Hobby Lobby is known for their massive discounts. In fact, if you’re not saving at least 30% on any given Hobby Lobby trip, you’re probably doing it wrong. Over the holidays, they do something extra special, though. They ratchet their sales up to 90% off, and they do it quickly. Timing is an important part of Hobby Lobby Christmas clearance sales, as the sooner you shop, the more inventory there will be to choose from.
Hobby Lobby does Christmas clearance so well that you can score some massive deals — even before the holidays hit. Let’s get into how you can maximize your savings at Hobby Lobby this season.
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1. Hobby Lobby Christmas clearance sales start early, with 70% – 75% markdowns.
Hobby Lobby is notorious for huge Christmas clearance sales that launch early. In years past, the mid-December sale launch had maxed out at 66%.
But last year? This early sale was even better. Through Dec. 31, holiday items were marked down as much as 75% off.
2. Shop in January to save up to 90% on Christmas clearance.
Like other stores, Hobby Lobby has a graduated Christmas clearance schedule. That means the sales get better as time goes on.
In late December, Christmas decor was 70% off. But after Dec. 31, they drop the prices even lower. Starting on Jan. 2, all remaining Christmas items in stores are marked down even further — to 90% off.
3. But the longer you wait, the fewer choices you’ll have.
There is a downside to waiting for the steeper discounts. The longer you wait to shop, the less inventory there will be. If there’s a specific piece of decor you’re hunting for, it might be worth picking it up at a higher price point, as you don’t know if it’ll be there as January goes on.
But if you don’t mind picking through what’s left over, by all means — wait for the bigger sales.
4. It’s always better to shop Hobby Lobby Christmas clearance in person.
If you’re going to shop Hobby Lobby Christmas clearance, it’s a much better idea to do it in person. Hobby Lobby charges some hefty shipping fees (starting at $7.95) when you shop online, and promo codes for free shipping are hard to come by.
To give you an idea of just how heinous these shipping charges are, here are the first 10 tiers:
- Order total of $15 or less: $7.95
- $15.01 – $25: $8.95
- $25.01 – $35: $9.95
- $35.01 – $50: $10.95
- $50.01 – $65: $11.95
- $65.01 – $80: $12.95
- $80.01 – $100: $14.95
- $100.10 – $125: $16.95
- $125.01 – $150: $19.95
- $150.01 – $200: $21.95
And they just keep going up from there.
Related: If free shipping is your jam, we found 60+ stores that always have free shipping offers.
5. Mark your calendar for even earlier Christmas clearance in 2023.
The 70% off sale isn’t actually the first run Hobby Lobby takes on Christmas clearance. You’ll be able to find holiday items 40% off starting in mid-July every year and then 50% off from late September through mid-December.
TIP: These hacks to save money when you’re shopping Hobby Lobby — regardless of the time of year.
6. Keep it in perspective: Hobby Lobby survives on sale pricing.
Hobby Lobby truly does offer some of the biggest discounts when it comes to Christmas clearance — and it’s meaningful because they run them so early.
But you also have to remember that Hobby Lobby operates off of huge sales. Throughout the year, if you’re not getting at least 30% off your Hobby Lobby purchases, you’re simply not saving as much as you could be.
Because you can score such deep discounts throughout the year, it’s worth noting that base pricing may be affected in order to allow room for such large percentages off. This isn’t incredibly uncommon for craft stores.
TIP: Here’s Hobby Lobby’s sales schedule. Use it to score the best deals year-round.
7. Hobby Lobby Christmas clearance is better than Michaels’.
When held up to their main competitor — Michaels — Hobby Lobby comes out on top when it comes to Christmas clearance sales.
Michaels waits until Dec. 26 to mark prices down by just 60% off. They don’t catch up to the discounts Hobby Lobby has now been offering for weeks until Dec. 29, when Michaels’ 70% off kicks in.
You won’t find another price decrease at Michaels until around Jan. 19, when prices go to 90% off.
That means the only time frames where Michaels’ sales are the same percentage-off as Hobby Lobby are around Dec. 29 – Dec. 31, when Hobby Lobby runs away with the lead until Jan. 19 — at which point competitor discounts catch up, but there’s very little inventory left.
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