Black Friday and Cyber Monday on Amazon: how to set bids and budgets for the deal window

Set Black Friday and Cyber Monday budgets with schedule-based budget rules before the event starts, raise bids only on the placements and campaigns that already convert, and pace spend by the hour once traffic arrives. Watch stock and the Buy Box throughout, because Sponsored Products ads stop when either goes. Then unwind every change in a planned order. Here is how to do each step.

When should you start preparing for Black Friday and Cyber Monday?

In 2026, Black Friday is Friday, November 27 and Cyber Monday is Monday, November 30. Amazon’s holiday advertising guide splits the season into “build (October), peak (November through Cyber Monday)” and December, and its October advice is to “Launch your campaigns now to gather performance data before peak season.” In November, use the weeks left to set rules, not to launch campaigns you have no data on.

Then record where things stand. Expert advice in Amazon’s post-event guide is to “Review all budget caps (account-level caps, portfolio caps) a week before the event and take screenshots for your records.”

Check this in your account: Pull last year’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday campaign reports and note which campaigns ran out of budget, and at what time of day.

How much should you raise budgets for Black Friday and Cyber Monday?

Amazon’s budget guide explains the risk: daily budgets “are spent as quickly as possible,” and once a campaign is out of budget, “your ads won’t be eligible to show until the next day, at midnight when the daily budget resets.” On a peak day, running out early means sitting out the rest of it.

Amazon’s holiday guide suggests you “Increase daily budgets by 20 to 30 percent around Black Friday and Cyber Monday,” and its optimization tips say to start “three to five days before the event.” Treat those as starting points and size the increase from your own history.

Set the increase with a schedule-based budget rule, which increases your campaign budget “by the percentage you specify, during the date range you set,” so it is live before traffic arrives. Then add performance-based rules, which raise a campaign’s budget when it meets a threshold such as return on ad spend (ROAS), so extra money goes only to campaigns that are working.

Check this in your account: Open budget rules in the campaign manager and confirm each event rule’s date range covers Friday through Monday.

How should you adjust bids by placement?

Placement adjustments let you pay more for a placement without raising every keyword bid. Amazon’s best practices allow placement bid adjustments up to 900% across top of search, rest of search and product pages. Its holiday optimization tips go as far as “an aggressive bid multiplier for ‘Top of search’ (e.g., +200% or higher).” Before you copy that, read your placement report: raise an adjustment only where that placement already converts at a cost you accept.

The same tips tier bids by intent: aggressive for “exact match keywords and specific, high-intent queries,” moderate for “phrase match, branded, and long-tail terms,” and conservative for “broad match keywords to discover new search terms.” For Sponsored Products, Amazon also offers event-based bid rules, which “set predefined increases during times when higher traffic is expected.”

Check this in your account: In each priority campaign’s placement report, compare cost per order across the three placements before changing any adjustment.

Should you use dynamic bidding during Black Friday and Cyber Monday?

For priority campaigns, it can make sense if the budget can take it. Amazon’s holiday tips say to “Consider switching high-priority campaigns (like those with deal ASINs)” to dynamic bids up and down. Amazon will then “increase or decrease your bids by up to 100% for all placements based on performance”, and its guide warns: “Ensure you are prepared to potentially spend double the amount of the bid you input.”

The Amazon guides cited here don’t spell out how dynamic bidding and placement adjustments combine, so watch actual cost per click by placement in the first hours. And switch before the event, not during it.

Not sure where your account stands before the event? Take the 2-min fit check and we'll send you a $-weighted opportunity map.

How do you pace spend through the deal window?

One of Amazon’s holiday scenarios starts with a familiar complaint: “My budget for Black Friday and Cyber Monday was gone by noon, but I hardly saw any sales.” To avoid it:

• Review conversions hourly. That’s Amazon’s advice for peak times: “If you’re spending heavily without seeing sales, it’s a good signal to adjust your strategy.”
• Track when budgets run out. If a priority campaign runs dry by midday, raise its budget or cut bids on its weakest terms.
• Don’t judge sales too fast. Amazon notes that “Sales during peak events often occur days after the initial ad click.”
• Plan the weekend. Keep budget in reserve for Cyber Monday rather than spending it all on Friday.

Check this in your account: Agree who checks spend and conversions during the window, how often, and which changes they can make without asking.

What happens to your ads if a deal sells out or you lose the Buy Box?

They stop. Amazon Ads states that if your product “isn’t the Featured Offer or is out of stock, your ad will not display,” and its Black Friday and Cyber Monday tips say: “Ensure your products with BFCM deals are in stock leading up to and during the event dates.” The same page notes that “Deal teasing is not permitted,” so deal-led creative should go live with the deal, not before it.

During the window, check stock and the Featured Offer on your top products, since another seller’s price can take it even when your stock is fine. Our post on why your ads stop when you lose the Buy Box has a first-hour checklist.

This is what ShelfRadar’s Amazon ads optimization is built around: real-time signals on inventory, deals and coupons, time performance, Buy Box and organic rank feed the decisions about where your budget goes. Amazon experts review every recommendation and present it for your approval.

What should you do after Cyber Monday?

Don’t switch everything off on Tuesday. Amazon’s holiday guide says to “Keep campaigns running through December to reach last-minute gift shoppers and post-holiday deal seekers.” Then cool down in order:

1. Confirm the rules have ended and each campaign is back on its normal budget.
2. Reverse manual changes to caps and placement adjustments, using your screenshots.
3. Remarket to event browsers. Amazon’s post-event guide suggests “Sponsored Display views remarketing to reengage event browsers.”
4. Review once sales catch up, then decide what to repeat next year.

Once things settle, run a full review with our Amazon Ads audit checklist. If you sell supplements, see our Amazon Ads audit for supplement brands.

What goes on a before, during and after checklist?

When	Check	Where to look
Before	Budget caps reviewed and screenshotted	Account and portfolio settings
Before	Schedule-based budget rules cover Friday to Monday	Budget rules
Before	Bidding strategy and placement adjustments set for priority campaigns	Campaign settings
Before	Deal products in stock and holding the Featured Offer	Inventory, product detail pages
During	Conversions and spend reviewed hourly	Campaign manager
During	Featured Offer and stock checked on top products	Product detail pages, inventory
After	Budgets, caps and adjustments back to normal	Campaign settings
After	Remarketing running for event browsers	Sponsored Display
After	Event reviewed once sales have caught up	Campaign reports

Frequently asked questions

When are Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 2026?

Black Friday 2026 is Friday, November 27, and Cyber Monday is Monday, November 30. If you’re running a deal, plan around the dates Amazon confirms for it.

How much should I raise my Amazon Ads budget for Black Friday?

Amazon’s holiday guidance suggests increasing daily budgets by 20 to 30 percent, starting three to five days before the event. Schedule-based budget rules let you set the increase in advance for the dates you choose.

Should I use dynamic bidding during Black Friday and Cyber Monday?

It can suit high-priority campaigns, such as those advertising deal products. With dynamic bids up and down, Amazon can raise or lower bids by up to 100% based on performance, so make sure the budget can absorb higher costs.