Tariffs Are Coming to Amazon — And That Means Big Changes for Memorial Day Weekend Sales

You’ve probably heard about the tariffs the Trump administration has imposed on some of the U.S.’s largest trading partners, including China. One of the problems with tariffs is that they often lead to higher prices for consumers as retailers pass the additional expenses of tariffs down the line to their customers — meaning that prices on products from China could soon increase.

Amazon, as well as many other retailers, sells a lot of Chinese-made goods. In fact, some experts estimate that more than 70% of products on Amazon are produced in China.

Does this mean you’ll be hit with higher prices on Amazon and other retailers this Memorial Day Weekend — and beyond?

We checked in with Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics and trade at Cato, an independent public policy research organization, and other experts to learn more.

"Price increases due to tariffs have already been imposed at some retailers that sell on Amazon,” says GH Editorial Commerce Director Jessica Teich. “For others, more is likely on the way."

Luckily, Lincicome notes that some companies stocked up on products in advance of the tariffs in hopes that further negotiations will lower rates by the time they need to restock. "Apparently Levi's has enough jeans already in the United States to last them through the end of the year," says Lincicome, though he estimates other companies may have about one to three months' worth of inventory in backstock.

One easy way is to determine where a product was made.

“Amazon lists 'origin' on many items,” says Teich. “If the origin says 'imported' or lists any country outside of the U.S., you can probably assume the price of that product is a bit higher than normal, likely due to tariffs."

If origin isn’t listed, do a quick Google search on the brand directly. "For example, while SharkNinja doesn't list its origin on all products on Amazon, research reveals that the brand announced earlier this month that it has relocated its primary manufacturing operations away from China to mitigate tariffs,” says Teich. “That means deals on Ninja appliances will likely be similar to previous Memorial Day sales."

"Overall, discounts may not be quite as good this year as in years past, but there are still great Memorial Day weekend sales to be found," says Teich, "especially on outdoor items like grills, patio furniture and decor. Plus, this is when we historically see mattresses at their cheapest all year."

Lincicome assumes brands may not be discounting stocked products as steeply during this time in an effort to prepare for higher tariffs once U.S. inventory depletes. "I could see some retailers doing a 20% off sale instead of 25%," he says.

"A 30% tariff on most consumer facing goods is going to be too big to absorb for any company," says Lincicome, meaning prices for consumers will likely increase. "And the tariffs are even higher on China. A big chunk of that is going to get passed on."

That said, it's unclear just how high of a price hike we'll see on the consumer side. "There are so many factors that influence any given item's price, from materials used to sourcing location to supply chain, so it's impossible to pin down an exact price increase to expect across the board," says Teich. "It's going to vary."

"First and foremost, don’t panic shop for things you don’t need," says Teich. "Getting swept up in fear of the unknown or a scarcity mindset will push you to make unwise financial decisions.'"

Certified financial planner Scooter Thomas says if you’re determined to to stock up on something before tariffs hit, you should snag products you know you’ll need such as:

• "Metronomic purchases" (items you buy over and over again)
• Imported snacks
• Clothing
• Shoes
• Children's toys
• Essential baby gear (like strollers, cribs, changing tables and hygiene products)

A lot of mainstream brands that retail on Amazon have already announced price adjustments:

• Adidas, a German company, released a statement: "Higher tariffs will eventually cause higher costs for all our products for the U.S. market."
• Avocado said it plans to increase their mattress prices by about 6% and other bedding products by an average of 7.5% starting May 13, per The New York Times.
• Procter & Gamble, which makes cleaning products like Bounty paper towels and Tide detergent, announced that it will most likely have to increase prices in response to the higher tariffs.
• Stanley Black & Decker said in a news release that it has already raised prices on outdoor products in March and will raise prices again later in 2025.

"Yes, we're still seeing impressive markdowns, particularly on mattress, outdoor essentials and clothing this Memorial Day," says Teich. Even still, "it's highly likely that we're going to soon see increased pricing in items across categories, from baby gear to appliances to tech, clothing and more, so if you see a decent deal on an item you actually need over this holiday weekend, now is an OK time to buy." Lincicome agrees: "There's a chance that some companies are going to hold off applying tariff pricing for Memorial Day," he says.

The economy is in an uncertain place right now, especially around tariffs on China. We can expect pricing on Amazon to be affected significantly due to its high proportion of items produced in China. Memorial Day discounts will likely be impacted, at least partially, but there are still great deals to be found.

Isabella Cavallo

Assistant Commerce Editor

Isabella (she/her) covers commerce and product-related content in the home, lifestyle, fitness, technology and beauty. She graduated from Binghamton University in 2022 with a bachelor’s degree in English: Literature & Rhetoric. Before joining GH, she was an editorial assistant at Prevention, where she covered health topics and celebrity news. 

Expert consulted:Jessica Teich

Director, Editorial Commerce & Product Reviews

Jessica (she/her) is the director of editorial commerce and product reviews with over a decade of experience as a product tester, reviewer, writer and editor of beauty and lifestyle content. Previously she was the beauty editor at USA Today's Reviewed where she launched the Beauty vertical and tested hundreds of products and has covered trends for publications like The Boston Globe and The New York Times. You can usually find her sorting through piles of beauty products — and testing the best ones on camera.