Introduction
Amazon’s Prime membership provides access to free delivery, streaming entertainment, and exclusive shopping events. In addition to traditional holiday events like Black Friday, Amazon created two exclusive sale events for Prime members: Prime Day, usually held in July, and Prime Big Deal Days (formerly the Prime Early Access Sale) in October. These events give members early access to discounts across a huge range of products and have become major drivers of e‑commerce sales.
Prime Day: history and purpose
Prime Day began in July 2015 as a one‑day celebration of Amazon’s 20th birthday. It has evolved into a multi‑day event that delivers tens of millions of deals across categories and includes participation from small businesses. Prime Day typically takes place mid‑July; in recent years it has extended to two or more days and even four days in 2025. Customers must be Prime members to access deals, and the sale is held across multiple countries. By 2025 the event spanned four days (July 8–11) and expanded to include countries such as Ireland and Colombiaaboutamazon.com.
The event encourages Prime membership sign‑ups and supports independent sellers. Prime members benefit from free shipping on millions of items, exclusive discounts, and promotions across Amazon’s services such as Prime Video, Amazon Music and Amazon Freshaboutamazon.com.
Prime Day highlights
| Year | Key facts and outcomes | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Prime Day took place July 11–12. The first day became the single largest sales day in Amazon’s history and the event was the company’s biggest Prime Day to date. Over two days, members bought more than 375 million items and saved over $2.5 billionaboutamazon.com. Independent sellers—mainly small or medium‑sized businesses—experienced record sales growthaboutamazon.com. Top‑selling categories included home, fashion and beauty; best‑selling products included the Fire TV Stick, Apple AirPods and Bissell portable cleanersaboutamazon.com. | Amazon press releaseaboutamazon.com |
| 2024 | Prime Day 2024 ran July 16–17 and was again Amazon’s biggest Prime Day yet, with record sales and more items sold than any previous Prime Dayaboutamazon.com. Prime members globally saved billions of dollars on deals across more than 35 categoriesaboutamazon.com. The event attracted millions of new Prime members in the weeks leading up to itaboutamazon.com. Popular brands included Sol de Janeiro, Apple, Dyson and Ring; independent sellers sold over 200 million itemsaboutamazon.com. Amazon introduced generative‑AI tools such as Rufus, a conversational shopping assistant, to help members find productsaboutamazon.com. | Amazon recapaboutamazon.com |
| 2025 | Prime Day 2025 extended to four days (July 8–11). Amazon said it was its biggest Prime Day shopping event ever, with billions of dollars saved across more than 35 categoriesaboutamazon.com. The extended duration allowed more time to shop, and new features such as Alexa+, Rufus and AI shopping guides helped customers discover dealsaboutamazon.com. Best‑selling products included AirPods Pro 2, collagen masks and Ring Battery Doorbellsaboutamazon.com. Members also took advantage of grocery deals like 50 % off ice cream and savings at Whole Foods Marketaboutamazon.com. | Amazon recapaboutamazon.com |
Prime Big Deal Days (Prime Early Access Sale)
Definition and purpose
- Prime Big Deal Days is Amazon’s fall shopping event. It was introduced as the Prime Early Access Sale in October 2022 and later rebranded. The event typically takes place in early October and lasts 48 hours. Prime members receive access to deals across electronics, fashion, home, kitchen, toys and Amazon devicesaboutamazon.com. New deals drop as often as every five minutesaboutamazon.com. In 2024 the event spanned 19 countries including Germany, France, Italy, Japan and the United Statesaboutamazon.com. Like Prime Day, membership is requiredaboutamazon.com.*
- The event strategically kicks off the holiday shopping season, encouraging members to purchase gifts early and offering deeper discounts on seasonal items. Marketing experts note that shoppers use Prime Big Deal Days to secure holiday gifts before Black Fridayincrementumdigital.com. While Prime Day focuses on summer deals and back‑to‑school purchases, Prime Big Deal Days emphasises gift categories and holiday essentialsincrementumdigital.com.*
Prime Big Deal Days highlights
| Year | Key facts and outcomes | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Prime Big Deal Days 2023 (10–11 Oct.) marked the kick‑off to the holiday season. Amazon reported that Prime members saved more than $1 billion across millions of dealsaboutamazon.com. More members shopped than in the previous year, and independent sellers experienced record salesaboutamazon.com. U.S. customers purchased over 25 million items via Same‑Day or Next‑Day delivery on the first day, with the fastest delivery taking only 54 minutesaboutamazon.com. Top‑selling products included Apple AirPods Pro (2nd generation), Bissell Little Green cleaner, Crest 3D Whitestrips and LANEIGE lip masksaboutamazon.com. | Amazon recapaboutamazon.comaboutamazon.com |
| 2024 | Prime Big Deal Days 2024 (8–9 Oct.) was Amazon’s biggest October shopping event ever. More Prime members shopped than during previous fall events, and the two‑day event recorded over $1 billion in savingsaboutamazon.com. Top‑selling categories included electronics, home, toys, beauty and apparel. Popular brands included Dyson, Mattel, Levi’s and Appleaboutamazon.com. Amazon’s AI shopping assistant Rufus provided tailored deal recommendations to customers, while visual tools such as Amazon Lens and generative AI shopping guides helped users discover productsaboutamazon.com. The event was the start of the holiday shopping season, with strong sales of products like Laneige and Sulwhasoo skincare, Apple AirPods and watches, Barbie and Fisher‑Price toys, Levi’s denim and Dyson vacuumsaboutamazon.com. | Amazon recapaboutamazon.com |
Expected 2025 event
As of August 25 2025, Amazon had not yet announced the official dates for Prime Big Deal Days 2025. However, based on previous years, analysts expect the event to return in mid‑October 2025photographmyproduct.co.uk. Marketing experts remind sellers to prepare for both Prime Day and Prime Big Deal Days by optimising listings, planning inventory and offering time‑limited promotionsphotographmyproduct.co.uk.
Differences between Prime Day and Prime Big Deal Days
| Aspect | Prime Day | Prime Big Deal Days | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timing | Usually mid‑July; started in 2015 and by 2025 expanded to a four‑day event (July 8–11)aboutamazon.com. | Typically early October; 2024 event ran Oct. 8–9aboutamazon.com. | Prime Day serves as a mid‑year sale, while Prime Big Deal Days kicks off holiday shopping season. |
| Duration | Historically a single day, then two days; 2025 event lasted four daysaboutamazon.com. | Two‑day event (48 hours)aboutamazon.com. | Prime Day’s duration has expanded over time; Prime Big Deal Days remains a shorter, flash‑sale format. |
| Focus | Deals across electronics, home, fashion, beauty and numerous categories; strong emphasis on Amazon devices and personal purchasesaboutamazon.com. | Early holiday shopping; deals on gift categories such as toys, seasonal décor and popular electronicsincrementumdigital.com. | Prime Day encourages mid‑year self‑shopping, whereas Prime Big Deal Days targets gift‑givers preparing for the holidays. |
| Shopping features | In 2025, Amazon introduced AI tools such as Alexa+, Rufus and AI shopping guides to help customers find dealsaboutamazon.com. | Prime Big Deal Days uses similar AI tools; 2024 event highlighted Rufus, Inspire and Amazon Lens to recommend giftsaboutamazon.com. | Both events leverage AI to improve deal discovery, but the holiday‑oriented features emphasise gift suggestions during Prime Big Deal Days. |
| Countries | 2025 event expanded to include 20+ countries and added Ireland and Colombiaaboutamazon.com. | 2024 event took place in 19 countries including Germany, France, Italy and the U.S.aboutamazon.com. | Both events are global but some markets receive unique product offerings. |
| Membership requirement | Prime membership required; non‑members can join or use free trialsaboutamazon.com. | Same requirementaboutamazon.com. | Both events are exclusive to Prime members. |
Tips for shoppers
- Join or trial Prime early – only Prime members can access deals. Amazon offers free trial options and discounted memberships for young adults and people receiving government assistanceaboutamazon.com.
- Prepare wish lists – because new deals drop regularly (sometimes every five minutes during Prime Big Deal Daysaboutamazon.com), having items saved to a wish list helps track discounts.
- Use Amazon’s AI tools – generative AI assistants such as Rufus and Alexa+ can answer product questions and provide personalised deal recommendationsaboutamazon.comaboutamazon.com.
- Compare events – Prime Day often features the lowest prices of the summer, while Prime Big Deal Days offers early holiday deals. If you miss one event, the other provides another chance to saveabc7ny.com.
Conclusion
Amazon’s Prime Day and Prime Big Deal Days are now key fixtures in the retail calendar. Prime Day began as a birthday celebration but has grown into a record‑breaking sale where members buy hundreds of millions of items and save billions of dollarsaboutamazon.com. The introduction of Prime Big Deal Days extends these benefits to the fall, giving members early access to holiday deals. Both events highlight Amazon’s emphasis on membership value, global reach and technological innovation. Although Prime Big Deal Days 2025 has not yet been scheduled, the mid‑October pattern suggests the event will return, giving shoppers another opportunity to save ahead of the holidays.
