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As usual, Amazon is pushing its Prime service these days, offering a free monthlong trial. On the surface, it seems like a reasonable offer for heavy customers: pay $79 and you get free two-day shipping with no minimum order amount and overnight shipping for $4.
Blogging at LiveCheap, Omie Ismail says the service isn’t worth it because Amazon limits the items you can use the free shipping on, and also — as we’ve reported in the past — raises prices of certain items for Prime customers.
Omie also found another drawback:
After my experience with the non-Prime purchases, I found myself looking only at the Prime eligible items. Invariably, the Prime items carried a higher price tag especially at low price points. Items that were $8 from most vendors were $13 through Amazon.com. So I would get free 2 day shipping, but it was embedded in the price. Considering that I’d already paid for the shipping advantage by subscribing to Prime, it felt like I was taking money from one pocket and putting it in another.
Current and former Amazon Prime users, is Prime a good deal or a trap to exploit customer loyalty?
Amazon Prime: Is It Worth It? [LiveCheap]
Think it depends on where you live. I live in L.A., and even most of my SuperSaver items come within two days (sometimes even next-day), but my parents in Massachusetts will often wait several days for standard shipping, so it makes sense for them to use Prime. The fact that it’s shareable makes it even better.
Most of these so-called “tricks” don’t ring true to me, but the one shenanigan of which they *are* guilty is automatically selecting next-day shipping when you order something, and making you manually switch it back to two-day to avoid paying extra.
I don’t see that problem about having to change to two day. Perhaps it is a cookie, I use an unusual browser K-meleon, and I never have that problem.
I do see one additional benefit, that if I switch from 2 day, to standard 3-5 day shipping everything has come USPS, which I prefer to UPS for a myriad of reasons. If I get something shipped to the office I can use 2 day as there is always someone in the mail room to sign for it. If I get things shipped to my home USPS can place them securely in the mailbox without my signature.
Commenters! Read TFA before writing. Amazon prime isn’t the same as free delivery on items over $25.
Anyway, I love Amazon prime. It means that all kinds of small things, that would require a trip to the store are one-click (sorry) away. I can buy batteries or toothpaste or a ream of paper or a CD – it saves me a huge amount of time wandering around stores.
I find the delivery consistently happens within 2 days (maybe that’s because I live in a biggish city though) – almost every day when I get home, there’s an Amazon parcel on the doorstep. (Yesterday, there was a Chinese Checkers game, and a phone).
Yes, it wastes a bit of packaging, but I recycle it, and I waste a lot of gas driving to the store. Just because you can’t see the pollution you produce doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.
I’ve used Prime for over a year now, and haven’t noticed any price increases on items I’ve ordered. All in all, it’s been a great experience. Many non-Amazon vendors offer the items for a lower price point, but nearly all of them have shippings costs that would drive the item well above the Prime price, and take days longer. I’m also more comfortable dealing with Amazon directly than a subsidiary vendor, should I need to return an item or change an order.
I checked my friend’s non-Prime login, and wasn’t able to find any items that were higher on my Prime login. Bottom line: I’ve found Prime to be convenient, reliable, and a good deal.
You keep linking that article…I do not think it means what you think it means
INCONCEIVABLE!
i don’t think they “pad” prices to include shipping i think that is just their markup on the item. i do however believe they have an algorithm that adjusts the pricing slightly on items they think they might be able to sell you.
I share my Amazon Prime with my family, and we’ve gotten a ton of use out of it. Very happy with the service.
Not to be a broken record, but the “Prime Eligibility” just means it is shipped by Amazon. Many of those competing prices are fulfilled by Marketplace stores that are slow and don’t offer particularly good customer service (I feel like I am burned nearly every time I use marketplace).
I split Prime with my family, so it only costs me $17, which is not bad for 12 months of getting items within 2 days from a company I’ve never had a major issue with.
I’ve never seen a price increase on Prime items. Some vendors may make their price cheaper than Amazon’s price but that doesn’t mean they don’t charge $8 for media mail shipping. Amazon Prime saved my butt once with cheap Saturday shipping for a text book I needed after I was scammed on Half.com.
It’s gotten even better recently with video games. On top of Amazon’s steep discounts they also have offer delivery on ship date, when most stores won’t receive it for another day.
I bought the last two Harry Potter books from them with guaranteed release date shipping. Both times the shipper said they had attempted delivery when they hadn’t. Amazon had used some kooky UPS-to-mail technique for it. Funny how they are the only ones I’ve ever seen use this technique. I couldn’t even get the shipping money refunded because it I used Amazon Prime.
For the last 2 Harry Potter books, they offered free shipping to *anyone* who pre-ordered, so it wasn’t just because you used Prime that they had no shipping cost to refund. As far as the shipper-to-USPS method, drugstore.com and woot.com also use it regularly. I wouldn’t be surprised if other high-volume online stores do as well.
I’m an Amazon prime member and found that the service does payoff if you buy over a curtain amount in a given year from Amazon. For me, the service pays for it’s self about half way through the year leaving me 6 months of free shipping. Does Amazon raises prices? Not that I noticed. Like others noted, if the Amazon price is higher than a merchants price, always add up how much shipping is with the merchant. 99% of the time Amazon ends up being cheaper. Again, this service is only beneficial if you purchase often like over 8 times a year.
Was this ever verified to be the case that the price was higher for the actual Amazon item or just compared to other vendors selling the same thing? I’ve never felt ripped off and I’ve had Prime for 3 years (just starting my 4th).
I love my Prime membership. I’m on my 3rd year of it. I place about 30 orders a year with Amazon, usually because they have the best price on whatever it is I’m trying to buy. The 2 day shipping usually gets to me by the next day if I place my order before early afternoon.
I would chide Consumerist for a very poor bit of reporting here, but last time I did that, my account was frozen from commenting.
But it’s pretty clear that this post is full of fail. For starters, it repeats a long-ago-debunked story about alleged differential pricing, when in fact the linked story is deceptive; it compares the same item being sold by two different vendors, one which is Amazon and the other a third party which *uses* Amazon’s website to sell but does its own shipping. And the free shipping from Crutchfield is Standard shipping, not Prime’s free 2-day air, and only works for purchases over $249.
One of Ismail’s points is that Super Saver ground shipping doesn’t take much longer for him than 2-day. Well, lucky for him he lives close to an Amazon warehouse (LA, based on the site’s phone number). Most of America likely does not. That’s some serious YMMV.
Ismail suggests that Prime is a poor value because you can already get free shipping if you get more than $25 per order. So he suggests you just always buy at least $25 worth of stuff. Um — really, Consumerist? Is that what we advise consumers to do — buy extra to get the deal? That’s the first time I’ve seen Consumerist advocate (albeit indirectly) taking advantage of minimum-purchase deals. Minimum-purchase deals encourage unnecessary spending — you buy things you weren’t planning to buy to get the deal — and that’s why those deals exist!
Ismail complains he stopped comparison shopping because he felt like he needed to use his Prime. Well, that’s his bad habit. It’s as if he stopped comparison shopping so that he could occasionally get a bad price through Amazon and then eventually be able to write Yet Another Amazon Sucks Story.
Finally, the Consumerist post is horribly disingenuous by saying “Amazon limits the items you can buy with Prime.” No, not really. It’s just that Amazon only offers the free 2-day prime shipping (and don’t forget the discounted flat rate on 1-day shipping!) on items that it stocks and ships from its own warehouses, where it can control shipping and other costs, and doesn’t apply it to (most) Marketplace vendors whose shipping rates may vary widely. And as a matter of fact, the exact same thing is true with Amazon’s non-Prime Super Saver free ground shipping — so sorry Ismail, but that’s a non-starter. Also, an increasing number of third-party-sold items are being “Fulfilled by Amazon” including electronics and other goods.
Amazon appears to be Consumerist’s new Bank of America — the company they will go to any length to unfairly target and muddle the facts to defame.
I have had like 3 accounts blocked for telling it like it is.
I never had a problem before consumer reports bought them.
You make a very good point about one benefit of Prime: buy a $5 book, or even a $2 gidget, and it’s here tomorrow, with free shipping. You don’t have to buy $25 worth of books and gidgets. I myself have been taken in by some retailer’s “free shipping with $X order…” and ended up spending more than I planned.
Full disclosure: I’m a Prime member, and very happy with it.
Thank you! Prime isn’t for everyone (the occasional shopper is better off without it). I got Prime when I was in college and buying a lot of books and supplies from Amazon. I’ve kept it since because I still buy most of my books, CDs, and gifts from Amazon. It pays for itself by the fourth month of the year.
I have to agree with what you’re saying in support of Prime. (The comment police on Consumerist I can’t address, since I don’t know about that – and I hope I don’t find out! ha)
I have Prime, and it’s totally worth it for me. I order lots of things – books, DVDs, electronics, toys and clothes for my toddler, household appliances (sewing machine, vacuum cleaner), closet organizers, computer parts, etc. The money I have saved on shipping by having Prime is way more than the cost of the membership itself. And I shop very carefully – I do occasionally buy things from other online stores, if the overall deal (including price AND shipping cost) is better. But in my experience, I get the best prices most of the time (at least for the things I buy) from Amazon.
Not sure where Consumerist’s distrust of Amazon comes from. In my opinion, they’re one of the better e-tailers.
The flip side of that is suggesting people pay 80 dollars to get shipping instead. I don’t know about you, but my habits are certainly such that it’s cheaper to find a filler item than it is to plunk down the 80 dollars..
Perfectly stated. I love Amazon Prime. I’m in school and every time the professor says, “oh by the way, I’ve added this book to the syllabus, please read it by next week,” I can order from Amazon and have it in two days without adding an additional $10-$15 of merch I don’t need. For $4 I can have it tomorrow. Time is important to me and not having to run out and buy every single item is fantastic.
It’s also an amazing deal for bulk groceries. I can buy food by the case or contact lens solution in 3 packs and it arrives in two days, all included in my $79 no matter what the weight. Living in NYC without a car, this is an incredible thing.
And yes, I do shop around, but often times I just need what I need in a short amount of time and just don’t have the hours in my day to take the subway to Barnes & Noble and then to the grocery store and then to Bed, Bath, and Beyond…. Amazon sells everything and at great prices with great customer service. They have made any bad situation I’ve had good and treated me with respect. I really can’t say that about a lot of places and judging by what I read on Consumerist, I don’t think I’m alone.
Krom has it right.
Phil, terrible way to mention the previously debunked idea that Amazon raises prices for Prime customers, without mentioning the fact that the linked story was a Amazon market vendor offering a cheaper price. Amazon market vendors ARE NOT Amazon.
Prime is worth it if you order online alot. I buy all my books on prime (2-3 a month at different dates, so they don’t qualify for free shipping). I also do almost all my Christmas shopping on Amazon. I tend to place lots of small orders through the year that are
Also a big plus is that you are allowed to share with family. This reduces the cost dramatically.
What is interesting is that I signed up for Prime about 45 minutes before reading this story. I’ve been thinking about it for a while and finally decided it was worth it. I do a lot of shopping on Amazon, and Prime is best for me because I sometimes find myself looking for birthday gifts fairly last minute. As it is, if you use regular free shipping (with a $25 purchase), it will usually take a lot longer to arrive and I end up paying for shipping anyway to get it on time. Yes, sometimes it comes in 2 days (like the OP said), but most of the time, it doesn’t for me. And I don’t have a mall that is convenient for me.
When I found out that I could include 4 family members for free, even better.
I tried Prime Amazon for the free trial and felt it wasn’t worth it either. I was mistaken and thought the free shipping was for ALL items and since I can easily spend $25 a shot on Amazon and get free shipping anyway, it just didn’t seem worth it.
2nd day shipping doesn’t seem worth it when my orders already only take 2 days to get to me. If I need something RIGHT AWAY then I’ll go buy it at a store anyway.
Phil, did you read your own linked article? In the other case, Amazon did not raise the price of the TomTom unit for the Prime customer. The person seeing it for cheaper had a different default 3rd-party company providing the unit – the person with Prime can choose that company from the right hand menu (as well as see all the prices available). The person with Prime sees Amazon’s offer by default, probably b/c they can say “hey you get free shipping!”.
See Chris’s statement: “It’s clear to us, and we hope to Steve, that this is not a case of Amazon offering different pricing to members and non-members—instead, it’s a case of a third-party vendor simply offering a better deal.”
Let’s try to be a little less sensationalist shall we?
All of that said, I love my Amazon Prime membership. Every year when that $80 charge rolls around I kind of grumble, but for the entire rest of the year whenever I place an order I get my stuff usually in a single day, at no “extra” cost. Amazon also doesn’t limit the items you can use free shipping on. You can only use free shipping on items that Amazon is selling – not third parties. I hardly expect Amazon to force its 3rd party vendors to offer free shipping if you’ve paid Amazon some extra cash. That doesn’t make any sense.
Its absolutely worth it for me. Been using it for years. And not only me, with the membership you can invite up to four other family members to use your account for free. Of course there are multiple options to buy something from Amazon and they have multiple prices. I have never felt I was getting a jacked up price because I was using Prime. And my wife reads a book a week. Every book she buys comes via Prime and at the lowest price. Money well spent.
I think you all might have sold me on Amazon Prime. What was the original post about again…?
Prime came in handy for me earlier this year when I was in a play because we could order needed props through my account and it would be here in two days rather than nearly a week. Plus it is still one of the first stores I look at when I go online shopping, so I’ll milk it for all it’s worth.
Wow from the title of the post. I never expected to read the comments and leave wanting a Amazon Prime Account.
$2.99 overnight shipping can’t be beat… especially for expensive items that I can’t wait to get my hands on!
I recently let my Prime membership run out after having it for 3 years because I divided the number of Prime shipments into the cost of the subscription and found I was paying $7/shipment. Over the last year or so a good number of items I’ve purchased via Amazon were only available through 3rd party sellers, few of which offer Prime-eligible shipping.
For anyone who is like me: seems to be ordering from Amazon all the time but buying quasi-obscure stuff, it’s worth running the numbers each year at re-up time to make sure the subscription is still a good value for you.
Make “that divided the cost of the sub by the number of shipments”. Math iz hard!
I have seen cases where Amazon’s prices — as compared to prices on other Web sites or prices Amazon offers through other vendors — are higher. I usually find that the “free” two-day shipping makes up for the difference: they sent me an 80-lb drill press with no shipping charges, and that whupped their competitors.
I have never encountered a case where they quoted a lower price to a non-Prime member. I frequently delete my cookies and log in after pricing an item; logging in has never changed a price.
We get our money’s worth from Amazon Prime, and we plan to keep it.
I’ve just activated my Prime account, which I’m sharing with my brother. I find myself often finding something I really don’t need just to add up to $25 for free shipping. Now I will have more freedom to buy what I want, when I want. This may be a bad thing. A very, very bad thing.
Also, yay! My first comment on the new site. Looks great, guys!
More appropriate title now seems to be: “An argument against Amazon Prime, and 98 arguments for it.”
I’ve never felt compelled to use Prime. Everything I order comes out of their Nevada warehouse and takes no more than 2 days to arrive with standard shipping.
I had Amazon Prime for a year, almost everything I wanted to buy didn’t qualify.
We usually use the super saver shipping where we don’t pay anything for shipping. There isn’t much we buy from Amazon that we can’t wait a while to receive. If we used their two-day shipping regularly, then we might want to reconsider Amazon Prime. Otherwise, it’s not much of a bargain.
If you need or want fast shipping, Prime is a great deal. Amazon’s regular two-day and one-day shipping rates (http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_navbox_lnship_rates?nodeId=468636) are fairly expensive when compared to Prime. I signed up last year when I needed some camera equipment delivered quickly, and two-day shipping would have cost me about $35. I figured I’d sign up for Prime and enjoy “free” fast shipping for the next year. Even counting only the times I needed two-day or one-day shipping, it’s saved me money. Last year, Amazon lowered the price to $50 for the holidays, so if anyone’s interested and doesn’t need their purchases right away, they may want to hold off for a little while.
The article that was linked to is very weak.
- “2) Prime doesn’t apply to non-Amazon purchases. Many times, the lowest price or the only available merchandise is from a third party vendor. On several occasions, I bought something were my Prime membership was worthless. I still needed to pay for the shipping from the vendor and that seemed awkward, because as far as I was concerned, I was buying it from Amazon.com.”
Through Amazon.com, not from Amazon.com (note that a few third-party venders have fulfillment by Amazon, so their items are eligible for Prime: http://www.amazonservices.com/content/fulfillment-by-amazon.htm). Almost every item I’ve bought on Amazon.com has been cheaper from Amazon than from any of the third-party sellers.
- 3) is the exact same argument as 2).
- “4) Prime narrowed my comparison shopping. I used to look at several sites before buying, but once I had Prime, I felt like I needed to leverage my investment.”
That’s the author’s fault, not Amazon’s. I still comparison shop as much as I did before (Amazon’s text store (https://payments.amazon.com/sdui/sdui/personal/textbuyit) is really useful for this).
- (this was after 4), but is the same as 1) ) “Just hit that magic $25 minimum, and wait the 3 to 5 days for your purchase to show up.”
Amazon’s Super Saver shipping is quoted as “5-9 business days,” so an order on Monday pre-cutoff will arrive on the following Monday at the earliest (in years of using Amazon, I got two Super Saver shipments earlier than 5 business days).
Amazon Prime is like any other membership program: useful if you use it.
I always opt for the Free Super Saver Shipping, which takes 7-9 days… I always get it in 2….
All I can say is that I have had Prime for 3 years and have never noticed higher prices between my order of the same item my friend orders without Prime. Also, Prime is for a whole year and is for everyone in your household. If you order a lot from Amazon it is worth it.
I don’t use Prime simply because I buy most of my stuff (CDs, Video Games, Books) used. Most — if not all — of what I find used on Amazon doesn’t offer Prime. However, if I wasn’t so set on purchasing all of the above cheap ‘n’ used, Prime does seem like a great model.
I love Amazon Prime, especially for higher ticket items. For example, I purchased a trike a few months ago, for a little less than $300, unassembled and no shipping.
I don’t notice very much an increase in prices, but the things I do buy are much cheaper than the stores. Plus, I don’t have to pay a state tax like I would in the state I live in.
I think Amazon is tops for customer service, and since I do buy a lot of books and gifts, this is a bargain for me.
I LOVE Amazon Prime, for me a frequent shopper at Amazon it is well worth the money. It is true that Prime does not apply to all products, but it does apply to most of the products I frequently purchase through Amazon. It is also true that Amazon often sells products through multiple vendors and sometimes the Amazon price is higher than the other vendors, however if you are aware of this it is usually not an issue.
I just completed 90% of my Christmas Shopping and over the last 3 days 9 or 10 large boxes have arrived at my home…. all shipped free as part of my Prime Membership. Once I even purchased a lawn mower again shipped free. One other nice thing about Prime is I don’t have to spend $25 to get free super saver shipping. Often before I had Prime I would order additional things to get my total to $25 so I could get the free shipping – I know it didn’t make sense, but I hated to pay shipping when I could spend a few more dollars and get it free. It also seemed that the free super saver shipping would often take forever. Recently I needed a $3 cable… and it was shipped again FREE – I love Prime.
Prime is a good deal for frequent customers but not for everyone. It depends on what you are buying and how often. For me I love it and would never go back… but it depends on your needs and habits.
Wow. So many things are wrong with this story, but great job to the people here that have quickly and throughly debunked this story. I don’t even know why I read this site anymore. The blaintant inaccuracies and knee-jerk posts are really making this site less and less useful.
1. The prices compared are Amazon vs. other vendors that buy through the site.
2. There’s no difference between the price that Prime and non-Prime customers see. So there’s no “padding” happening here.
3. Items that qualify for Super Saver Shipping and Prime are in most cases… the same.
Had prime for two years and loving it!
I think it’s great for heavy Amazon purchasers, especially if you split the cost since you can add “household members” on the same account. Also, shipping is expensive if you end up having to pay for it (spending less than $25 on something small and heavy, for example). I worked for an e-retailer for a while and when the ACTUAL shipping cost is passed along to the customer, it’s surprisingly steep. When I buy from specialty sites, it’s the same thing – shipping can be 25-50% of my entire purchase. Super Saver shipping only kicks in at $25 or more on Amazon, which is more than the price of a book or a CD or a LOT of other things. That said, I think the world of internet retailers is becoming more competitive through decreasing shipping costs. The most successful internet retailers are the ones who can duplicate (or improve), through the website, the would-be in-store benefit to the consumer by eliminating shipping and tax costs. On top of all that, it’s just plain convenient.
For those of you who are on Prime, have you ever noticed price differences? I noticed these when I was looking at some items over the phone with my girlfriend. We each were looking at the same items and noticed the prices I saw were higher. Since we lived a mile apart it wasn’t a regional price difference but seemed to be associated with our accounts. I ordered the items through my account and then emailed Amazon to be refunded the difference… but why was there a difference???
Even though the vendors charge less for the item, their shipping rates are pretty high (usually $6-10+) making it cost more than Amazon + Prime. It also takes quite a bit longer for Marketplace items to ship, whereas with Prime, I sometimes get the item the next day (when choosing the two-day option).
I do a lot of shopping through Amazon, so Prime is worth it for me, especially for textbooks.
I’ve been a Prime customer since the summer. What I like about the Prime service is the PREDICTABLE delivery. Assuming the item is in stock – and they tell me if it’s not – I know exactly when they will deliver. So if it’s an item they’re likely to make me sign for, I can time it so I can be home. Delivery continues to be the very very weak link in the whole online shopping chain for me and many single working people. Nobody home to sign, UPS can’t leave packages unattended without a signature, you can’t select to deliver to a UPS store when you purchase, you can’t tell Amazon to use USPS instead. For me, the predictability of the delivery is worth the two-day shipping and Prime is the most cost-effective way to get two-day shipping if you buy a lot. I have been buying A LOT this year because of setting up a new home. Next year I might reconsider.
Let’s make this easy.
Amazon: $13+free 2 day shipping
Seller: $8 + $3.99 ? shipping = $12 or more
Who knows how long it will be until the seller gets you the item. From amazon you know it’s 2 days or you can overnight for cheap. So is saving a dollar really worth it? Prime has saved me a lot of money and saved my butt a few times that I needed something overnighted. Even if sellers have it cheaper, it’s still a lower price than your local store. So what is there to really complain about? Amazon does usually beat or match competitors but that’s real competitors not sellers on amazon.
Prime has been a great service in my experience. I buy dozens of things a year and I hate waiting which is crucial for purchasing gifts. Of course not everything is available for Prime but most of the stuff I’m into (video games, electronics) usually are and I don’t notice a markup on things I buy but for others it may be a different story.
I live in a somewhat rural area, so Amazon Prime is a life saver for me. Especially when it comes to those hard-to-find items like electronic cables and parts that you can’t wait a week for from Monoprice. The only electronics store we have is “The Shack” and I refuse to shop there. Amazon was also wonderful when I needed baby supplies. We luckily have a Walmart and Target here, but the selection leaves a lot to be desired and items are often sold out. Amazon was great at filling in the gaps. Plus, it helped that I didn’t have to drag my newborn out for every little thing. Like others have mentioned, I split the membership with a friend of mine so it was only $40. Very worth it to me.
I signed up for the trial about a year ago and forgot to cancel and boy am I glad. I’m buy books and I get my money’s worth. Two day shipping is a godsend for impatient book eaters. The few times i would have had to pay shipping, I go to another site or try and find/order it in a local store.
That is right there with amazon raising the price of things in your q by a few cents randomly and periodically. You can log out and see the real price from a different IP. It is just plain wrong.
I’m a big fan of Amazon Prime. I had 34 orders on Amazon in the last 30 days. Add to it the fact that I can share Prime with family members, and store their credit cards on my account, it more than pays for itself. Plus, on the VERY rare occasions when I have an issue with an Amazon order, replacements are sent next day. I would buy everything from Amazon if I could.
Amusingly enough I just used my Prime Membership this morning.
Amazon items, directly sold by Amazon, are always available for Prime. Items sold through third parties are up to the discretion of third parties (which almost never opt in). When you want to find items, sort by the Seller and select just “Amazon.com” as the seller. Now you have items which wil be Prime capable.
Prime has been a life saver for me. I had a hard drive fail the day I left for a funeral on Wed. Today was the first day I could replace it. I was able to order a replacement drive, have it overnight & Saturday delivery for $40 less than I could get it from the local Best Buy… and that’s not including the taxes and my time to find the drive. (Sat Shipping was $7.)
So, I live by my Prime membership and have had no problems with it at all.
prime is absolutely worth it for me. most of what i buy on amazon is thru amazon and has prime shipping.
the quoted statement above is just antidotal. well to counter non-scientific data with my own non-scientific data… most of what i see offered from amazon is cheaper than the rest… and i get prime.. and it’s cheaper than B&M.
it’s not a trap but as to whether or not prime is worth it really depends on you.