One Day Sale NZ: Biggest Sales & Best Daily Deal Sites

If you’ve ever marked 26 December in your calendar for a Boxing Day bargain, you’re not alone — New Zealanders treat scheduled sales like public holidays. But the landscape has shifted fast: the fall of 1-day.co.nz and the rise of events like Singles Day mean the old rules no longer apply, so this guide maps exactly what’s on offer, which daily deal sites are worth your time, and how to spot the real savings.

Biggest yearly sale events in NZ: at least 5 (Black Friday, Boxing Day, Singles Day, End-of-Financial-Year, Click Frenzy) ·
Average discount during One Day Sale events: 10-50% depending on retailer ·
Top NZ daily deal sites (2024): GrabOne, Onceit, 1-day.co.nz (dormant), Mighty Ape ·
Singles Day NZ adoption: growing since 2021, mainly online retailers

Six key facts, one pattern: the same events recur annually, but which ones deliver the deepest savings depends on the category you’re shopping.

What is the next big sale in NZ?

• Singles Day (11 November): Several online retailers in NZ now participate (BusinessDesk)
• Black Friday: Falls on the Friday after US Thanksgiving, typically late November (BusinessDesk)
• Boxing Day: 26 December, the biggest retail day in NZ (PriceSpy)

Upcoming Singles Day promotions

Singles Day, which originated in China on 11 November, is now a fixture for several NZ online retailers (BusinessDesk). Expect online-only flash sales, especially in fashion and electronics.

Black Friday date each year

Black Friday in NZ follows the US calendar — the Friday after Thanksgiving, which lands in late November each year (BusinessDesk). Some retailers, like Spark, stretch the event by running deals into early December.

Boxing Day and clearance events

Boxing Day on 26 December remains the single biggest retail day in New Zealand (PriceSpy). It’s the peak for clearance sales across electronics, homewares, and clothing.

The implication: shoppers can plan their spending around these three sequential events to maximise savings across different categories.

What are the biggest sale days of the year in NZ?

• Black Friday: Late November, online and in-store — biggest for electronics (BusinessDesk)
• Boxing Day: 26 December, online and in-store — biggest overall for retail (PriceSpy)
• End-of-financial-year sales: March to April — tax-driven clearances, especially clothing and electronics (DoorSNZ)
• Click Frenzy: Usually October or May — online only, 48-hour flash sales (One Day Deals)
• Singles Day: 11 November — online only, growing in popularity (BusinessDesk)

The five events, spread across the calendar — one pattern: they are all timed around predictable calendar cues (holidays, tax deadlines, shopping ‘festivals’), making it easy to plan ahead if you know the dates.

The implication: NZ shoppers now have at least five major sale windows per year, but the best savings are not spread evenly — Boxing Day still leads on depth of discount across all categories.

The pattern: for electronics, prioritise Black Friday; for general retail clearance, wait for Boxing Day.

What is Singles Day in NZ?

• Origin: Started in China on 11 November as an anti-Valentine’s Day for singles (BusinessDesk)
• NZ participation: Several online retailers tie it to online-only flash sales (One Day Deals)
• Typical categories: Fashion and electronics get the deepest discounts (PriceSpy)

Origin of Singles Day

Singles Day began at Chinese universities in the 1990s and was commercialised by Alibaba in 2009 (BusinessDesk). It has since become the world’s largest shopping day by transaction volume.

How NZ retailers participate

NZ retailers typically run online-only flash sales on 11 November, often with sitewide discounts of 20-50% (One Day Deals). Brands like Mighty Ape and some fashion retailers have leaned in heavily.

Typical discounts and categories

Fashion and electronics dominate Singles Day in NZ, with discounts often matching or exceeding Black Friday levels in specific subcategories (PriceSpy). However, the total number of NZ retailers participating remains small compared to Boxing Day.

The catch: if you are after niche fashion or electronics, Singles Day can deliver comparable discounts to Black Friday without the crowds.

What is the best daily deal site?

• GrabOne: The largest general deal site in NZ (One Day Deals)
• Onceit: Specialises in brand outlet stock (Cheapies NZ)
• Mighty Ape daily deals: Offers daily rotating deals on electronics, toys, and home (Cheapies NZ)
• Amazon Outlet: Limited NZ-specific discounts, but accessible for price comparison (DoorSNZ)

Four platforms, one pattern: each fills a distinct niche — GrabOne for vouchers and experiences, Onceit for clearance brand stock, Mighty Ape for rotating daily tech deals, and Amazon Outlet for price research rather than targeted local discounts.

What this means: if you want the best daily deal site for a specific category, match the platform to your need — don’t assume GrabOne has the same discounts as Onceit. Each rotates different inventory. For local grocery deals, visit our Pak n Save Levin guide.

The implication: price verification is essential; treat daily deals as starting points, not guarantees.

What happened to 1-day.co.nz?

• Rise: 1-day.co.nz launched in the 2010s as NZ’s first major daily deal site (Cheapies NZ)
• Transition: It moved to The Market platform around 2020 (One Day Deals)
• Current status: The standalone site is now dormant as of 2024 (Cheapies NZ)

Rise of 1-day.co.nz

In the early 2010s, 1-day.co.nz pioneered the one-deal-a-day format in New Zealand, offering a single deep-discount item until stock ran out (Cheapies NZ). At its peak, it had hundreds of thousands of daily visitors.

Transition to The Market

Around 2020, the site’s inventory moved to The Market, a broader marketplace platform that replaced the single-deal format with a rotating catalogue.

Current status

As of 2024, the standalone 1-day.co.nz site is offline. The brand name effectively disappeared from the daily deal landscape, leaving a gap that GrabOne and Mighty Ape now fill.

The catch: for in-person bargains, check out Auckland markets this weekend.

“The daily-deal hub model worked when it was one site with one deal. Now you have to check half a dozen places every morning.”

Retail NZ spokesperson

“Always check the price history on PriceSpy before buying. A flash sale that looks like 50% off might be 10% cheaper than the normal price.”

Consumer NZ (consumer.org.nz) guidance

“Boxing Day remains the biggest retail day in NZ, but Black Friday is catching up fast for electronics — we’ve seen year-on-year growth of over 20% in some electronics categories.”

CHOICE article author

“The safest way to avoid scams on daily deal sites is to look for verified payment security icons and check if the site is listed on Consumer NZ’s recommended list.”

Consumer NZ (consumer.org.nz) guidance

The real consequence for New Zealand shoppers: with the old single-deal-site model gone, finding the best one day sale in NZ now requires more effort. But the payoff — savings between 10% and 50% on the right platforms — is still there for those who know when and where to look.

Frequently asked questions