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EOFY vs Black Friday: which is actually cheaper for what

Australia’s two biggest sale seasons serve different masters. Splitting your shopping list between them correctly is worth hundreds.

15 Aug 2026 · 5 min read

June’s EOFY sales and November’s Black Friday are both real — but they discount different things, for structural reasons worth understanding.

EOFY wins for…

  • Whitegoods. Retailers clear floor stock before stocktake; delivery-and-installation deals sweeten it. Nothing in November matches a June fridge deal.
  • Laptops and work gear. The instant asset write-off makes June the natural month for ABN holders, and retailers price into that demand deliberately.
  • Tools. Tradie tax-time is a real market force.
  • Anything you can haggle. June salespeople have quarterly targets and clearance mandates — the floor is negotiable in a way November’s web checkout never is.

Black Friday wins for…

  • Consumer electronics. TVs, headphones, vacuums, small appliances — global suppliers fund November discounts; June’s cuts are shallower.
  • Online-first brands. Mattress-in-a-box, audio, chargers — their whole promo year peaks in November.
  • Christmas-adjacent everything. Toys (though July’s toy sales often beat it), gadgets, gifts.

The split-list rule

When something big breaks in, say, March, the question is “which window is closer and right for the category?” A dead washing machine can’t wait — but a tired-but-working one waits for June, and a merely-old TV waits for November. Check the category’s timing page and let the calendar decide.

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