I found 3 AirPods deals live ahead of October Prime Day (and 3 not live yet)

The best early AirPods deals ahead of Prime Big Deal Days: Best overall deal Apple AirPods 4 $99 (save $30) Get Deal Best AirPods Pro deal Apple AirPods Pro 3 $234 (save $15) Get Deal Best airpods max deal Apple AirPods Max 2 $479 (save $70) Get Deal

Don't be alarmed, but we're about a week away from October Prime Day.

The sale, officially dubbed Prime Big Deal Days, marks the start of the holiday shopping season, which is often a great time to grab tech like AirPods on sale.

The sale officially kicks off Oct. 6, but in the lead-up to the main event, our team will be tracking all the best AirPods deals. So far, we haven't seen any price drops on the newly announced AirPods 5 (more on that below), but we have seen some other promising price drops. As someone who tests and writes about headphones and earbuds year-round, I get why Apple users are willing to invest in AirPods. As a deals expert, I also much prefer to see folks grab AirPods on sale.

SEE ALSO: Early October Prime Day deals already live: Save on Apple, Beats, Fire TV, and Garmin

The key to shopping these sales smartly is grabbing deals at just the right time. That's why I've rounded up the three best AirPods deals live so far, plus the three that you can wait on for the time being. Check them out below, and be sure to follow more of Mashable's October Prime Day coverage.

Best AirPods deal

Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple AirPods 4 $99 at Walmart
$129 Save $30   Get Deal

Why we picked this

The humble AirPods 4. What they lack in active noise cancellation, they make up for in a more appealing price point of $99. With the release of the AirPods 5, these are the last AirPods available without ANC. Maybe that's ideal for you, or maybe you simply appreciate the lower price point. In either case, this is likely the last holiday shopping season you can grab these buds on sale. Just note, they are still far from their record low price of $69, but their availability may be limited as we get further into the shopping season — they've already sold out at Amazon.

More AirPods deals

• Apple AirPods Pro 3 — $234 $249 (save $15)

• Apple AirPods Max 2 — $479 $549 (save $70)

AirPods deals to wait for

• The AirPods 5 have only received one small deal — a $4 price drop — so far since their release on Sept. 18. Granted, they're still very new to the market, so even that price dip is notable. We're hoping that as we get further into holiday deal season, a slightly more substantial deal comes along.

• The AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case haven't dropped in price just yet, so we're not holding our breath that they will, especially since they're still brand new. That said, October Prime Day would be a very appropriate time for a surprise deal, so the chance that we see even a small dip isn't zero. At the very least, grabbing them at full price is still likely a better deal than grabbing the AirPods 4 with ANC on sale (more on that below).

• The AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation look like a good deal at $149 (down from $179), but there's a catch. Their newer analog, the AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case, has a list price of $149 and comes with an improved feature set, including better active noise cancellation and sound quality, with the same battery life. In other words, the AirPods 4 with ANC would have to be cheaper than $149 for this to be a deal worth picking up.