Amazon Prime Day recap: Shoppers buy household items over pricey splurges on first day

Market research firm Numerator said the average order size on Prime Day so far is $59.78, according to data culled from nearly 7,500 Amazon orders by more than 4,000 households. Nearly two-thirds of Prime Day items have sold for under $20, while 4% are more than $100, as of 4 p.m. EDT. Over half of shoppers surveyed by Numerator said they purchased something they’d been waiting to buy until it went on sale.

Consumer packaged goods demonstrated a strong showing on the first day of Amazon’s 48-hour sales blitz. The best-selling items, based on the number of units purchased, included Premier Protein Shakes, Glad trash bags and Liquid I.V. packets. Non-CPG products in the top five of bestsellers were Amazon’s Fire TV stick, which ranked number one, and an outdoor camera by Blink, which snagged the fifth spot. Prime Day has historically been known for its deals on electronics, but the data suggests many shoppers used the sales event to save money on more everyday purchases as inflation continues to pressure consumer spending power. 

“Consumers are feeling too squeezed by high prices on essential and grocery items right now to overspend on discretionary items like electronics, vacuums, clothing and toys, which is where Prime Day has really shined,” said Mike Black, chief growth officer at research firm Profitero. “More than previous years, I expect to see large CPG brands offering deals on food, beverages, pet, diapers, cleaning products and beauty supplies as a way to win with inflationary-wary consumers.”

That said, with another day still left in the sales event, the list of top items will likely see some changes, “especially given the heavy promotion of Amazon’s own consumer electronics products,” Numerator analyst Amanda Schoenbauer said in a statement.

Data from Adobe suggests electronics were still top of mind for consumers. Sales for such products were up 33% compared to average daily sales in June during the first day of Prime Day.

Value-conscious shoppers helped drive up Prime Day sales by 14% as of as of 6 p.m. EDT compared to the same period a year ago, according to Momentum Commerce, which handles more than $7 billion in sales across 50 brands, such as Clorox, Lego and Crocs. 

Prime Day is expected to drive a record $14 billion of online spending across all retailers during the two-day sales bonanza, up more than 10% from last year, according to Adobe Analytics. So far, Amazon appears to be on track for another Prime Day sales record. Shoppers spent $7.2 billion across all online retailers on the first day of Prime Day, up from nearly 12% the year before, and the biggest e-commerce day so far in 2024, according to Adobe. Consumers are poised to spend another $6.9 billion online on July 17. 

Although electronics brands such as Ring, Apple and Blink dominated last year’s top brand and item lists, its shopper group penetration was relatively flat compared to 2022, according to Numerator. Five of the top ten fastest-growing categories last year fell under health and beauty, led by skin care, hair care and makeup.

Research firm eMarketer expects total U.S. e-commerce spending to increase by nearly 6% during Prime Day. Although Amazon will account for about 60% of total online sales over the two-day period, at more than $8 billion, eMarketer predicts that its Prime Day sales will grow at a slower pace compared to last year. The company’s market share during the event is also set to decline slightly for the third year in a row. 

“It’s become a really competitive time of year, and for Amazon, I think the focus is really going to shift to defending their market share versus growing it in a super meaningful way,” said eMarketer retail analyst Sarah Marzano. 

Amazon is grappling with ramped-up competition from grocery stalwarts like Walmart and Target. Earlier this month, Target ran its Circle Week sale from July 7 to July 13. Walmart hosted a July sale of its own, following a week-long members-only sale in June. What’s more, e-commerce upstarts such as TikTok Shop and Shein are encroaching on Amazon’s turf with competing sales of their own.

As a result, shoppers have learned to hopscotch from one site to another as they hunt for deals during Prime Day. “Shoppers have become more savvy — screenshotting prices before Prime Day to ensure that the price they see on Prime Day is a deal, as well as consistently comparing prices,” said Joanie Demer, cofounder and co-CEO of The Krazy Coupon Lady. 

But e-commerce sales is only one measure of Amazon’s Prime Day. The event generates substantial advertising dollars, as well. Ad spend during Prime Day will likely be four to five times more than the daily average for the previous 30 days, according to Skai’s Nich Weinheimer in an interview on Schwab Network. 

This year’s Prime Day could also see a boost from Amazon’s investments in generative artificial intelligence, namely its AI shopping assistant Rufus, which became available to all U.S. customers earlier in July after five months of beta testing. This will be the first Prime Day in which the shopping assistant will be widely available for customers to use. 

Amazon has steadily grown its Prime Day revenue every year since the summer sales event launched in 2015. Prime Day began as a way to drive new subscription sign-ups, a membership that currently costs $139 a year. In exchange, subscribers get access to delivery discounts, Amazon’s streaming service Prime Video and other perks.

Last year, Amazon customers bought more than 375 million items worldwide during Prime Day, setting a record of about $13 billion, according to the company.