Super Saturday: What It Is and How to Shop It Like a Pro

Super Saturday is the last Saturday before Christmas and one of the busiest shopping days of the year. Learn what drives 159 million shoppers to stores, which categories offer the best deals, and how to stack discounts for maximum savings.

158.9 million consumers planned to shop on Super Saturday in the most recent holiday season. That’s more people than the entire population of Germany, all converging on stores and online carts in one final push before Christmas. And they weren’t just browsing. Foot traffic surged 58% above the daily yearly average that day, even topping Black Friday’s lift of 51.1%.

Black Friday usually gets the massive ad campaigns and the doorbusters, but Super Saturday gets the actual shoppers. For last-minute buyers and deal hunters who missed those earlier sales, this day is the real main event.

Our team regularly tests the deals and codes mentioned in this article.

Super Saturday, Explained

Super Saturday falls on the last Saturday before Christmas Day. Depending on the year, that puts it somewhere between December 17th and December 23rd. It’s also known as “Panic Saturday” in the UK, and the name fits. This is when last-minute gift buyers and anyone who underestimated their shopping list hits stores for one final push.

Retailers respond by extending their hours, slashing prices, and dropping fresh promo codes. They want to capture every dollar left in holiday budgets before the season officially ends. For shoppers, it’s the last real shot at serious discounts before Christmas morning.

Here’s a number that puts the urgency in perspective. By early December, the average holiday shopper had completed only 51% of their gift buying. With half the list still unfinished heading into the final week, it’s easy to see why foot traffic spikes like it does.

Super Saturday by the Numbers

The spending data is actually pretty surprising.

In 2019, Super Saturday generated $34.4 billion in retail sales, beating Black Friday by about 10% that year. Shopper counts have climbed steadily since. The National Retail Federation tracked 157.2 million shoppers in 2024, then projected 158.9 million for 2025. That broke the old record of 158.5 million from 2022.

Department stores usually feel the spike hardest. Visits jumped 128.7% above their average Saturday levels on the most recent Super Saturday, per Placer.ai data. Nordstrom saw 8.8% year-over-year visit growth, while Bloomingdale’s came in at 4.7%.

The last five days of the holiday season account for roughly 10% of all holiday spending. Retail sales through Super Saturday weekend grew 3.9% year-over-year in the most recent season, per Mastercard SpendingPulse. Online climbed 7.4%. In-store was up 2.9%.

How Shoppers Actually Use Super Saturday

The biggest shift lately is the channel split. In the most recent season, 45% of Super Saturday shoppers (about 71.6 million people) planned to shop both in-store and online on the same day. Shopping both channels in one trip is now the norm.

BOPIS (buy online, pick up in store) and curbside pickup spike hard on Super Saturday. It makes sense. By that last Saturday before Christmas, most free shipping windows have already closed. Shoppers who want to buy online switch to in-store pickup to make sure their gifts arrive in time. Target, Walmart, and Best Buy all offer same-day in-store pickup, and curbside hours usually expand in the final days before Christmas.

One trend that keeps growing: experience gifting. About 31% of shoppers now plan to give an experience as a gift, up from 22% back in 2015. Concert tickets, spa visits, cooking classes. This matters for Super Saturday because experience gifts don’t need shipping. They’re the perfect last-minute option.

What we’ve tracked on our platform during the final shopping week shows a clear pattern. The code mix shifts as the clock runs down. Earlier in the season, sitewide percentage-off codes lead. But in the last five days before Christmas, codes for gift cards, experience packages, and in-store pickup orders take over. Retailers shift their promo mix to fit what shoppers need: anything that can be used or received right away.

What to Buy on Super Saturday (and What to Skip)

Not every category offers the same value on Super Saturday. Here’s what tends to get the deepest cuts:

• Clothing and accessories: Retailers like Macy’s, Kohl’s, and Nordstrom push hard on apparel clearance. About 48% of holiday shoppers target clothing during this window.
• Toys: Toy prices drop as retailers clear out seasonal inventory. Bundle deals on toy sets are very common in the final week.
• Gift cards: Many stores run bonus gift card promotions (buy a $50 card, get a $10 bonus). No shipping required, always on time.
• Electronics accessories: Headphones, cables, smart home devices. Not as deep as Black Friday discounts, but solid deals still show up.

What to skip? Big-ticket electronics like TVs and laptops. They typically hit their lowest prices during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and Super Saturday rarely beats those earlier levels.

Super Saturday vs. Black Friday vs. Cyber Monday

These three events compete for the biggest shopping day title, but they serve different types of shoppers.

What the table doesn’t capture: the mindset is completely different. Black Friday shoppers plan weeks out. They have lists, alerts set, and they know what doorbusters they’re targeting. Super Saturday shoppers are racing the clock. Many care less about finding the lowest price and more about just finishing their list before Christmas.

That urgency can actually work in your favor. Retailers need to close sales fast, so they cut prices to move stock. Black Friday 2025 online sales hit $12.8 billion (per Adobe Analytics), up 9.1% year-over-year. Super Saturday can’t match that online total, but 89% of consumers planned to shop in the final two weeks before Christmas. The spending spreads across several days, with Super Saturday as the peak.

Super Saturday Savings Strategies

Stack Your Discounts

The biggest savings come from layering discounts, not just chasing one sale price. Start with a coupon code, add a store card discount if you have one, then layer cashback on top. Kohl’s is the classic case: a 30% code, stacked with Kohl’s Cash and a store card bonus, can push savings past 50%.

Most coupon sites won’t tell you this, but retailers don’t all handle Super Saturday codes the same way. Some drop brand-new codes for the final weekend. Others just extend their existing Black Friday promos with a new end date. From the thousands of codes we test monthly, department stores and fashion retailers tend to push fresh Super Saturday codes, while electronics chains mostly recycle earlier ones.

Use BOPIS as Your Backup Plan

When free shipping deadlines pass, don’t pay $15-$25 for rush delivery. Buy online and pick up in store instead. You still apply coupon codes at checkout and shop from your couch, but your order is ready in a few hours. Same item, same price, no shipping fee. Most major retailers offer it, and some will even bring the order right to your car.

Watch for Flash Sales

Flash sales are a Super Saturday staple. They typically run 4-8 hours on specific categories at steep discounts. The tricky part is the timing. Follow stores on social or enable push notifications to catch them. If you want to skip the manual search, the DontPayFull Chrome extension can test codes at checkout automatically and flag active deals before you pay.

Don’t Rule Out Post-Christmas

About 70% of consumers plan to shop the week after Christmas. Post-Christmas clearance often beats Super Saturday prices on items that don’t need to be under the tree by December 25th. If you have wiggle room on timing, the week between December 26th and New Year’s is often the cheapest week of the year for many items.

Why Super Saturday Keeps Growing

There are a few reasons why this day has gone from a retail afterthought to a legitimate Black Friday rival.

First, more people are simply waiting. A Drive Research survey of 1,200+ US shoppers found 22% planned to wait until the week before Christmas to finish their gift buying. That number has climbed steadily.

Last-minute shopping is also just easier than it used to be. Order online, pick up in two hours. Same-day delivery through DoorDash and Uber covers orders placed through December 23rd at major retailers. Stores push personalized mobile alerts in the final 72 hours before Christmas. The hassle of waiting has dropped, and the shopper counts prove it.

We’ve tracked Super Saturday coupon use on our platform for several years, and one pattern keeps showing up. The code use rate during the final weekend before Christmas is higher than any other weekend in the season. Shoppers on Super Saturday aren’t just browsing; they are buying. A shopper at checkout is far more likely to apply a code than someone browsing in October with no immediate plan to buy.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Super Saturday?

Super Saturday is the last Saturday before Christmas, falling between December 17th and December 23rd. Retailers offer major discounts, extended store hours, and fresh promo codes. In a recent year, nearly 159 million people shopped on this single day, making it one of the biggest shopping events of the holiday season.

When does Super Saturday fall?

The date shifts every year. It always lands on the last Saturday before December 25th. Upcoming dates: December 20, 2025; December 19, 2026; December 18, 2027.

Is Super Saturday bigger than Black Friday?

In foot traffic, Super Saturday actually edges ahead. Recent data shows Super Saturday visits surging 58% above the daily average versus 51.1% for Black Friday. In total online spending, Black Friday still wins, but when you combine all channels and shopper counts, the two days are very close.

What are the best things to buy on Super Saturday?

Clothing, toys, gift cards, and experience gifts usually see the strongest discounts. Department stores and fashion retailers push hard with store-wide markdowns. Big-ticket electronics (TVs, laptops) hit their best prices earlier in the season.

How do I find Super Saturday coupon codes?

Check store websites for banner promotions, sign up for retailer emails (brands often drop exclusive codes to subscribers), and use a code-testing tool at checkout. Some stores release new codes specifically for the final weekend, while others extend earlier holiday promos.

Should I shop on Super Saturday or wait for post-Christmas sales?

If it needs to be under the tree by December 25th, Super Saturday is your window. For items where timing doesn’t matter, post-Christmas clearance (starting December 26th) often hits lower prices than Super Saturday on many categories.

Sources

1. National Retail Federation – Super Saturday Shopper Projections: Shopper count projections, omnichannel behavior, experience gifting trends, post-Christmas shopping plans (2024-2025)
2. Placer.ai – Super Saturday Recap: Foot traffic analytics, department store visit data, retailer-level visit growth (2024)
3. Lightspeed HQ – Super Saturday Guide: 2019 Super Saturday $34.4 billion in sales and Black Friday comparison
4. Retail Dive – NRF Super Saturday Projections: Final two-weeks shopping plans and survey data
5. WWD – Holiday Shopping Super Saturday: Experience gifting trends (2015-2025)

Do You Have Any Suggestions?

We're always looking for ways to enrich our content on DontPayFull.com. If you have a valuable resource or other suggestion that could enhance our existing content, we would love to hear from you.