Sales are a good time to fill the gaps in your kit. Here's what to buy first, what's worth waiting for, and the price we saw on each item before the sales, so you can tell a real deal from a fake one.
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If you buy nothing else this season, buy these. Together they cover water, power, light, news, first aid and food for the most common emergencies.
20 gallons in one closet corner: about 10 days of drinking water for two people.
Best for: Every home · Water storage and filters guide
Turns a creek, lake or rain barrel into drinking water once your stored water runs out.
Best for: Backup water and go-bags · Water storage and filters guide
Quiet, indoor-safe power for phones, lights, a CPAP or a fridge for hours. Power stations are often among the biggest Black Friday discounts.
Best for: Outages and medical devices · Power stations and generators guide
Several full phone charges with no outlet. The cheapest way to stay reachable in an outage.
Best for: Everyone · Power stations and generators guide
NOAA weather alerts and AM/FM news when cell networks are down, charged by hand or sun.
Best for: Every home · Radios and communication guide
Hands-free light that's far safer than candles. One per person.
Best for: Every person in the house · Lighting and staying warm guide
An organized kit with wound care, medications and instructions for the injuries that come with cleanup.
Best for: Every home · First aid and medical guide
Generators, heaters and stoves used in outages are a leading cause of CO deaths. This alarm works without power.
Best for: Anyone with gas heat, a generator or a garage · Power stations and generators guide
Just-add-hot-water meals that keep for years and taste like real food.
Best for: Apartments and go-bags · Emergency food and cooking guide
Expensive items where a sale saves real money. Buy these after the essentials.
Whole-home-scale battery backup for a fridge, sump pump or well pump, with no fumes.
Best for: Long outages and medical needs · Power stations and generators guide
Runs on gas or propane, with a CO shutoff. Days of power for a house, outdoors only.
Best for: Houses with a yard · Power stations and generators guide
Recharges a power station for as long as the sun shines. Match the connector to your station.
Best for: Long outages and wildfire shutoffs · Power stations and generators guide
Two-way texting and SOS from almost anywhere. Needs a subscription plan.
Best for: Rural areas, wildfire zones and travelers · Radios and communication guide
A comprehensive, well-organized trauma and medical kit.
Best for: Rural homes and serious preppers · First aid and medical guide
A real hiking pack with a hip belt, so a go-bag is carryable for miles. Pick your size.
Best for: Building a go-bag · Go-bags and evacuation guide
Pliers, knives, drivers and cutters for the small fixes an emergency throws at you.
Best for: Every go-bag and car · Go-bags and evacuation guide
Useful gifts for the person who has everything except a plan.
A water filter small enough for a stocking.
Best for: Hikers and go-bags · Water storage and filters guide
The classic all-round survival reference.
Best for: Readers and outdoorspeople
A step-by-step preparedness plan, one layer at a time.
Best for: Anyone just starting out
Warm even when damp. Lives in the car or by the couch.
Best for: Cars and cold climates · Car and winter driving kit guide
Wakes you for tornado and flood warnings in your county.
Best for: Tornado and flood country · Radios and communication guide
The genuine article from NAR's official store. Pair it with a free Stop the Bleed class.
Best for: Car and home trauma kits · First aid and medical guide
Keeps two phones charged on an evacuation drive.
Best for: Every driver · Car and winter driving kit guide
Light, cheap warmth for every bag and car.
Best for: Go-bags and car kits · Lighting and staying warm guide
The most-forgotten item in emergency kits.
Best for: Every pantry · Emergency food and cooking guide
The rest of our recommended gear, each from one of our free guides.
A rigid jug with a spigot, easy to fill and pour from.
Best for: Garages and car camping · Water storage and filters guide
Filters liters at a time with no pumping, so it can supply a family every day.
Best for: Families planning for weeks · Water storage and filters guide
Kills viruses that filters miss, and weighs almost nothing.
Best for: Go-bags and bad-water scenarios · Water storage and filters guide
The lowest cost per gallon. Add a bung wrench and pump, and order early: it ships slowly.
Best for: Houses with a garage · Water storage and filters guide
Weeks of backup meals in one bucket that stacks and stores for years.
Best for: Long-term planning · Emergency food and cooking guide
Heat-tolerant calories with a five-year shelf life.
Best for: Car kits and go-bags · Emergency food and cooking guide
Boils water for meals and treatment. Outdoors only; fuel sold separately.
Best for: Homes with a balcony or yard · Emergency food and cooking guide
Lights a room for hours, recharges by USB or hand crank.
Best for: Every home · Lighting and staying warm guide
Approved for indoor use, with low-oxygen and tip-over shutoffs. Still needs a CO alarm.
Best for: Cold regions with long outages · Lighting and staying warm guide
Keeps you warm in a cold house. Pick the 20°F or 0°F version.
Best for: Winter outages · Lighting and staying warm guide
Talk across a neighborhood when phones are down. GMRS needs an FCC license (no exam).
Best for: Families and neighbors · Radios and communication guide
For bleeding where a tourniquet won't work. Add a pressure bandage and a class.
Best for: Trauma add-on to any kit · First aid and medical guide
NIOSH-approved protection for smoke, ash and dust.
Best for: Wildfire country and every go-bag · Go-bags and evacuation guide
Keeps IDs, insurance papers and cash together and grab-ready.
Best for: Every home · Go-bags and evacuation guide
A starter backpack with water pouches, food bars and basics. Upgrade the light and radio.
Best for: Starting from zero today · Go-bags and evacuation guide
Starts a dead battery without a second car, and charges your phone.
Best for: Every vehicle · Car and winter driving kit guide
Tops up a slow leak from your car's outlet. Add a plug kit.
Best for: Anyone without a trusted spare · Car and winter driving kit guide
Makes a stopped car visible on a dark road. Batteries not included.
Best for: Highway and rural drivers · Car and winter driving kit guide
A working toilet when the water or sewer is out.
Best for: Earthquake and flood country · Sanitation and hygiene guide
Bags with powder that gels waste and controls odor.
Best for: Pairs with the Luggable Loo · Sanitation and hygiene guide
Shelters and hotels usually require pets to be crated.
Best for: Cats and small dogs · Pets and animals guide
Pet-specific supplies for when the vet is closed.
Best for: Dog and cat owners · Pets and animals guide
The classic medical handbook for when help is far away.
Best for: Every home library
Black Friday is Friday, November 27, 2026, and Cyber Monday is Monday, November 30. Many retailers, including Amazon, usually start deals earlier in the week.
Electronics like portable power stations, power banks, headlamps and radios have often been heavily discounted in past years. Water containers and food go on sale less often, so don't wait on those if you have nothing stored.
Compare the sale price with the price we saw on November 1, 2026, shown on every item here. Price-history tools such as Keepa or camelcamelcamel show whether a sale price is actually low.
Yes. These are Amazon affiliate links, so we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Commissions never decide what we recommend, and every item here is one we recommend in our free guides.
Prices change constantly and may be different when you click. We recorded each price on November 1, 2026. As an Amazon Associate, PrepScore earns from qualifying purchases.
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