Goodwill is a popular thrift store chain that offers used and donated items such as clothing, furniture, books, and household goods at affordable prices. With over 3,300 locations across the United States and Canada, Goodwill provides an excellent opportunity for bargain shopping. But when is the best time to visit Goodwill to get the lowest prices and best deals?
Goodwill’s Pricing Strategy
Goodwill uses a color-coded tagging system to price their items. Newly arrived donations are sorted and tagged with colored stickers based on pricing tiers before going out onto the sales floor. The color coding makes it easy for customers to spot deals.
Here is an overview of Goodwill’s typical color-coded pricing strategy:
- White Tags – Everyday low prices. Usually smaller household goods and clothing accessories.
- Green Tags – Budget-friendly prices for clothing and shoes.
- Blue Tags – Moderate prices for electronics, books, toys, and antiques.
- Yellow Tags – Higher quality furniture, designer brands, collectibles.
- Red Tags – Highest tier pricing for rare, vintage, or highly desirable brand name items.
Certain days of the week will feature different colored tag discounts, making specific categories of goods more affordable on certain days.
Weekly Tag Sale Calendar
Most Goodwill locations follow a standard weekly schedule of tag color discounts:
| Day of Week | Tag Color Sale |
|---|---|
| Monday | 50% off Green Tags |
| Tuesday | 50% off Blue Tags |
| Wednesday | 50% off Yellow Tags |
| Thursday | 50% off Red Tags |
| Friday | 50% off White Tags |
| Saturday | 50% off All Color Tags |
| Sunday | 99 Cent Sale |
As you can see, each weekday focuses on a different colored tag, offering 50% off those items. Saturdays have an all-inclusive discount. And Sundays offer the best bargain with a 99 cent sale where most items in the store are only 99 cents for that day.
Cheapest Days for Clothing and Shoes
For clothing and shoes marked with green tags, Mondays provide a 50% discount making it the best day to buy apparel at Goodwill. You can stock up on shirts, pants, dresses, coats, suits, shoes, accessories, and more for half price on Mondays.
Cheapest Days for Housewares
Small household goods like kitchenware, decor, lamps, vases, and craft supplies are typically marked with white tags. Fridays offer a 50% discount on these white tag items making it the ideal day to shop the housewares section.
Cheapest Day for Books and Media
Browse the books, CDs, DVDs, video games, and records marked with blue tags on Tuesdays for a 50% discount. This makes Tuesday the best day for scoring media deals.
Cheapest Day for Electronics
Electronics like stereos, speakers, coffee makers, and computer accessories will have blue tags. Like books and media, Tuesdays offer half price savings in electronics.
Cheapest Day for Furniture and Home Decor
The furniture section containing chairs, tables, sofas, cabinets, and shelving will have yellow tags. Wednesdays take 50% off yellow tag furniture making it a great day for home decor deals.
Cheapest Day for Antiques and Collectibles
Vintage or antique items like china, silver, artwork, and jewelry will have blue tags since they fall into the media and electronics tier. Tuesdays offer half price on these blue tag antiques making it the best day to hunt for treasure.
Cheapest Day for High-End Brands and Designer Items
Any elite brands like Louis Vuitton, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Coach, and so on will have red tag pricing. Thursdays discount red tags by 50% making it the ideal day to shop name brands on a budget.
Absolute Cheapest Day – 99 Cent Sundays
While each color tag day offers specific categories at half price, Sundays are the absolute cheapest day at Goodwill. On Sundays, most items in the store drop to just 99 cents. Everything from clothing to furniture, electronics, books, collectibles, and housewares become only 99 cents on Sundays. This makes it the best day for the deepest discounts across all types of goods.
Timing Your Visit
To take advantage of the tag color sales, plan your Goodwill trip to coincide with the appropriate day of the week. The color tag discounts usually begin on Monday mornings and run through the weekend, ending late Sunday evening. For the 99 cent Sundays, get there early for the best selection as quantities are limited and the best items go quickly. Some regular donors even wait until Sundays to drop off their donations so fresh inventory hits the floor on 99 cent day. Going late morning is better than early morning on Sundays since new stock will have had a chance to be put out.
Combining Discounts
In addition to the weekly tag color sales, Goodwill also runs monthly and holiday sales events. These can include:
- Dollar Days – First Weekend of the Month
- Black Friday Sales – Day after Thanksgiving
- 50% Off Entire Store – Easter, Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day
- Monthly 15% Off Senior Discounts – Varies by Location
- Student Discounts – 10% Off with Student ID
Savvy shoppers can combined these overlapping discounts for even better deals. For example, arriving early on 99 Cent Sunday on July 4th when the entire store is already 50% off. Or hitting the Dollar Day sale on the first weekend of the month and getting an extra Senior Discount. Stack savings by looking for multiple deals coinciding.
Bottom Line Cheapest Days
While every day can offer potential finds, in general the cheapest days at Goodwill are:
- Sundays – For the 99 Cent Sale across all categories
- Thursdays – For 50% off higher end brands with red tags
- Tuesdays – For 50% off electronics, media, books, collectibles with blue tags
- Fridays – For 50% off housewares with white tags
- Mondays – For 50% off clothing and shoes with green tags
By timing Goodwill visits to match the tag color sales, shoppers can maximize their savings. Being flexible on what type of items you are browsing for will also help target the deepest discounts in any category.
Getting the Most Savings at Goodwill
Here are some additional tips for getting the best deals at Goodwill:
- Check online for the color tag calendar at your local store
- Arrive early on 99 cent days for the best selection
- Combine additional storewide or category discounts when available
- Shop seasons ahead – buy summer clothes in fall, holiday decor in summer
- Browse the homepage goods area near registers
- Search clearance racks and bins for added markdowns
- Don’t overlook shelves, bins, and drawers of smaller items
- Visit multiple Goodwill stores in your area to compare
Conclusion
Goodwill offers amazing deals on used goods every day of the week. But pays to know which days are the cheapest through their color tag pricing system. Sundays tend to have the best across the board bargains with the 99 cent sale. Combine that with seasonal storewide discounts for even more savings. Check the color tag calendar for your local store and plan shopping trips around the biggest discounts on your needed categories. With a little planning, you can save big at Goodwill.
