With Prime Big Deal Days (aka Amazon’s October Prime Day) mere days away, the deals are in full bloom. While the big day doesn’t officially start until Oct. 8 at 12:01 a.m. PT, deal hunters like us are on the move, seeking out the markdowns that are actually worth it (and what you can skip.) One of the pillars of Amazon’s daily deals is “lightning deals,” aka flash deals offering deep discounts.
We noticed last Prime Day that these deals became mysteriously hard to find without explanation. Fortunately, as October Prime Day nears, these limited-time promotions are much easier to shop. Here’s everything you need to know about lightning deals and how to find them.
What are lightning deals?
Credit: Screenshot: Amazon
As you’re getting ready for another Prime Day on Oct. 8 and 9, knowing the different types of deals can help you shop smarter.
Lightning deals are offers on products only available for a specific amount of time and in limited quantity. They’re signified on product pages with a little bar that reads “X% claimed.” The deals are available until all units have been claimed or the deal timer runs out — whichever comes first. Lightning deals are usually limited to one day, sometimes only lasting a few hours, and new deals rotate daily.
They’re certainly tantalizing — since these deals don’t hang around for long, they put the pressure on to buy ASAP. Lightning deals are also only available to Prime members and may not appear to non-members.
Did Amazon get rid of lighting deals?
Strangely, some very keen Prime members noticed last spring that the category for lightning deals on the “Today’s Deals” tab at Amazon had disappeared. They weren’t completely gone but became inexplicably harder to find. One Reddit poster noted that they called Amazon after lightning deals disappeared and were told that the company was updating the system to make it better for users. For months, the lightning deals just blended into the regular deals.
We’re pleased to announce that the official “Lightning deals” tab has returned this fall, making it easier to shop the limited-time offers during October Prime Day.
How to find lightning deals
Credit: Screenshot: Amazon
Thankfully, Amazon made finding lightning deals a breeze once again. All active lightning deals can be found by navigating to the “Today’s Deals” tab of Amazon, then clicking on ‘Lightning deals,’ which is marked with a yellow lightning bolt.
You’ll also notice that all lightning deals are marked with a bar that says “X% claimed” which sits right under the product listing. The higher the percentage claimed, the closer the deal is to ending. Occasionally, you’ll also see a countdown clock on the listings, but usually, it’s just the percentage claimed bar.
Credit: Screenshot: Amazon
If you’re using the Amazon app, you can find lightning deals similarly by tapping the three-line menu at the bottom right of your screen. Then tap “Today’s Deals” and choose the “Lightning deals” tab to filter the current available deals.
When do lightning deals expire?
Lightning deals don’t last long, but how long do they usually last? There’s no standard time frame. Typically, they last between a couple of hours and up to 24 hours, but because they’re also available in limited quantity, the deals may go before time runs out.
Amazon doesn’t tell you how many deals are available, only the percentage claimed, so the higher it gets, the closer it is to running out.
Lightning deals expire when either time runs out or when all the available products have been claimed — whichever comes first. If there’s a lightning deal you really want, we recommend purchasing it right away, since these deals are guaranteed not to last.
Are lightning deals any good?
We can’t categorically say all lightning deals are good or bad. Like any deal on Amazon, it totally depends. Sometimes lightning deals are on products from sketchy third-party products with no name recognition — those you want to skip.
But other times, big brands will be featured with products up to 50% off, and those are the deals to catch. If you’re unsure, tools like camelcamelcamel are a fantastic price-tracking resource to utilize. If you find a lightning deal, use the camelcamelcamel extension to check the product’s price history to see just how good the lightning deal actually is.
