Not reliably. The widely shared “still on sale” Apple Watch prices were snapshots from December 2, 2025, and they do not establish what is available in October 2026. Lifehacker’s disclosure was explicit: “Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.” Check the retailer listing, configuration, country and date before treating any discount as live.
What the post-Cyber Monday article reported
Lifehacker’s December 2, 2025 article covered Amazon and Best Buy offers that remained after the 2025 Cyber Monday period. The figures below are historical US prices, not current quotations.
| Model and configuration | Reported sale price | Reference price | Reported saving | Retailer named |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Watch Series 11, 42mm GPS | $329 | $399 | $70 | Amazon |
| Apple Watch Series 11, 46mm GPS | $359.99 | $429 | $69.01 | Amazon |
| Apple Watch Series 11, 42mm GPS + Cellular | $429.99 | $499 | $69.01 | Amazon |
| Apple Watch Series 11, 46mm GPS + Cellular | $459.99 | $529 | $69.01 | Amazon |
| Apple Watch SE 3, 40mm GPS | $199 | $249 | $50 | Amazon |
| Apple Watch SE 3, 44mm GPS | $229 | $279 | $50 | Amazon |
| Apple Watch Ultra 2 | $599 | $779 | $180 | Best Buy |
The headline Series 11 deal was the 42mm GPS model at $329. The lowest reported entry price was the 40mm GPS SE 3 at $199. Those are different tiers and should not be treated as equivalent products.
Which Apple Watch was the best value in that snapshot?
Series 11: the mainstream choice
The 42mm GPS Series 11 delivered the clearest like-for-like saving: $70 off the cited $399 reference price. The 46mm case and cellular versions cost more because of size and connectivity, not because they were the same configuration at a different retailer.
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#1 Best Overall
![Apple Watch Series 11 [GPS 46mm] Smartwatch with Jet Black Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band - M/L. Sleep Score, Fitness Tracker, Health Monitoring, Always-On Display, Water Resistant](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/416RQ0rtsUL._SL160_.jpg)
- A FULL-FEATURED HEALTH TRACKER—Apple Watch Series 11 gives you invaluable insights about your body, right from your wrist. Take an ECG anytime* and get alerts for a high and low heart rate or an irregular rhythm*—so you can stay closer to your heart. You can also view your overnight health tracking metrics with the Vitals app* and be notified of possible sleep apnea.*
- KNOW YOUR SLEEP SCORE—With advanced sleep tracking, Series 11 gives you a daily sleep score. It’s an easy way to help measure and understand the quality of your sleep, so you can make it more restorative.
- GET HYPERTENSION NOTIFICATIONS—Did you know that Series 11 can spot signs of chronic high blood pressure? By analyzing how your blood vessels respond to beats of the heart, it can notify you of possible hypertension.*
- SAFETY FEATURES—A smartwatch that puts your safety first. Series 11 can detect a hard fall or severe car crash, automatically help connect you with emergency services, and notify your emergency contacts.* Check In can automatically notify a loved one when you’ve arrived at your destination.
- A POWERFUL FITNESS TRACKER—With advanced metrics and motivating features like Pacer, Heart Rate Zones, training load, and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone*—Series 11 is made to help everyone stay active, from runners and hikers to strength-training enthusiasts.
SE 3: the lowest-cost new option
The SE 3 started at $199 for 40mm GPS and $229 for 44mm GPS, each $50 below the cited reference price. Lifehacker said the cellular SE 3 was no longer discounted when its article was published.
Ultra 2: the largest markdown, but an older generation
Best Buy’s reported $599 Ultra 2 price was $180 below the cited $779 reference. Ultra 2 was previous-generation stock in that coverage, so the larger dollar saving does not automatically make it a better buy than a newer Series 11 or SE 3.
Rank #2
![Apple Watch Series 11 [GPS 42mm] Smartwatch with Rose Gold Aluminum Case with Light Blush Sport Band - S/M. Sleep Score, Fitness Tracker, Health Monitoring, Always-On Display, Water Resistant](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/31caPPnRysL._SL160_.jpg)
- A FULL-FEATURED HEALTH TRACKER—Apple Watch Series 11 gives you invaluable insights about your body, right from your wrist. Take an ECG anytime* and get alerts for a high and low heart rate or an irregular rhythm*—so you can stay closer to your heart. You can also view your overnight health tracking metrics with the Vitals app* and be notified of possible sleep apnea.*
- KNOW YOUR SLEEP SCORE—With advanced sleep tracking, Series 11 gives you a daily sleep score. It’s an easy way to help measure and understand the quality of your sleep, so you can make it more restorative.
- GET HYPERTENSION NOTIFICATIONS—Did you know that Series 11 can spot signs of chronic high blood pressure? By analyzing how your blood vessels respond to beats of the heart, it can notify you of possible hypertension.*
- SAFETY FEATURES—A smartwatch that puts your safety first. Series 11 can detect a hard fall or severe car crash, automatically help connect you with emergency services, and notify your emergency contacts.* Check In can automatically notify a loved one when you’ve arrived at your destination.
- A POWERFUL FITNESS TRACKER—With advanced metrics and motivating features like Pacer, Heart Rate Zones, training load, and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone*—Series 11 is made to help everyone stay active, from runners and hikers to strength-training enthusiasts.
How the lineup has changed
Apple’s US shopping page retrieved in 2026 lists Series 11, SE 3 and Ultra 3, with displayed starting prices of $399, $249 and $799 respectively. Those are manufacturer starting prices for the current lineup context; they do not prove that Amazon, Best Buy or another retailer still has a markdown.
| Current lineup context shown by Apple | Displayed starting price | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Apple Watch SE 3 | $249 | Entry model baseline |
| Apple Watch Series 11 | $399 | Mainstream model baseline |
| Apple Watch Ultra 3 | $799 | Premium outdoor and rugged tier baseline |
The older Series 10, SE 2 and Ultra 2 appeared in contemporaneous Cyber Monday coverage from Creative Bloq, alongside newer models. Creative Bloq also recorded a brief Best Buy Ultra 3 price of $679 during the event. Its running entries mixed US and UK prices, so currencies and countries must remain separate when comparing them.
Rank #3
![Apple Watch SE 3 [GPS 40mm] Smartwatch with Starlight Aluminum Case with Starlight Sport Band - S/M. Fitness and Sleep Trackers, Heart Rate Monitor, Always-On Display, Water Resistant](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/31YiTby0pOL._SL160_.jpg)
- GET SMARTER HEALTH INSIGHTS—Apple Watch SE 3 is an advanced health tracker that helps you better understand your body. The smartwatch sends alerts for an irregular heart rhythm, or an unusually high or low heart rate.* You can view your overnight health tracking metrics with the Vitals app,* track your sleep score, and get sleep apnea notifications.*
- A GREAT FITNESS TRACKER—SE 3 can track your workouts in a healthy number of ways—from running and strength training to simply achieving your 10K steps a day. With real-time metrics and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone,* you’ll hit your goals like never before.
- KEEP HELP CLOSE AT HAND—SE 3 is a smartwatch that can detect a hard fall or severe car crash and automatically help connect you to emergency services and notify your emergency contacts.* Check In can automatically notify a loved one when you’ve arrived at your destination.
- WOMEN’S HEALTH INSIGHTS—SE 3 has advanced sensors that track your wrist temperature while you sleep. With this smartwatch, you can log your periods and symptoms, get period predictions, and get notified of cycle deviations.*
- GREAT BATTERY LIFE AND FASTER CHARGING—Enjoy a smartwatch with all-day, 18-hour battery life* from sunup to sundown. Then charge up to twice as fast as SE 2* and get up to 8 hours of battery in just 15 minutes.*
How to check whether a deal is real today
- Open the live retailer listing. Do not rely on a dated deal article, search snippet or cached price.
- Match the exact configuration. Confirm generation, case size, GPS or GPS + Cellular, color and condition. A cellular or larger model is not a like-for-like comparison with a smaller GPS model.
- Confirm the country and currency. US prices cannot be compared directly with UK listings or converted informally without accounting for local tax and retailer terms.
- Record the checked date. Apple Watch inventory and promotions can change after publication, including between checkout and delivery.
- Compare against the correct baseline. Use Apple’s current starting price for lineup context, while treating a retailer’s stated “was” price as a separate reference that may reflect its own pricing history.
Choosing among the models
Choose Series 11 when
- You want the current mainstream model rather than previous-generation clearance stock.
- The size and connectivity configuration match your needs and the live discount is meaningful against the current baseline.
Choose SE 3 when
- Your priority is the lowest entry price for a current model.
- You can use GPS and do not need the cellular option that was absent from Lifehacker’s reported discount.
Choose Ultra 2 only with a clear reason
- You specifically want the Ultra form factor or capabilities and accept that it is older-generation stock in the cited deal.
- The live price, warranty, condition and return policy justify choosing it over a discounted newer model.
What the headline does—and does not—prove
“Almost every Apple Watch is still on sale” described a moment immediately after Cyber Monday 2025, not a standing Apple promotion. The reported offers covered selected models and configurations at named retailers; they did not show that every size, cellular variant or generation was discounted. In October 2026, the only dependable answer comes from checking the specific listing you intend to buy.
Quick Recap
Best Value
![Apple Watch Series 11 [GPS 42mm] Smartwatch with Jet Black Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band - S/M. Sleep Score, Fitness Tracker, Health Monitoring, Always-On Display, Water Resistant](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41s72HIk5TL._SL160_.jpg)
- A FULL-FEATURED HEALTH TRACKER—Apple Watch Series 11 gives you invaluable insights about your body, right from your wrist. Take an ECG anytime* and get alerts for a high and low heart rate or an irregular rhythm*—so you can stay closer to your heart. You can also view your overnight health tracking metrics with the Vitals app* and be notified of possible sleep apnea.*
- KNOW YOUR SLEEP SCORE—With advanced sleep tracking, Series 11 gives you a daily sleep score. It’s an easy way to help measure and understand the quality of your sleep, so you can make it more restorative.
- GET HYPERTENSION NOTIFICATIONS—Did you know that Series 11 can spot signs of chronic high blood pressure? By analyzing how your blood vessels respond to beats of the heart, it can notify you of possible hypertension.*
- SAFETY FEATURES—A smartwatch that puts your safety first. Series 11 can detect a hard fall or severe car crash, automatically help connect you with emergency services, and notify your emergency contacts.* Check In can automatically notify a loved one when you’ve arrived at your destination.
- A POWERFUL FITNESS TRACKER—With advanced metrics and motivating features like Pacer, Heart Rate Zones, training load, and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone*—Series 11 is made to help everyone stay active, from runners and hikers to strength-training enthusiasts.
Rank #4
![Apple Watch SE 3 [GPS 40mm] Smartwatch with Midnight Aluminum Case with Midnight Sport Band - S/M. Fitness and Sleep Trackers, Heart Rate Monitor, Always-On Display, Water Resistant](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/31Gq8SToFJL._SL160_.jpg)
- GET SMARTER HEALTH INSIGHTS—Apple Watch SE 3 is an advanced health tracker that helps you better understand your body. The smartwatch sends alerts for an irregular heart rhythm, or an unusually high or low heart rate.* You can view your overnight health tracking metrics with the Vitals app,* track your sleep score, and get sleep apnea notifications.*
- A GREAT FITNESS TRACKER—SE 3 can track your workouts in a healthy number of ways—from running and strength training to simply achieving your 10K steps a day. With real-time metrics and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone,* you’ll hit your goals like never before.
- KEEP HELP CLOSE AT HAND—SE 3 is a smartwatch that can detect a hard fall or severe car crash and automatically help connect you to emergency services and notify your emergency contacts.* Check In can automatically notify a loved one when you’ve arrived at your destination.
- WOMEN’S HEALTH INSIGHTS—SE 3 has advanced sensors that track your wrist temperature while you sleep. With this smartwatch, you can log your periods and symptoms, get period predictions, and get notified of cycle deviations.*
- GREAT BATTERY LIFE AND FASTER CHARGING—Enjoy a smartwatch with all-day, 18-hour battery life* from sunup to sundown. Then charge up to twice as fast as SE 2* and get up to 8 hours of battery in just 15 minutes.*
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
