Black Friday: how to tell a real discount from a fake one
Aug 20, 2026 · 09:00
The trick is not finding discounts. It is working out which of them are real.
Every November the same thing happens: prices go up in October so they can come down in November. The percentage on the sticker is real; the saving often isn't. Here is how to tell them apart.
Look at the reference price, not the discount. A store showing "was 200, now 120" is making a claim about the 200. In the EU, the Omnibus Directive requires that the reference price be the lowest price the store charged in the previous thirty days. That rule has teeth, and most large retailers now comply, but the wording can still be slippery. "Recommended retail price" is not the same as "our price last month".
Check the price history yourself. Browser extensions and price tracking sites will show you what an item actually cost over the past year. Two minutes of checking will tell you whether a Black Friday price is genuinely the lowest of the year or merely the lowest of the week.
Be sceptical of round percentages on unbranded goods. A generic item at "70% off" often had a made-up starting price. A well-known brand at 20% off is usually the better deal, because the starting price was real.
Watch the specification, not just the model name. Retailers sometimes run Black Friday variants of popular electronics with slightly reduced specifications: less memory, a smaller panel, a lower refresh rate. The model number will differ by a letter or two.
Know what genuinely drops. Last-generation electronics, seasonal clothing, and large appliances see real reductions because retailers need the shelf space. New releases, popular game consoles, and anything supply-constrained rarely do.
Decide before the day. The single best defence against a fake discount is knowing what you wanted to buy and roughly what it should cost. If you go in looking for bargains, you will find things you didn't need at prices you didn't check.
And a practical note: the best codes tend to appear in the days before Black Friday and expire during it, not after. Waiting until the last hour is usually a mistake.
