Money hazards: Prime Day spending traps could work against your 'bargain' buying

Amazon's Prime Day — as well as Walmart Deals and Target Circle Deal Days —  can be retail money hazards. They are designed to make you feel like you’re saving while potentially pushing you to overspend, buy things you never needed, and even take on credit card debt that wipes out any “discount.”

These limited-time sales spark savings FOMO, the fear of missing out on a deal, which drives people to buy things they never planned to purchase. A June 2025 survey found 63% of shoppers felt anxious about missing limited‑time deals, while only 37% worried about overspending.

This pressure leads to impulse buying: 41% of Prime Day purchases are unplanned, according to Adobe Digital Insights.

To make things worse, many retailers raise prices before these special deal days, so the “discount” looks bigger. Price‑tracking tools often reveal that the sale price isn’t the lowest price of the year. Experts recommend researching previous prices to avoid being tricked by these inflated markdowns.

The average American planned to spend $301 on Prime Day 2025, up 12% from the previous year, and nearly half of that spending was for items they didn’t intend to buy. People start shopping for “one item” and end up with a cart full — and a credit‑card bill to match. 

A 20% discount means nothing if you carry the balance on a credit card. With average credit‑card APRs above 21%, a $100 item bought at 20% off can end up costing more than the original price once the interest charges add up.

And online retailers make checkout so easy, you can overspend before you realize it. "Lightning deals" and urgent countdown timers create artificial scarcity, pushing you to buy before thinking.

Retail analysts say that events such as Prime Day and all the others should be used only to buy items you were already planning to purchase — not to browse for bargains. 

Avoid a money hazard:

• Set a strict spending limit
• Make a needs‑only shopping list
• Use price‑tracking tools
• Apply a 24‑hour rule for impulse buys
• Calculate the true cost after credit card interest