Black Friday 2018: Which Are The Best Stores To Shop At?

Black Friday is days away, and consumers are gearing up for what promises to be a huge shopping day. But where can you find the best deals? WalletHub has taken the guesswork out of Black Friday shopping with a report that indicates which retailers are offering the biggest discounts in 2018.

For the report, WalletHub surveyed nearly 7,000 deals from 35 leading U.S. retailers, compiling the data into several shopping categories. Overall, Belk will offer the biggest discount on Black Friday with an average savings of 68.9 percent. Belk was followed by JCPenney at 65.1 percent, Stage at 62.1 percent, and Kohls with an average 60.8 percent savings.

Other retailers to make the top 10 list include New York & Company (54.5 percent), Payless Shoe Source (50.3 percent), Dick’s Sporting Goods (49.9 percent), Macy’s (48.7 percent), Fred Meyer (45.3 percent), and Shopko (45.2 percent).

Elsewhere in the survey, Walmart’s Black Friday savings averaged 29.9 percent, the high-demand Best Buy came in at 28.7 percent and popular retailer Target came in with an average savings of 34.8 percent.

Ranking at the bottom of the report was True Value with only a 16.3 percent average savings for its Black Friday 2018 sale. Also, down on the list was Gander Outdoors (18 percent), Ace Hardware (21.9 percent) and Sam’s Club (22.3 percent).

The report from WalletHub found that the average overall discount that shoppers can expect to receive on Black Friday is 37 percent. It recommends that consumers aim for at least this discount amount when shopping Black Friday to avoid a high-price trap.

Consumers can expect to save the most on apparel and accessories as this product category made up the largest share of discounts with an average 23.28 percent off, according to the report. Books, movies, and music didn’t stack up so well only netting shoppers a dismal 0.82 percent savings.

Computer and phone deals are hot on Black Friday, and consumers can expect to see a 12.96 percent average discount on these items. Buying other consumer electronics will save you an average of 8.86 percent this year.