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It's almost Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year. But over the years, Black Friday has turned into a month-long event, with some of the biggest retailers offering sales early. Major retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, Target, Walmart, and Samsung have plenty of models on sale already.
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We've already been able to snag excellent deals on budget-friendly TVs from major makers like TCL, Vizio, Hisense, Samsung, and LG as well as top-of-the-line OLED and QLED TVs from LG, Vizio, Samsung and Sony.
►Black Friday: Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Home Depot are closed on Thanksgiving but CVS, Walgreens are open. See the list.
For more ideas you can check out our extremely comprehensive gift guides, which have hundreds of recommendations for products to give to someone you care about (even if it's yourself).
The best Black Friday TV deals you can already get
There are a ton of excellent Black Friday deals that you can already get on TVs big and small. We've tried to highlight a wide range of prices here from retailers from Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and direct from Samsung.
The best deals we've found so far are probably these four, though check out the full list of deals (organized by retailer) to see which ones work best for you:
The best Samsung TV deals available now:
The best Amazon TV deals available now:
The best Best Buy TV deals available now:
The best Walmart TV deals available now:
The best Target TV deals available now:
Is Black Friday a good time to buy a TV?
In a word, yes. You'll see some of the biggest price drops of the year on TVs during Black Friday. That's because manufacturers are preparing to launch their new 2022 model TVs, which means they'll be offering deep discounts on older models, including ones from 2021, confirmed Michael Desjardin, senior TV writer at Reviewed. Some of the best TVs we’ve seen this year have already come down in price, and in some cases, the discounts are steep, as much as $800 off, depending on the brand, features, size and year model of the TV.
What are the best TVs to buy?
Desjardin says his first piece of advice for shoppers when selecting a TV on Black Friday is to take stock of what you're looking for and how much you're willing to spend.
He notes that any TV worth its salt these days will be a smart TV, meaning it can connect to the internet to offer access to a variety of apps, like Netflix and YouTube, via pre-installed software. "Even the most affordable TVs are smart TVs these days," he added, "so there’s really no point in trying to find a TV that isn’t a smart TV."
When it comes to screen size, Desjardin said to consider how far away you'll be sitting from the TV. "Will you, your family and your guests be sitting relatively far away from your new TV—more than eight feet, for example? If so, you’ll probably want to secure a 65- to 75-inch TV. Small TVs—32 to 43 inches—are best suited for kitchens, dorms and guest rooms.” One more thing to note: If you opt for a big TV and you’re not planning on wall-mounting it, he said, be sure that the console is wide enough to accommodate its stand.
Where you're placing the TV will impact your buy, too: If your living space receives a ton of natural light during the daytime, you’ll want to consider a brighter LED TV, whereas if you're a videophile who watches a lot content in the dark, you may want to spring for an OLED. You can read up on the differences in our OLED/QLED guide.
Still not sure where to start? We’ve got you: Reviewed thoroughly tests TVs in our Cambridge, MA, lab, and we’ve rounded up the best TVs of 2021 to help you with your search. Check out our coverage of the Best TVs of 2021, Best TVs Under $500 of 2021 and Best Big Screen TVs Under $1,000 of 2021.
When will Black Friday deals on TVs start?
Black Friday deals on TVs have already begun. Many retailers are calling them early Black Friday prices or pre-Black Friday sales, with many offering deep discounts on plenty of models available in inventory right now.
Are there early Black Friday deals on TVs?
Yes. As noted in the list above, there are plenty of early deals on TVs. While some sales will run up to and through Black Friday, others are limited or flash sales, with discounts running for just one or two days while supplies last.
What TV brand is best?
We test thousands of TVs in our labs in Cambridge, MA to find the best TVs possible, including every major release from every major brand like Samsung, LG, Sony, Vizio, TCL, Hisense, and more. There is no brand that is the "best" TV brand, every one of those brands makes some TVs we recommend highly and some that we do not.
Which TV should I buy?
There are many things to consider when buying a TV. We try to highlight a range of the best TV deals going into Black Friday, but there are still some decisions you'll want to make before deciding which deal is the best one for you.
The most important features to consider are the TV size, the screen type, refresh rate, the number of HDMI ports, any gaming features, and features that will work well with the streaming TV apps you prefer to use, like Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, and Apple TV+.
For size, the standard these days is 55 inches. That's the most common size across TV makers and types, and it's usually where you'll find the best deals. You can find an excellent 55-inch TV for $300 and under on Black Friday. If you have the wall space, a 65-inch TV gives you a little more real estate, and usually the price difference is less significant on Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
If you want a massive TV, you'll likely need to pay a little bit more money, as they are less common, though we'll feature plenty of deals on TVs that are 80 inches or bigger. Though it may be on a TV that is a traditional LCD or LED TV instead of the newer QLED or OLED TVs.
Should you wait for Black Friday deals on TVs?
Trying to weigh future price drops and availability now can be daunting. However, some retailers offer assurances through a Black Friday guarantee. What that means: "If you happen to buy a new TV in the weeks leading up to Black Friday and that very same model is discounted shortly after your purchase," Desjardin said, "the retailer may reimburse you for the difference."
Best Buy, for example, guarantees that if the price goes lower on a qualifying item, it will refund the difference automatically for its My Best Buy and Best Buy Totaltech ($199.99 a year) members. Non-members can also get their price difference refunded but will need to visit a Best Buy store or contact customer service to receive it.
Continuing supply and labor shortages this year mean that resupply and delivery times for all products have been challenged. Shoppers who have specific models in mind, or who have their heart set on delivery by a certain date, should strongly consider buying products with that in mind.
Who has TV deals for Black Friday?
All of the major retailers have deals for Black Friday, including Amazon, Best Buy, Target, and Walmart. Many of the biggest brands, like Samsung, are offering great deals directly on their own websites.
OLED TV vs QLED TV: What's the difference?
Two terms you'll see thrown around a ton on Black Friday are "QLED" and "OLED" TVs. Both terms describe the type of screen that the TVs use. OLED TVs are the more technologically advanced of the two, with each pixel providing it's own light. That means they can product true blacks (similar to the picture quality benefits that you got with older Plasma displays with far fewer downsides) to go with excellent brightness, color depth, HDR, and more. Though you'll need to find one that fits your budget and size needs, every OLED TV we've tested has been excellent.
QLED TVs come in a wide range of quality levels, but typically these are brighter, more colorful versions of traditional LED TVs, using quantum dots to provide enhanced color, contrast, and brightness. They don't have the same inky blacks of OLED TVs, but they usually make up for it with far higher peak brightness levels, which makes them a great choice for bright rooms.
Roku TV vs Google TV vs Smart TV Platforms? Which is best for streaming?
It's just about impossible to buy a "dumb" TV anymore; they all come with some kind of smart platform. LG ships with webOS, Samsung TVs typically have a Tizen-based platform, Sony TVs often have Android TV, and several others have Google TV, Roku TV, or Amazon's Fire TV platform built in.
In all cases, you can still use a separate streaming device like a Roku or an Apple TV, just hook it up to any of the TV's HDMI ports and you can ignore the TV's built-in option.
That said, if you don't have a streaming device or you're buying a TV for a bedroom or a secondary room, it's an added benefit to have something like Roku built right in, so you don't need to spend the extra $20-30 to add a streaming stick or something to get apps like Netflix on those TVs.
Are Black Friday TV deals the lowest prices of the year?
In most cases, yes. Though the supply chain has made 2021 one of the weirdest years to buy a TV, this is typically when you'll find the best deal on a TV at any size. You can also safely buy a TV now even though it's not Black Friday yet; retailers are either offering some form of price-matching if the TV were to drop lower in the next few weeks, or the TVs are already on sale.
The one exception would be doorbuster deals from brands like Sharp, Westinghouse, Onn, Insignia, and some very low-level TVs that are on deep discount at retailers. Some of these TVs are okay for the price (especially if you want a 50-inch or bigger TV at a very low price) and we'll include those deals where we see them, but in most cases these limited time TVs are not worth the deal.
You can almost always find a TV we actually recommend for the same price or a little more—including 50-inch and 55-inch TVs for $200 or less—and they're made by brands that we know and trust.
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Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.
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