What offers to run traffic to for Halloween, Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 2026

From October 31 to November 30, 2026, affiliate marketers have three major opportunities to run profitable campaigns: Halloween, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. On these days, people actively look for things to buy and are willing to spend money. Conversion rates rise, and so do profits. But traffic also becomes more expensive, so it's better to test campaign setups in advance while traffic is cheaper, then scale what works during the peak.

Halloween comes first, falling on a Saturday this year. Seasonal forecasts are once again predicting records: Adobe expects US online shopping spending to exceed $275 billion in November and December for the first time.

We looked at which offers you can still run for Halloween and which ones to promote during Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Seasonal calendar

To help you keep track of the dates, we've put all the major year-end events into one table.

Halloween

There's very little time left until Halloween, and it's already too late to run physical product offers: a costume or decoration ordered now might not arrive before the holiday. However, offers that provide instant results are a great fit: casino bonuses, dating profiles, AI-generated photos or games. The audience is huge: 74% of Americans plan to celebrate Halloween this year.

The main rule for a short season — don't start looking for a new vertical now. You won't have enough time to test it in just a few days. Instead, take a campaign setup that's already profitable and give it a holiday makeover: new creatives, a Halloween-themed pre-landing page and a time-limited bonus.

Gambling

For Halloween, casinos launch themed promotions: free spins on horror-themed slots, tournaments and deposit bonuses. A bonus with a deadline automatically adds urgency to the creative: «Only until October 31».

The easiest way to give your campaign setup a Halloween makeover is through a themed pre-landing page. For example, instead of a regular wheel of fortune, the player chooses one of three pumpkins with a bonus «hidden» underneath. The mechanics remain the same, but the pre-landing page is immediately tied to the holiday.

If you're running traffic to Latin America, you have a couple of extra days: Mexico celebrates the Day of the Dead on November 1 and 2. A pre-landing page featuring the holiday's main symbols — colorful calavera skulls and orange marigolds — can continue running after Halloween.

Dating

Since Halloween falls on a Saturday, parties will take place on Friday and Saturday. But people will start looking for someone to go with as early as midweek. That's why the best hook for dating — is a question: «Who are you going to Halloween with?» or «Still haven't found a date for the party?». A simple scene works well in the creative: a guy and a girl in costumes catch each other's eye at a party, have fun and dance.

AI-generated photos

An AI photo shoot solves a simple problem: someone wants impressive Halloween photos for social media but doesn't want to spend money on a costume and makeup. They upload a selfie and, a couple of minutes later, see themselves as a vampire, witch or horror character.

The main audience for these services — is women, so focus your targeting on them. Before-and-after videos work best: an ordinary selfie, a quick cut, and the person appears in costume.

Horror games

Mobile horror games — are among the few offers that remain relevant after the holiday. Gaming platforms continue their Halloween promotions for several more days: for example, Steam's horror sale runs until November 2, while itch.io's runs until November 4. Atmosphere and a sudden jump scare at the end work well in creatives, immediately followed by a «Download» button.

Creative trends

According to Google, the fastest-growing costume searches in the US right now are for Buddy the unicorn from the horror movie Buddy, Nikki from the movie Obsession and Agamemnon from Nolan's The Odyssey. Among horror movies, interest is peaking in films about creepy mascots and gothic horror. A recognizable character from this season attracts more attention than just a pumpkin, so use these themes in your creatives.

The fastest-growing Halloween costume searches in the US for 2026. Source: Google Frightgeist

Black Friday

On Black Friday, people are already looking for things to buy at lower prices, so you don't need to persuade them — just show them a discount. All that's left is to choose offers where you can genuinely promise that discount and take advantage of the increased payouts affiliate networks offer during the season.

Physical product offers

The biggest Black Friday discounts are on TVs, toys and home appliances. Among physical product offers, gadgets and small home appliances are the best match for this demand, so they're worth focusing on. A 50% discount appears on physical product landing pages all year round, and few people believe it on ordinary days. On Black Friday, there's a clear reason for the discount, making it more convincing.

Keep in mind that popular products sell out quickly during the season, and an offer may be paused right in the middle of a campaign.

Nutra

Weight loss, men's health and anti-aging — are evergreen nutra niches, but many people put off making a purchase. Black Friday gives them a reason to stop delaying: «Price reduced only until Monday» works better than a promotion without an end date. Ahead of the season, nutra affiliate networks put together selections of Black Friday offers with the best approval rates.

Finance

In November, people spend more than they planned and start looking for ways to finance their purchases. Financial affiliate networks report that advertisers increase payouts during this period, while lead conversion rates for some products rise by 1.5–2 times. For the CIS and Tier-2–3 markets, consider microloans with a 0% interest rate on the first loan. For the US and Canada, look at payday loans and BNPL installment plans. Adobe predicts that Americans will spend approximately $800 million on purchases through «buy now, pay later» services on Black Friday alone.

An effective approach is to promote not a credit card itself, but the opportunity to take advantage of discounts: «Get a card — earn cashback on your Black Friday purchases».

Sweepstakes

«Win a smartphone on Black Friday» — is a seasonal classic. People are already hunting for expensive products at discounted prices, and here they're being offered a chance to get them for free. The holiday gives the giveaway a clear reason and deadline: «Winners announced on Cyber Monday».

Gambling and betting

For Black Friday, casinos launch increased deposit bonuses, free spins and holiday tournaments. Media buyers report that such offers convert 25–40% better than usual during the season, so consider choosing them.

There's an even better opportunity for betting: this year, the NFL has extended the holiday schedule to three days for the first time. On Wednesday, Thanksgiving Eve, the Packers play the Rams. On Thanksgiving itself, there are three consecutive games, and on Black Friday, the Broncos face the Steelers. Americans will be watching football and placing bets throughout these days, so bookmaker offers targeting the US are worth launching by Wednesday.

Promotions for affiliate marketers

Black Friday — isn't just a sale for shoppers. Affiliate networks and services for affiliate marketers also launch promotions: bonuses of up to $100 when topping up an ad network balance, an extra 7% on the first payout, increased rates for new affiliates and even contests with prizes. There are also discounts on antidetect browsers, proxies and spy tools. Some promotions are available only through promo codes published in affiliate networks' channels.

Traffic during Black Friday week is the most expensive of the year: last year, CPM on Meta increased by 22–57% compared with September. So don't spread yourself too thin — choose one or two verticals and focus your budget on them.

Cyber Monday

Cyber Monday is traditionally considered a day for software and subscriptions. People do buy them actively, but most of the money spent that day in 2025 went toward physical products: US online sales reached a record $14.25 billion, with electronics, clothing and furniture accounting for more than half of that amount. That's why we recommend keeping your campaign setups running after the weekend: Cyber Monday could once again become a second Black Friday peak this year.

Physical product offers

Everything you ran on Friday continues to work, while «Last day of discounts» — is the strongest deadline of the week. You can focus on gadgets — last year, sales of Bluetooth headphones and speakers in the US on Cyber Monday increased almost 20-fold compared with a typical day in October.

Finance

Installment payments break records on Cyber Monday. In 2025, Americans spent more than $1 billion through «buy now, pay later» services in a single day for the first time. If you're running BNPL and credit card offers, don't cut your Monday budget: it's one of the strongest days of the season for these offers.

Online schools

This is a strong option for the CIS market. Online schools keep their Black Friday promotions running until the end of November, and Cyber Monday — marks the end of the sale for them. Discounts are substantial: last year, Skyeng offered up to 55% off. Payouts are made either for a lead or for a course purchase. Trial lesson leads have higher conversion rates, while the school itself then works to convert those users into full-course buyers.

Crypto

Crypto exchanges don't miss out on the sales season either. Last year, Bybit offered newcomers rewards for registration, verification, deposits and their first trades during Black Friday. Exchange offers usually pay not for registration alone, but for a user who has completed KYC and made a deposit. Under a RevShare model, this traffic generates a percentage of trading fees for as long as the user continues trading.

FAQ

Is there a Black Friday in Latin America?
Yes, and Mexico has its own version — El Buen Fin. This year, the sale runs from November 13 to 17, two weeks before the US Black Friday. If you're running traffic to Mexico, prepare your campaign setups for these dates.

Is it worth running Black Friday traffic to Brazil?
It's worth considering. Black Friday in Brazil takes place on the same dates as in the US, and the sale is growing rapidly there: analysts expect online sales to increase by around 20% compared with last year. Home appliances are expected to generate the most revenue, while demand for cosmetics and perfumes is growing the fastest — a useful guide for physical product and nutra offers.

Why do creatives take longer to pass moderation during Black Friday week?
During peak sales periods, advertisers upload thousands of new ads, increasing the moderation queue. Upload your Black Friday and Cyber Monday creatives several days before the sales begin. On the sale days themselves, it's better not to launch new ads but to scale those that have already passed review and are running.