Top 6 Things Americans Bought This Black Friday

$7.4 billion. That’s the amount spent by Americans this 2019 on Black Friday, perhaps the biggest consumer holiday of all year. Its partner holiday, Cyber Monday, also reached a record-high $9.4 billion this year. And guess what, that’s on online sales alone.

It’s no wonder that Black Friday is putting Americans in debt each year. But if you’re wondering to what cause, then here are the 5 top things that Americans bought this Black Friday!

1.     Electronics

Is that even a surprise at this point? Judging by how determined consumers are to snag their favorite gadgets–even waiting outside stores for hours–you can safely bet that they’re willing to go on debt just to get their hands on one. In fact, majority of Americans who bought from Black Friday this year bought electronic devices like gaming consoles, cellphones, and even TVs.

Top choices include Nintendo Switch and video games like Call of Duty, Madden 20, and FIFA 20, Apple gadgets like Macbook and AirPods, and Samsung flatscreens. Nintendo Switch was by far the most popular though, selling 830,000 units within Black Friday week. Interestingly, it’s also the third year in a row that the Nintendo Switch topped Black Friday sales.

2. Toys

Remember what we said about Disney’s influence? Guess what, Frozen 2-related merchandise topped the toys’ section of this year’s Black Friday sales. That includes Hasbro’s Frozen 2 Edition Monopoly boardgame, Frozen 2 dolls, and other Frozen 2 children’s toys.

Lego also took a big percentage of the sales, with its Lego Star Wars Darth Vader’s Castle toy.

3.     Subscriptions

Over 10 million new subscribers signed up for Disney+ just a day after it launched. We’re not sure if the discount had anything to do with it, as they merely gave $10 off the annual subscription which typically costs $79.99 a year. Most of it has something to do with nostalgia, but that still does say something about Disney’s influence. And about us too.

Another subscription service that gained more subscribers this Black Friday is Hulu. A regular service costs $5.99, but with Black Friday, subscribers can avail a year’s worth of subscriptions for just $1.99 a month. If you like cable TV but don’t want to avail a cable TV service, you can just get Hulu. It can even come bundled with Disney+, so you don’t even have to choose between the two.

4. Apparel

Allbirds didn’t actually give any discounts to its loyal fans, sadly. But it did take advantage of the holiday to drop three new limited-edition colorways of its famed Tree Runners. Made out of eucalyptus pulp, the shoes are said to have a cooling effect, as well as the ability to prevent moisture from building. With a tagline of “the world’s most comfortable shoes”, the brand’s certainly winning Black Friday, even without discounts.

Adidas and Nike, on the other hand, offered pretty steep discounts for their shoes, ranging from 25% to 50% for certain styles. The boost in sales is not a surprise for these two, definitely.

5. Bluetooth Speakers

Wireless peripherals are all the rage nowadays and tech companies are scrambling to come out with their own wireless offerings. Google offered pretty big discounts for the Echo Dot, dropping $27.99 off its $49.99 price tag. It’s honestly a really solid choice if you’re looking for affordable speakers without breaking the bank.

Another thing that consumers made sure to buy on this year’s Black Friday? The Echo Show 5, which cut $30 off its $89.99 price tag. It has a compact display which you can use to watch videos on Prime, see Alexa’s responses, or even view footage from your connected security cameras.

6.  Cleaning Gadgets

Pretty much everyone loves convenience, so we can’t blame anyone for wanting to buy something that lessens the time needed to do household chores.

Enter the Roomba 675, a robot vacuum that allows humans to sit around while it does all the job cleaning the floor. You can even connect it with your smartphone and have it clean the house while you’re away. With a $100 discount off its $299.99 retail price this Black Friday, we got to say that it was a pretty good deal.