Tech Talk

Prime Day, Amazon's biggest sale of the year, is set to return this summer. And it will be here before you know it.

Amazon announced the return of Prime Day last month in a press release. While the retailer didn't disclose the exact dates, it teased that it will take place in July this year. The annual sale will be available to shoppers in over 20 countries, and there will be deals offered in every category through its Gold Box deals hub.

"Prime Day will once again celebrate Prime members by offering incredible savings on products from national brands and small businesses across every category," an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement. We're excited to work with our selling partners and employees to deliver another incredible Prime Day for our members."

The first Prime Day was in 2015, making this year's event Amazon's eighth shopping extravaganza. Every year it gets a little bigger, with more markdowns and more brands featured. Here's everything we know about the event so far.

Amazon revealed that Prime Day 2022 will take place in July, though there's no word on the exact date or length. Prime Day is typically held once a year, and it usually takes place in July around the time of Amazon's birthday, July 15. There have been some anomalies over the past few years: Last year, Prime Day 2021 was held in June, and in 2020, Prime Day took place in October.

Prime Day is Amazon's annual sale across its entire site that rewards shoppers, especially Prime members, with exclusive savings. The worldwide event features some of the steepest discounts and largest number of deals offered all year, sometimes matching or beating Black Friday offers. Thousands of brands and small businesses participate, and there are plenty of discounts available to non-members, too.

Amazon usually hosts Prime Day over two days, giving shoppers 48 hours to save. When Prime Day began in 2015, the sitewide sale lasted for just 24 hours. In 2017, Amazon extended its length to 30 hours, and then increased the duration again in 2018 to 36 hours.

But what many shoppers don't know is that when Amazon announces the official date of Prime Day, there are almost always exclusive savings offered on an array of products, giving them a chance to save weeks before the big sale kicks off.

Amazon offers Prime Day deals in all of its departments and categories, including electronics, home, kitchen, beauty, clothing, shoes, pets, books, and more. Best-selling items, top-rated finds, and products with thousands of five-star ratings are all included. And there are almost always epic deals on its devices, like Echo Dots and smart speakers, Fire tablets, Fire TV Sticks and televisions, Kindles, Ring doorbells, and Eero WiFi systems.

Amazon offers a huge assortment of Prime Day deals exclusively for Prime members, but there are also sales for non-subscribers. And those without a Prime membership can sign up for a free 30-day trial to gain access to every single deal. The month-long trial also comes with complimentary two-day shipping, exclusive discounts at Whole Foods, and more than 30 other perks.

With millions of deals and steep discounts, Prime Day is an excellent opportunity to save on both big-ticket purchases and everyday items, like sneakers, sunscreen, and pet food. Since anyone can sign up for a free 30-day trial of Prime and take advantage of member-exclusive deals, there's nothing to lose. Some items, like Echo Dots and Fire TV Sticks, will be marked down to the lowest prices you'll see all year, so it's a great time to shop. Use it as a chance to restock your pantry, upgrade your electronics, and get ready for back-to-school season. You can even start your holiday shopping early!

Last year, Amazon offered more than 2 million deals. Shoppers gravitated towards beauty, baby items, electronics and devices, and clothing. Amazon's best-selling items included iRobot Roomba vacuum cleaners, Keurig coffee makers, and Crest 3D Whitestrips. The Fire TV Stick 4K was its top-selling product overall. While we don't know what will be included this year, these are all likely to be available — and as popular as ever.

In addition to last year's most popular deals, we'll also be keeping tabs on products loved by our editors. There are dozens of products that have earned the PEOPLE Tested seal of approval that may go on sale, including Dash's Compact Air Fryer, Shark's Vertex DuoClean cordless stick vacuum, Lodge's cast iron skillet, and Nespresso's Vertuo Plus coffee and espresso maker.

And here's the best news of all: Amazon's Gold Box deal hub already features markdowns galore. While prices may drop further closer to Prime Day, you can save on all kinds of items right now, which is great if you don't want to wait until July or are worried about a popular item selling out. Below are just a few of the sales you can shop now.