What crowds? Empty stretches in Dallas.

In a clear sign that online sales and Thanksgiving Day openings have taken a bite out of Black Friday, many Dallas stores had no morning crowds at all. Numerous retailers on the city’s busy Highway 75 opened early only to find 10, five or even just one customer waiting outside.

Luiza Behs, 15, of Tulsa, Okla., went to the Apple Store an hour before it opened to beat the line, but there was no line. She, her mother, her friend and one other customer were the only people waiting.

“There’s no lines so that’s good for me,” Ms. Behs said with a smile.

Trina, a 46-year-old Dallas woman who did not want to give her last name, went to Target with her son before it opened and found no one there.

“We laughed about it because we said, ‘We could just wait in the car,’” she said, waiting for the door to be unlocked.

Perhaps people were just sleeping later this year. Rather than rise hours before dawn, some Americans, on average, slept in longer on Friday than they did a week earlier, according to data from the Sleep Cycle snooze-tracking app. And when they eventually woke up, residents of most states were in a better mood than when they got out of bed last Friday.

Ryan Marlar, 26, of Garland, was the only person sitting outside Dick’s Sporting Goods waiting for the store to open at 5 a.m. With plans to buy ammunition on sale, Mr. Marlar sat on the tailgate of his truck and said he expected to see at least a few other people waiting to get in.

“It’s my favorite holiday of the year. You know exactly what you want,” he said. “I’m only saving like 10 bucks, but it’s the spirit of the thing. I always go and do it.” — PATRICK MCGEE