Black Friday is the best time of the year to shop gaming deals. Since gaming is a highly giftable category, retailers make sure their Black Friday deals on consoles are extra enticing, offering them with free games and accessories, which is called "bundling." That's good news if you're shopping for the Xbox Series S or Series X this year.
While demand for Xbox consoles reached an all-time high during Black Friday 2021, there were fewer out-of-stock issues during Black Friday 2022 and 2023 and more opportunities for video game deals. That said, it's going to be rare to find outright discounts this year on the new Xbox consoles (which Xbox just released in 2024). We'll tell you where you're most likely to find savings.
KCL TIP: Twelve percent of shoppers are looking for Black Friday deals on toys and gaming this year, according to our survey.
Black Friday can get complicated. To make things easier on yourself, use our new Deal Planner™ feature in the free Krazy Coupon Lady app to set alerts for all the Black Friday sales! We'll remind you when they start so you don't miss out. Download the KCL app now.
For Black Friday 2024, look for bundles for the best value. Expect to pay $300 for an older model, up to $600 for a new one.
Old consoles: $50 - $75 off the price tag with $50 - $75 in gift cards and extras thrown on top of that discount.
New consoles: Full sticker price, but the console comes bundled with a free game, Game Pass credit, accessories, or a smaller (think $25) store gift card.
This is based on last year's deals and what we usually see when it comes to new consoles. Od stuff gets discounted and offered with extras, while new stuff is full price with extras thrown in.
Expected 2024 prices:
Series X 2TB for $599.99 (physical disk drive)
Series X 1TB (digital version, doesn't play physical disks) for $449.99
Series S 1TB (digital) for $349.99
And then there are the older models, which retailers including Walmart and Best Buy still stock:
Series X 1TB (physical disk drive) for $499.99
Series S 512GB (digital) for $299.99
You'll have better luck with discounts if you're shopping for games instead of consoles.
While console discounts (especially on newer consoles) can be tough to come by, games are frequently and generously discounted on Black Friday.
Last year, the best game deals we saw included all these:
Star Wars Jedi Survivor, as low as $28.49 (59% off)
Digital Download: Just Dance 2024, as low as $37.99 (37% off)
Popular sports games for as low as $7.11 (86% off).
Star Wars games for just $28.99 (56% off)
Don't forget about controllers and Game Pass memberships. Those also see discounts on Black Friday.
Target, Best Buy, and Walmart all have good Xbox deals during Black Friday, but Target has an edge with gift cards.
Last year, we saw these Big 3 retailers all hit the same sticker prices of $249 ($50 off) for the Series S and $449 ($50 off) for the Series X at some point during their Black Friday sales. But Target has a history of being extra generous. In 2023, it offered a $75 Target gift card with the Xbox Series X. And in 2022, it offered a $50 Target gift card with the Series S.
What we're saying is you'll want to watch Target's Black Friday sale extra closely for gift card deals.
When it comes to the new consoles, we'll likely see the Target Black Friday sale, the Best Buy Black Friday sale, and the Walmart Black Friday sale offer the same bundles for around the same price across the board.
If a new-console bundle gets super popular, consider early access with Walmart+.
We don't know yet which bundles are being offered with the new consoles this year or if there will be any collectible editions. But if one of them is a hit, it could sell out. In past years, Walmart+ membership (discounted by 50% right now to $49 a year) was handy for gaming consoles that sold out quickly. That's because Walmart+ membership gets you access to Walmart's Black Friday sale early (five hours early this year).
Granted, we last saw membership really make a difference in 2021, when there was a massive demand for gaming systems and a chip shortage. That's less likely this year. So spring for membership only if the following are true for you:
You or someone on your list must have a specific collectible console bundle in time for Christmas, and ...
That bundle is hot and low in stock or out of stock heading into Black Friday.
Discounts on the new models aren't likely.
It's common for new consoles to not be discounted in their first couple years, and Xbox's new lineup of three just came out in October 2024:
Series X 2TB (physical disk drive)
Series X 1TB (digital version, doesn't play physical disks)
Series S 1TB (digital)
These are the top Xbox deals from Black Friday 2023.
Here are some of the deals we saw last year. Remember, these weren't on the newest consoles, which just came out this year:
Diablo IV and Xbox Series X bundle with free game for $449 ($50 off) at various retailers and at Target with a $75 Target gift card thrown in.
Forza Horizon and Xbox Series X bundle with free game for $450 ($50 off) at various retailers.
Xbox Series S for $249 ($50 off) bundle with a 3-month Game Pass included (a $30 value) at Target.
Shop More Black Friday Deals:
Tell us what you think