to be found in store and deals moved online for Cyber Monday, but while the name has stuck, a lot of retailers offer their deals in store and on their app or website for both Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
While Black Friday and Cyber Monday used to only take place on those two days, many retailers tend to start slashing prices in advance of Black Friday until Cyber Monday is over. For example, this year, Amazon started its Black Friday Week on 17 November and it will run until midnight tonight. That's 10 days of slashed prices. Cyber Monday normally marks the end of the Black Friday deals frenzy and is often the last chance to benefit from price discounts before Boxing Day sales start.
Is Cyber Monday as good as Black Friday?
Over the last few years, Cyber Monday and Black Friday sales have blended into one big sale, so there tends to be little difference in how good the deals are. In our coverage of Black Friday weekend deals this year, we've found that a lot of the discounts are the same on Cyber Monday as they were in Black Friday. But, remember that retailers might switch up which products are discounted throughout the sale period.
Some retailers may also offer extra discounts towards the end of the Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale to help clear out any sale stock they haven't yet sold, but that is always at the retailer's discretion rather than being common practice.
If you spot a deal on a product you have on your shopping list, it can be a gamble whether you buy it when you see it or hold out to see if the price will go down after Christmas. If it's something you particularly need, then it is a good idea to buy it as soon as you spot a good deal. That way you know you have it, and don't have to worry about it selling out.
If it's something that you then see significantly reduced, depending on your available finances, you could always buy it again and return the more expensive one. But make sure you know your consumer rights to avoid being left out of pocket.
But if what you're looking for is more of a 'nice-to-have' then it may be worth waiting to see if the price goes down again. But if it doesn't and you miss out, then it's worth adding it to a list to look out for in the Boxing Day or January sales instead.
Top tips for bagging a last-minute Cyber Monday deal
1. Do your research
Remember, a bargain is only a bargain if you were planning to buy it anyway, so carefully consider what you need to buy. Do some research to see where you can buy the item you're looking for and which is offering the cheapest price on Cyber Monday. Also make sure you check the before price or RRP to make sure you're getting a genuine deal.
If you are buying something from Amazon, check out the CamelCamelCamel Amazon price checker - it'll show you the historical pricing for the item you want to buy and you can see if the price on Cyber Monday is the cheapest price, or whether you can save even more by waiting until a different time of year.
2. Take into account any delivery fees
Factor in any charges for delivery that you might have to pay when shopping for a bargain. If you can get free delivery or do click and collect, that's a good idea, rather than paying an extra £4+ for delivery which will eat into the money you have saved.
3. Get cashback
Sign up to a cashback site, and you can earn a bit of extra money on your purchases. It might only be a few pennies on any Cyber Monday purchases, but if you get into the habit of using a cashback site every time you shop online, the pennies will soon add up.
If you're not sure what to buy over Cyber Monday, then check out our guide to the top Christmas toys to see which items we really rate.
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