Why Hasn't Amazon Announced Prime Day Dates Yet?

Amazon Prime Day is one of the most highly anticipated shopping events of the year. Last year, Amazon Prime members purchased more than 300 million items worldwide on Prime Day, and this year's mega-sale has the potential to be even bigger.

But meanwhile, we're in mid-June, and Amazon has yet to announce the official date(s) for Prime Day 2023. And consumers are wondering why the online retail giant is being so secretive.

Is it a matter of hype, or a matter of change?

Amazon Prime Day typically takes place in July. Last year, the big event happened on July 12 and 13.

Many retail experts anticipate that this year's Prime Day event will also take place in July, and likely around the midpoint of the month. But it's a little odd that we're within a month of that time frame and Amazon has yet to put an official date in place.

Now on the one hand, it may be that Amazon is trying to generate more hype for Prime Day by keeping the timing a secret. That way, consumers can grow increasingly excited about it.

On the other hand, it may be that Amazon is contemplating pushing Prime Day off to later on in the year, in which case a mid-June announcement wouldn't necessarily be crucial.

If Amazon is going the former route and trying to drum up hype, though, it may only be hurting itself. Many consumers are fairly cash-strapped these days as inflation remains a problem. And many people have, over the past year, raided their savings accounts and racked up debt to cope with higher living costs.

If Amazon wants Prime Day to be successful, it wouldn't be a bad idea to give consumers a heads-up that it's coming. That way, they can start saving for it ahead of time. If Amazon springs Prime Day on everyone just a couple of weeks before the big event, consumers might have fewer options for spending money.

Should you plan to take advantage of Amazon Prime Day?

Amazon Prime Day could offer opportunities to scoop up items on your wish list -- both essentials and non-essentials. But for the latter category, you should really only plan to do your share of spending if money isn't tight and you're not already struggling with a large credit card balance.

If that's the case, you may want to keep your Prime Day purchases to essentials only -- things like back to school supplies and clothes for your kids, or household items you really can't do without.

It's a good idea to assume that Prime Day will be held in July this year and spend the next few weeks spending less and banking extra cash so you have more options to take advantage of the deals that are apt to pop up. Saving an extra $20 or $25 a week between now and mid-July (assuming that's when Prime Day is) could spell the difference between carrying a credit card balance forward after Prime Day or not.

All told, many consumers are eager to learn when Prime Day will take place this year. And some may even be getting annoyed that an official announcement hasn't come through.

At this point, the ball is clearly in Amazon's court. So we'll just need to wait and see what the online retail giant decides to do.