What is Cyber Monday and When is Cyber Monday?

Cyber Monday refers to the Monday immediately following Black Friday, which rounds off a four-day weekend of mega sale shopping. This year it falls on Monday, November 28, 2016. Until 2014, it was the world’s biggest online sales day until its rival Black Friday took over.

Black Friday became a shopping sensation in the US because many Americans would take the day after Thanksgiving (which always falls on a Thursday) off work to have a long holiday weekend. Retailers therefore cut prices on this Friday to get consumers into their stores to kick-start the Christmas shopping season. 

Click here to Browse all Cyber Monday 2016 Top Deals

But by the Monday, Americans were back at their desks – and retailers noticed that consumers were continuing their shopping online at their office computers and Cyber Monday was born. 

Why is it called Cyber Monday?

Ellen Davis, senior vice president of the National Retail Federation in the US, coined the term in 2005 when she issued a press release with the title, “Cyber Monday Quickly Becoming One of the Biggest Online Shopping Days of the Year”.

The press release cited a study by Shop.org/BizRate Research, which found that 77 per cent of online retailers had noticed a “substantial” increase in sales on the Monday following Thanksgiving in the previous year, “a trend that is driving serious online discounts and promotions on Cyber Monday this year”.

The surge in traffic could have been driven by the fact that a decade ago most consumers would have had a faster or more secure internet connection at work than at home. They might also have been looking for something to ease the pain of returning to work after a weekend off.

Is Cyber Monday bigger than Black Friday?

Despite its name, Cyber Monday is unlikely to take the crown from Black Friday in terms of online sales. Last year Cyber Monday only clocked up about half as many online transactions as Black Friday.

(Between midnight and 2pm on Cyber Monday 2015, 993,614 retail transactions had been processed online. During the same period on Black Friday 2015, UK consumers clocked up 1,839,832 online transactions.)

However, since the rise of internet shopping, and the fact nearly every major retailer has an online presence, the line has blurred between these two rival shopping days. 

Most retailers now offer in-store and online deals throughout Black Friday weekend and into Cyber Monday.

When is Cyber Monday 2016?

This year, Cyber Monday 2016 will be on Monday November 28, 2016. Mark your calendars for next year’s biggest shopping event.

Cyber Monday 2016 is on Monday, November 28, 2016
Cyber Monday 2017 is on Monday, November 27, 2017
Cyber Monday 2018 is on Monday, November 26, 2018
Cyber Monday 2019 is on Monday, December 02, 2019
Cyber Monday 2020 is on Monday, November 30, 2020
Cyber Monday 2021 is on Monday, November 29, 2021
Cyber Monday 2022 is on Monday, November 28, 2022
Cyber Monday 2023 is on Monday, November 27, 2023

Cyber Monday 2016 Deals

Please check here for all of the upcoming Cyber Monday 2016 deals.

What is Black Friday?

Learn more about  Black Friday here.