Every store owner plans a Black Friday offer, and most worry about the same thing: that the discount will bring in orders but leave no profit. Adobe’s 2026 forecast expects discounts of up to around 30% off listed prices during Cyber Week, so shoppers will be comparing. The aim is to win those shoppers without selling at a loss.
This guide gives you ideas that work with your margin instead of against it, plus a simple way to check each offer before you launch it.
A “30% off” banner is only a good idea if the product still makes money at 30% off. Work out your margin first, using our net profit calculator, and then choose offers that fit it.
Step 1: know your margin at the sale price
Take the discounted price and subtract what the product costs you, shipping you pay, payment fees, packaging and the cost of the ad that brought the customer. What is left is your real profit per order. If it is close to zero or negative, that offer needs to change or that product should be left out of the sale.
Here is a made-up example, for illustration only. A product sells for $50 and costs $20 to buy and ship, with $3 in fees. Your profit is $27 before ads. At 30% off, the price is $35, and profit is $12. At 40% off, the price is $30 and profit is $7. The same product, three very different outcomes. The more ads cost you, the thinner that last number gets, which is why we cover break-even ROAS separately.
Ten discount ideas that protect your margin
1. Spend-more-save-more tiers
Offer a bigger discount as the basket grows, such as a small saving at one level and a larger one at a higher level. It nudges shoppers to add items, which raises your average order value, and you can set the tiers so every level stays profitable.
2. Free shipping above a threshold
Many shoppers value free delivery more than a few percent off. Setting the threshold just above your current average order value can lift basket size. Check that the shipping cost is covered by the extra margin.
3. Bundles instead of blanket discounts
A bundle of products that go together, priced a little below buying them separately, feels like a deal while protecting margin because shoppers buy more units. See our guide to gift guides and bundles.
4. Discount selected products, not the whole store
Choose the products where you have the most room, such as higher margin items, and keep the rest at normal prices. A blanket sitewide discount is the easiest way to give away profit you did not need to give.
5. Buy one, get one at a lower price
“Buy one, get the second half price” gives a smaller average discount than a flat percentage while still sounding generous. It suits products people want in pairs or as gifts.
6. A free gift with purchase
A small, low-cost item added to orders above a set amount can feel valuable to the shopper while costing you less than the equivalent discount. Make sure it does not complicate shipping or inventory.
7. Early access for subscribers
Give your email and SMS subscribers a head start, such as a day before the public sale. It rewards your own list, builds your audience and brings forward sales without needing a deeper discount.
8. Limited quantities that are genuinely limited
If you really have a small amount of stock, say so. Never invent scarcity. Fake stock levels or timers can mislead shoppers and may break consumer protection rules in some countries.
9. Gift cards or store credit
A bonus on gift cards, such as extra credit when someone spends a set amount, brings in cash now and sales later, often at times when you have more capacity to fulfil orders.
10. A smaller discount that runs longer
Instead of one deep, short event, consider a modest offer across Cyber Week. It smooths out traffic and avoids overwhelming your supplier or support team on a single day.
Test your setup before launch
- Check how discounts combine. Shopify lets product, order and shipping discounts apply together if you allow it. Place test orders to see the real final price, and make sure customers cannot stack codes into a loss.
- Schedule start and end times. Discount dates follow the time zone in your Shopify admin. Check it matches the audience you are advertising to.
- Check compare-at prices. If you show a “was” price, it should be a real previous price. Inflated reference prices are misleading and are restricted in many places.
What to avoid
- Discounting everything by the same amount without checking margins.
- Running an offer that your ad costs cannot support.
- Launching new offers that you have not tested on a phone, from ad click to checkout.
- Making promises on delivery that the sale volume could break. See our guide to holiday shipping cutoffs.
Final thoughts
The best Black Friday offer is one you are happy to sell a thousand times. Work out your margin, pick two or three mechanics that fit your products and test the checkout before you go live. Once you know your numbers, use the break-even ROAS calculator to see what your ads can afford to cost.
If you want help planning offers, landing pages and tracking for the sale, our store management and ads management services can take it off your plate.
Source for the discount forecast: Adobe’s 2026 U.S. holiday forecast, published September 28, 2026.
