With Father’s Day weekend rapidly approaching, retailers have already started rolling out a rash of early sales during the first week of June to make sure you have time to order something for your Dad. In years past, Father’s Day sales are usually combined with gifts for graduates since most graduations around the country are happening this month.

Be aware that many of these sales are meant to capture the attention of gift hunters, not necessarily deal hunters. This means sales aren’t usually as aggressive as shopping holidays like Memorial Day or Black Friday. However, you will see some discounts on items that appeal to the majority of men such as hand and power tools, home theater audio and video components as well as men’s apparel.

Of course, we aren’t just going to provide you with a few quips about what product categories you should buy right now or wait to buy in a few months. Our veteran deal editors have started analyzing each Father’s Day sale in order to evaluate the quality. We don’t want you to spend your hard-earned money on items that simply aren’t deals.

When we evaluate a sale, we are approaching it with two questions in mind:

Combined with our expert knowledge on current product prices and our deal history data, we use these two questions to assign each retailer sale a letter grade (A, B, C, D and F). We will also tell you why it’s either excellent or lacking in substance. (We will continue to update these lists as Father’s Day approaches.)

While these grades are specific to the overall quality of the sale, we’ve also cherry picked the best deals from the sales (Graded C or higher) in order to help you focus in on specific products.

[table caption=”2014 Father’s Day Sale Grades” width=”620″ colwidth=”40|10|50″ colalign=”center|center|center”]
Store,Grade,Reasoning

6pm,C,Up to 75% off men’s apparel and accessories. Extremely average 6pm sale prices though. Notable Deals: $36 Calvin Klein Leather Oxford Shoes

Amazon,C,Dozens of deals but nothing particularly memorable. Many deals are just rehashing older Memorial Day deals that didn’t sell well. Notable Deals: $56 Grilling Table

Home Depot,C,Most of the items included in their sale are only reduced 10% to 15% off. Notable Deals: $15 Laser Level | $20 Disc Sander

Jos a Bank,D,Even weaker than their non-holiday sales! Hold out for them to offer an additional % off clearance as well as free shipping.

Kohl’s,B,Sales are typical of discounts this time of year – however stackable coupon codes bump it up a grade. Notable Deals: Up to 70% off Men’s Apparel + $10 off $30 + Extra 15% off

Lowes,B,The sales match previous prices as of late – however the additional coupons are aggressive for this time of year. Notable Deals: Up to 50% off Special Value Items + Extra $10 off $50

Newegg,C,Prices are average if you want older technology or refurbished products. Notable Deals: $25 Folding Laptop Table

Oakley Vault,B,A handful of steep discounts on in-season items like sunglasses and sandals – Oakley does run similar sales occasionally. Notable Deals: Up to 75% off on Father’s Day Gifts

Perfumania,B,Will be offering 25% off sitewide starting June 3rd – plus another $10 off $50 or more + free shipping – and a free duffle bag with orders $75+. Notable Deals: Buy One – Get One for $14.99 on Men’s cologne

Saks,B,Surprisingly solid discounts on items that are typically priced at or near MSRP. Notable Deals: Up to 70% off Men’s Apparel

Target,C,Some decent discounts on men’s apparel – Unfortunately shipping kills most deals unless you are a Redcard holder. Notable Deals: $25 Mossimo Laceless Boots

Verizon Wireless,C,Offering $100 off smartphones $200 or more and free overnight shipping. Same as their Mother’s Day sale. Notable Deals: $100 iPhone 5s (16GB)

Zagg,C,There are a limited number of items on sale with a few gems in the mix. Notable Deals: Up to 70% off Select Items

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Be sure to check back for updates as we get closer to Father’s Day. In addition, be sure to check out the Ben’s deal feed to see the most recent batch of deals that are Father’s Day specific. You can also set up a deal alert here in order to get informed over email when the price on a product drops to a price you are comfortable with.

Check Ben’s for Father’s Day Deals

Want to find the best Father’s Day Sales this year? We can help.