618 Shopping Season Just Got Real: How to Stack Subsidies and VIP Coupons

Alright, 618 news just dropped.

This year’s Tmall 618 first wave starts May 6—that’s 12 days earlier than previous years. My first reaction? The platforms are running out of ways to compete, so they’re dragging us consumers into the frenzy earlier too.

But honestly? This isn’t entirely bad for us.

Here’s the big change: government subsidies have been included on Tmall for the first time, and they can stack with 88VIP coupons. Let me be clear—these are two different things:

Government subsidy is a direct discount on specific categories (appliances, electronics, etc.). No minimum spend required. 88VIP coupons are platform-wide but come with spending thresholds.

The core strategy: grab your government subsidy eligibility first, then apply your 88VIP coupon at checkout. On a 5,000 yuan air conditioner? That could mean up to 1,000 yuan in savings.

But—and this is important—88VIP coupons aren’t one-size-fits-all.

This year’s rules changed to tiered spending: 500 off 20, 1,000 off 50, 2,000 off 120.

If you’re buying big-ticket items, hitting that 2,000 tier is the sweet spot—roughly a 6% discount.

Here’s the “loophole”—88VIP coupons can stack with certain brands’ own coupons on select items. Some Dyson products reportedly stack all three for up to 30% off.

But this requires homework upfront. You need to know which brands participate and what the stacking conditions are.

My suggestion: make a list of what you actually want to buy, calculate the total, and grab your coupons now.

Don’t wait until May 6. The site will be slow, and the coupons will be gone.