US shoppers in search of deals are hitting the stores on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving that's the traditional start of the holiday shopping season.

Retailers are hoping for a lift from the annual shopping bonanza, and the signs are positive.

Spending on Thanksgiving Day shopping was running ahead of last year, and Adobe Analytics projected that online sales would hit a new record of $3.7 billion, up from $2.9 billion on the same day in 2017.

Shoppers wait in line to enter a Best Buy store on Thanksgiving Day in Chicago. Many stores opened Thursday, November 22, for Black Friday sales.
Shoppers wait in line to enter a Best Buy store on Thanksgiving Day in Chicago. Many stores opened Thursday, November 22, for Black Friday sales.
Kamil Krzaczynski/Getty Images
A shopper checks out a handbag at the Macy's flagship store in Herald Square in New York.
A shopper checks out a handbag at the Macy's flagship store in Herald Square in New York.
Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A weary shopper rests at Roosevelt Field Mall in East Garden City, New York.
A weary shopper rests at Roosevelt Field Mall in East Garden City, New York.
Shannon Stapleton/Reuters
A Target employee unloads a mobile cage of Apple products at a store in Newport, Kentucky.
A Target employee unloads a mobile cage of Apple products at a store in Newport, Kentucky.
John Minchillo/AP
Shoppers wait in line to check out the Nebraska Furniture Mart store in Omaha.
Shoppers wait in line to check out the Nebraska Furniture Mart store in Omaha.
Nati Harnik/AP
A woman carries an item at a store in Westbury, New York.
A woman carries an item at a store in Westbury, New York.
Shannon Stapleton/Reuters
People line up to pay for purchases at a Best Buy in Overland Park, Kansas.
People line up to pay for purchases at a Best Buy in Overland Park, Kansas.
Charlie Riedel/AP
People rush through the doors of Macy's in New York.
People rush through the doors of Macy's in New York.
Atilgan Ozdil/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
A girl rides in a shopping cart while her mother shops in West Bend, Wisconsin.
A girl rides in a shopping cart while her mother shops in West Bend, Wisconsin.
John Ehlke/West Bend Daily News via AP
A man shops at a Bass Pro Shop in St. Charles, Missouri.
A man shops at a Bass Pro Shop in St. Charles, Missouri.
Robert Cohen/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP
A shopper buys video games in Chicago.
A shopper buys video games in Chicago.
Kamil Krzaczynski/Getty Images
People wait in line for a Best Buy to open in Overland Park, Kansas.
People wait in line for a Best Buy to open in Overland Park, Kansas.
Charlie Riedel/AP
Shoppers try to stay warm as they wait for doors to open at a store in Washington.
Shoppers try to stay warm as they wait for doors to open at a store in Washington.
Yasin Ozturk/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images