81 Stores That Are Doing Us All a Favor by Staying Closed on Thanksgiving

While you were enjoying your Halloween sugar high, retailers were busy gearing up for what they hope will be your holiday shopping high later this month. Black Friday isn't until Friday, November 23, but many stores just can't resist starting early. Walmart launched its "early access pass" in October on everything from Instant Pots to QLED TVs, while Sam's Club is having a pre-Black Friday sale on November 10, and Kohl's Black Friday deals start Monday, November 19.

What's more, dozens of stores open their doors on Thanksgiving—as early as 6AM at Meijer—to help juice sales over the long weekend. (Best Buy, Macy's, Old Navy, and Ulta Beauty will all be open on Thanksgiving too.) But If your idea of a good holiday doesn't involve fighting over a cheap TV or a $2 pair of socks with a stranger, you may be glad to know that at last count, according to the sites The Black Friday and Best Black Friday, more than twice as many big retailers are staying closed instead of opening their doors on Thanksgiving Day, which falls on Thursday, November 22.

That's a good thing. Because unless you are giving gifts to dozens of people this year, the smartest way to save is by making a list and setting a holiday spending budget, instead of just walking into a store and buying whatever strikes your fancy. You can also save by doing someone a favor, baking them cookies, giving them a vintage item you find at a thrift store, or inviting them over for dinner instead of getting them more stuff they'll probably wind up returning—or regifting—anyway.

With that in mind, here's FREE's shout out to all the big chain stores staying closed on Thanksgiving:

A.C. Moore

Abt Electronics

Academy Sports + Outdoors

Ace Hardware

Acme Tools

Allen Edmonds

American Girl

At Home

Barnes & Noble

Bed Bath & Beyond

Big 5 Sporting Goods

BJ’s Wholesale Club

Blain’s Farm & Fleet

Bob’s Discount Furniture

Burlington

Campmor

Christmas Tree Shops

Christopher & Banks

Cost Plus World Market

Costco

Craft Warehouse

Crate & Barrel

Dillard’s

DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse)

El Dorado Furniture

Fleet Farm

Fred Meyer

Gardner-White Furniture

Guitar Center

H&M

Half Price Books

Harbor Freight Tools

HEB Stores

Hobby Lobby

Home Depot

HomeGoods

Homesense

Ikea

Joann

Jos A. Bank

Lamps Plus

La-Z-Boy

Lowe’s

Marshalls

Mattress Firm

Menards

Micro Center

Mills Fleet Farm

Music & Arts

Nebraska Furniture Mart

Neiman Marcus

Nordstrom

Nordstrom Rack

Office Depot & OfficeMax

Outdoor Research

P.C. Richard & Son

Patagonia

Pep Boys

Pet Supplies Plus

Petco

PetSmart

Pier 1 Imports

Publix

Raymour & Flanigan

REI

Sam’s Club

Sears Outlet

Sierra Trading Post

Sportsman’s Warehouse

Staples

Stein Mart

Sur La Table

The Container Store

The Original Mattress Factory

The Paper Store

TJ Maxx

Tractor Supply Co.

Trader Joe’s

Trollbeads

Von Maur

West Marine

Bravo!