For brands selling on Amazon in Europe, Black Friday 2026 is decided in October: stock must reach Amazon’s European fulfilment centres by 21 October (28 October for the UK) to carry the Prime badge during the event, and deals must be submitted by 18 November. Black Friday falls on Friday 27 November, Cyber Monday on Monday 30 November.
These are the deadlines Amazon has given to European sellers for the 2026 peak season. Be careful with the guides in circulation: many quote United States dates, which are different. Here you will find the European dates, what those weeks cost in each store, and how to arrive prepared — including if you are already behind.
When is Amazon Black Friday 2026?
Black Friday 2026 is Friday 27 November and Cyber Monday is Monday 30 November. These are calendar dates: Black Friday always falls on the day after the fourth Thursday of November.
Amazon has not yet announced the dates of Black Friday Week in the European stores. In 2025 it ran from 20 November to 1 December and was announced on 13 November: if the pattern repeats, the week of deals will start a few days before 27 November. For sellers this changes little, because the deadlines that matter come much earlier.
When must stock reach Amazon’s European fulfilment centres?
By 21 October 2026 for the European fulfilment centres, and by 28 October for the UK. These are the dates Amazon has set to guarantee Prime eligibility during Black Friday Week.
Arriving late does not just mean selling a little less. Units not received in time lose the Prime badge during the event itself, and without the badge the listing loses ground for the Featured Offer on the days traffic is highest. Counting back, stock from a supplier outside the EU needed ordering 7-9 weeks ahead and shipping by the end of September: transit, receiving and check-in take weeks, and Amazon has warned that inbound delivery slots are limited in September and October.
Units checked in late lose the Prime badge during Black Friday Week. We count back from the deadline with you, store by store, and decide what to ship and what to fulfil yourselves.
When are Black Friday deals submitted, and what do they cost?
By 18 November 2026. Brands that submitted by 5 September received a 30% discount on the upfront fee; since then the full fee applies, but submissions remain open.
| Store | Upfront fee | On promotional sales | Cap |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | £12 per promotion | 0.75% | £600 |
| Germany | €16 per promotion | 0.75% | €1,000 |
| France, Italy, Spain | €10 per promotion | 0.5% | €300 |
A 2026 change to check before nominating products: Prime Exclusive Discounts require a minimum product rating of 3.5 stars. Below that threshold the product is not accepted, whatever the discount. In a catalogue sold in several stores the rating is per store, so the same product may qualify in one country and not in another.
How much does storage cost from October to December?
Almost double: for standard-size products, storage in Fulfilment by Amazon goes from €27.54 to €52.20 per cubic metre per month. These are the rates in the European rate card in force from 1 July 2026 for fulfilment centres in the eurozone (Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the others); the UK has its own rates in pounds.
| € per m³ per month | Jan-Sep | Oct-Dec |
|---|---|---|
| Standard, most categories | 27.54 | 52.20 |
| Apparel, footwear, eyewear, bags | 19.99 | 29.23 |
| Oversize | 21.78 | 34.49 |
The consequence is simple: filling the warehouse «to be ready» means paying the year’s highest rate on every day the stock sits there. Quantities are set on expected sales, not on the fear of running out.
Which peak fees apply, and where?
The festive peak surcharge on fulfilment fees, from 15 October 2026 to 14 January 2027, applies in the UK and Germany: on average £0.12 per parcel item in the UK and €0.27 per unit in Germany, on top of the 1.5% fuel and logistics surcharge.
It does not apply to fulfilment in France, Italy or Spain, but it does affect any group that ships through German fulfilment centres — which includes those using Pan-European FBA or the Central Europe Programme. When stock for several countries passes through Germany, the surcharge has to be included in the margin of every store it serves.
Which products should carry the deals?
Only those with enough margin to absorb the discount and enough stock to last through the peak. Discounting the whole catalogue is the fastest way to finish the event with more revenue and less margin than before.
Electronics, home and kitchen, fashion and beauty are the categories where Black Friday moves the most volume, and for that very reason they are where cost per click rises most and competitors discount hardest. In less crowded categories the traffic peak still arrives, and it costs less to capture. There is also a detail worth money: the price thresholds in Amazon’s referral fees. A discount that takes a price below a threshold can lower the fee; one that leaves it just above keeps the higher band on everything sold during the event. Thresholds vary by store, so the check is done country by country.
We put margin, fees, referral thresholds and stock side by side for each store, and keep the deals only where they still make money.
How much advertising budget does Black Friday week need?
There is no right figure, there is a calculation: from the margin of each product in each store you work out what you can pay for a click, and from there the budget. In those days cost per click rises, so the same budget buys less traffic than in October.
November’s budget is not compared with October’s: it is compared with what competitors spend that week, and it is decided before the auction heats up. Raising it «because it is Black Friday» without redoing the calculation means spending more to sell at a loss. Campaigns are set up beforehand, not during: once the week of deals has started, a change arrives after the traffic has gone. More in our guide to Amazon advertising for Black Friday and Christmas.
Does Black Friday end with Cyber Monday?
No: after Cyber Monday the European stores move on to the Christmas deals, which in practice extend Black Friday until Christmas under another name and with less media coverage. In 2025 they ran until about 22 December.
For sellers this means the peak season does not end on 30 November. Two things matter. The first is the delivery-before-Christmas badge Amazon shows on products that can arrive in time: it depends on stock and delivery times, so it needs preparing like Black Friday. The second is extended returns, which in 2025 ran until 15 January: the wave of returns arrives in January and belongs in the season’s accounts. The 2026 dates of the Christmas deals have not yet been announced.
What if you are already late?
Put everything on the stock that is already in Europe: deals until 18 November, coupons and price discounts even closer to the event, merchant fulfilment for whatever cannot reach the fulfilment centres in time.
- deals can be submitted until 18 November, at the full fee;
- coupons and price discounts do not have the same deadlines as featured deals: they can be activated much later;
- campaigns, prices and content go on the products that are physically ready, not on the ones you would like to push;
- fulfilling orders yourself (FBM) remains the alternative for items that will not reach the fulfilment centres in time: you lose the Prime badge, not the event — but on Amazon.it the 2026 merchant-fulfilled requirements are stricter, so check them first.
There is still room with the stock already in Europe: deals until 18 November, coupons and discounts closer to the event. Tell us where you stand — the first 30-minute call is free.
How do you prepare for Black Friday on Amazon, step by step?
- Check Fulfilment by Amazon capacity limits in each store, and any restrictions on individual ASINs.
- Order stock on expected sales per country, 7-9 weeks ahead of suppliers.
- Ship by 21 October (28 for the UK), leaving a margin for transit and receiving.
- Check ratings store by store: below 3.5 stars, no Prime Exclusive Discounts.
- Review listings in each language: keywords, images and content that read well on a phone. See listing optimisation.
- Set up campaigns and budgets starting from the margin per product.
- Submit deals by 18 November and plan coupons and discounts through to Christmas.
Frequently asked questions
Do Amazon.com dates apply in Europe too?
No. For the 2026 season Amazon gave European sellers different deadlines: stock in the European fulfilment centres by 21 October (28 for the UK) and deals by 18 November. US dates do not apply to sellers on the European stores.
Do peak fulfilment fees apply in every European store?
No. The festive peak surcharge, from 15 October 2026 to 14 January 2027, applies in the UK and Germany. In the other eurozone stores it is storage that rises: from October to December it costs almost double.
How much does it cost to submit a Black Friday deal?
It depends on the store: £12 plus 0.75% (capped at £600) in the UK, €16 plus 0.75% (capped at €1,000) in Germany, €10 plus 0.5% (capped at €300) in France, Italy and Spain.
Should Cyber Monday be handled as a separate event?
In practice no: deal submission is the same and the window closes at the same time. What changes is demand, which shifts towards electronics and computing on the Monday: it makes sense to differentiate campaigns, not preparation.
When does Amazon announce the dates of Black Friday Week?
Usually shortly before the event: in 2025 the week from 20 November to 1 December was announced on 13 November. For sellers, preparation does not change: it closes in October.
In short
The work on Black Friday ends in October. At the end of November you collect what was decided weeks earlier: which products to push, how much stock to send to which country, at what price and with what budget. And after Cyber Monday it carries on until Christmas. All the year’s dates are in the Amazon events calendar 2026; for campaigns during the peak, see Amazon Ads management.
Sources: Amazon’s notice to European sellers «Peak season 2026: Inventory dates, peak fees, deal cutoffs and promotions» (Seller Central); the European Fulfilment by Amazon rate card in force from 1 July 2026. The dates of Black Friday Week and the Christmas deals 2026 are not yet official: references are to 2025. These figures are reported as of October 2026, but Amazon has the final word: always check the deals page in your own Seller Central and Amazon’s help pages, which are updated more often than we are.
Dates, stock and campaigns planned store by store: the first 30-minute call is free.
