The Best Free Shipping Day Deals

Those looking for hassle-free ways to finish their holiday shopping are in luck, as many retailers are offering free shipping with online purchases—and guaranteed delivery before Christmas. More than 700 retailers are participating in Free Shipping Day on December 17 on the Web site FreeShippingDay.com, the final day shoppers can get gifts delivered from some retailers before Christmas.

[See the Top Tech Gifts for the Holidays.]

About half of all the deals offered on FreeShippingDay.com include free shipping on all orders, while the remainder offer free shipping with a minimum purchase. The Web site lists coupon codes that customers enter when they place their order on a specific retailer's Web site. All of the deals listed on the site are available from midnight on December 16 until midnight on December 17, with a few exceptions. Here is a list of a some of the retailers participating in Free Shipping Day.

[See the Top 10 Fall Deals.]

Free shipping on all orders:

• Nike
• Express
• Electronic Arts
• UGG
• eBags
• Eddie Bauer
• Levi's
• Shoes.com
• Fossil: Free overnight shipping on all orders.
• Land's End: Free shipping on all orders, excluding clearance items.
• Apple Store: Free 2-3 day shipping on orders.

Free shipping with minimum purchase:

• J.C. Penney: Free shipping on orders over $25.
• Sears: Free shipping on items over $39 and $1 off every item in your cart.
• Toys R Us: Free shipping on all toys when you spend $49 or more.
• Macy's: Free shipping on orders over $99.

Online coupon Website Savings.com will also be offering discounts and free shipping from major retailers on December 17. Shoppers can find a list of the deals at Savings.com along with coupon codes, which they can type in during checkout on the retailer's Web site. Some of the free shipping and discount deals Savings.com will offer on December 17 include:

• Steve Madden: 25 percent off with free shipping.
• Shoes.com: 25 percent off sale items with free shipping.
• eBags.com: 20 percent off with free shipping.
• GameStop: 10 percent off with free shipping on orders of $19.99 or more.

[Also see 10 Fire-Sale Cars to Steer Away From.]

Shoppers who don't buy gifts on Free Shipping Day need not panic. Dan de Grandpre, editor-in-chief of DealNews.com, says dozens of retailers will offer free shipping on their Web sites after December 17, some as late as December 23. His site lists many major retailers' final shipping dates for guaranteed delivery before Christmas. Walmart.com offers free shipping until December 17 (items ordered on the Website will be delivered to the shopper's nearest Walmart store.) Target.com is offering free shipping on some items over $50 until December 21. BestBuy.com offers 99 cent shipping until December 21, the last day purchases can be made in order to be delivered before Christmas.

There are also sites that offer free shipping year-round, such as online shoe retailer Zappos.com, which also allows customers to return items for free as well. The site offers guaranteed delivery before Christmas if items are purchased by December 23. Amazon.com offers year-round "Free Super Shipping Savings" on purchases of $25 or more.

Luke Knowles, founder of FreeShippingDay.com and FreeShipping.org, a site that lists free shipping deals year-round from over 1,950 merchants, says he created the Free Shipping Day last year "to make consumers start believing that merchants could get their orders out by Christmas." He also says he hopes Free Shipping Day will eventually be the next Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Between November 1 and December 15, shoppers spent more than $21 billion online, a 4 percent increase from 2008, according to comScore, a digital market research company. More last minute shoppers seem to be relying on the Web, as one-fifth of these total online sales, or $4.7 billion, took place during the week ending Dec. 13.