The Reasons Why Amazon Prime Is Not Worth the Money
Last year Amazon bumped up the price of their Prime Membership from $119 to $139 annually. This got me thinking about the value of Prime, and do shoppers actually get enough out of it every year to make it worth the money? Does it make you overspend? Does it make you a lazy shopper? To those 3 questions I say No, Yes, Yes. Keep on reading to see why…
1. Amazon Already Has Free Shipping on $25+
I mean sure, the free 2-day shipping on all orders is a great incentive, but are you aware that Amazon already offers free shipping on $25+ orders?
For those who say, “But most of my purchases are under $25 and won’t qualify for free shipping.” To them I say make sure and combine orders until you reach the $25 threshold.
Have a little will-power on purchases and wait until you have several items you need to buy before you make an order.
The idea that you must have something in 2-days means you should probably be heading to your local Walmart, Target, or grocery store to buy it.
If you are a shopper that buys stuff online and always “Needs It NOW” and you’ll happily pay for expedited shipping to make it happen, then the Prime membership will definitely save you money, but I think this is a pretty small percentage of the population.
See Also: 6 Brilliantly Slick Ways to Get Amazon Prime for FREE
2. Prime Membership Makes You a Lazy Shopper
This may be the single biggest reason why the Amazon Prime membership is a bad buy.
Put simply, it makes many consumers flat out lazy.
They don’t compare pricing, they don’t haggle for a better price, they don’t take advantage of retailer’s price match policies, and they sure as heck don’t seek out coupons in order to get the best deal possible.
Instead they head straight to Amazon.com and click a single ‘Buy It Now’ button and viola!, it magically appears on their doorstep two days later.
Many shoppers at this point will make the argument that Amazon always has low prices so I don’t need to be a smart consumer. WRONG!
3. Amazon is a “Walmart-Wolf” in Sheep’s Clothing
When it comes to branding, Jeff Bezos and the marketing team at Amazon are absolute geniuses.
Over the years they have kept the brand “cool” in the eyes of consumers while the Walmarts of the world are seen as a company who ruins the little guy, pinches suppliers to death, and offers low paying jobs and sub-par health benefits.
One of the ways Amazon pulls this off is by not having a human face on the business.
There is not a minimum-wage earning senior citizen greeting you when you shop at Amazon and there’s very little written about the Amazon warehouse employees.
Employees toiling in the gigantic Amazon warehouses have very little voice and Amazon likes it that way.
See Half of Amazon’s warehouse workers are injured after just 3 years from Fortune to get a glimpse behind the Amazon curtain.
So why do I bring this up?
I don’t want you to just accept Amazon and the Prime membership as a alternative to the Walmart culture and way of doing business.
In the end, there is NOT a huge difference between the two.
4. Ridiculously Easy to Overspend
I’m going to get a little psychological with you for a minute.
I believe that many Amazon Prime members feel they need to shop with them as much as possible in order to recoup the membership fee.
I have talked with enough loyal Amazon shoppers over the years to confirm this phenomena.
So what is the outcome?
People buying everything under the sun from Amazon, often paying much more than they would at their local store, in order to get the free 2-day shipping.
Overspending up the wazoo.
I would also make the argument that the biggest reason for Amazon potentially raising the cost of the Prime membership is because they know people will end up buying more from them in an effort to make sure they “get their money’s worth”.
5. Prime 2-Day Shipping Doesn’t Always Happen
If you’re a Prime member, you probably noticed during the COVID pandemic that Amazon was having a hard time getting packages to your front door in their guaranteed 2-day window.
Well the pandemic ended a LONG time ago and Amazon is STILL having trouble in many areas of the country.
Yet they keep raising the price of Prime and people go along with it like sheep.
Don’t believe me? Check out the 900+ comments on the article I wrote about this Amazon shipping problem.
People are dropping Prime like a bad habit EVERY single day.
BONUS – Prime Membership Savings Tips:
If you’re on the fence about dropping the cash on an Amazon.com Prime membership, I have a few tips to minimize your costs.
1. Free 30 day trial. Amazon offers prospective members a free 30-day trial.
I typically recommend shoppers to sign-up for their trial just before Black Friday so they can do all their Christmas shopping and get free 2-day delivery.
Once you start your free trial, track your purchases and your savings in terms of shipping costs.
Add them up at the end of the month and times it by 12 to get a rough idea of your annual savings.
2. Get Amazon price alerts. If you end up (or already are) a Prime member you need to start using Amazon price alert services like CamelCamelCamel.com that allows you to create Amazon price trackers on products you want to purchase.
The free services will send you an email when the price of your item drops below a predetermined price point GUARANTEEING you always get the lowest price and don’t overspend.
Ask the Reader: Are you an Amazon Prime member? If so, do you think it’s worth the money or is it a terrible buy? Also, do you think it makes you overspend and not research the best price?
By Kyle James
I started Rather-Be-Shopping.com in 2000 and have become a consumer expert and advocate writing about out-of-the-box ways to save at stores like Amazon, Walmart, Target and Costco to name a few. I’ve been featured on FOX News, Good Morning America, and the NY Times talking about my savings tips. (Learn more)
Seriously, I wanted to just lay on the bed and watch Harry Potter while my hubby watched football on the TV. Not available, unless I want to purchase. I already have it on DVD. I will not renew. Not enough bonus for me.
I realize this article is almost two years old, but I just want to point out that there are many browser add-ons and websites you can use to watch the price on a particular product. Also, sites like Paribus will automatically watch your purchases for you and contact Amazon if they’re available for a lower price somewhere else. Then, you automatically get the money credited back to your account.
Great point. I’m a huge fan of CamelCamelCamel.com.
As a college student with no car, Amazon Prime is super convenient. The Prime 2-Day shipping is great
Prime is a superb marketing ploy and also a joke whose last laugh is on the customer. I confirmed my second 30 day trial around the holidays and then ordered 2 more items near the end of the cycle to see if I wanted to actually keep it this time. The 2 items were shipping from CA, I live in WA. I ordered at the prime standard 2 day shipping and then changed it to 1 day shipping on the next day. When I got confirmation of the change, the delivery dates did not change. After 3 phone calls and a litany of excuses, I got the 1 day shipping surcharge refunded and canceled the prime membership. The 2 items I ordered were tagged as “prime certified” and so should have at least been able to make the 2 day trip; when they arrive tomorrow night, it will be 4 days. Joke.
This is when you ask for a free Prime extension, you’ll get it every time.
Today I contact Amazon customer care and ask gave a full layout for how to give discount or free prime to vets & disable people a average budget they get their choir logs and how most have monthly meal planers and a finical adviser and use the computer at the vfw or CMH or library and the rep answers with when my next renewal of prime is and does not answer the question and this always happens!
Comments:why won t your companies help a disabled person and you have listed on all kinds of sites that you give jobs but You know I am missing part of my brain and can do the math and talk to the people at the CMH and DHS and did you know a list of 10 clients that can’t and you did not charge for prime and I have a list of groceries and the cost it is each year and meal plan sheets and out of the 14,000 to 16.000 they get each year they would spend 8.000 to 9.900 on groceries in the pantry and use a computer at the CMH with their choir providers.
I know that is 1,000 dollars in prime cost but even a discount to the student cost and these people only use a computer when their at the CMH and have finical advisors that help pay bills each month, and I had a tumor and have seizers and a caretaker. I just though it’s a ideal,then some of us won’t have to be with out for a hole month with some thing until the next shopping trip we get.
Kyle, I think we’d all like to hear your answer to this one
I don’t pay for Prime. My brother’s company does and adds me as one of the people with access to Prime shipping. I do handle some buying for them when my bro is too swamped. I can’t access video, but then again I have no need to.
What you say about laziness and overpaying may be true for some, but not for everyone. I tend to shop around for the best price. I take not only the price, but shipping costs into account. Only then will I consider ordering from Amazon and even then, often I’ll find a lower price from another Amazon dealer with free shipping. I may have to wait a lot longer for the product, but I’ve saved money.
But sometimes Prime is cheaper than I can get elsewhere. People buy Prime because, as you said, it’s great hype. But for those who are savvy shoppers to begin with, it can be a blessing. Especially when you do need something right away.
But then I’m disabled and don’t get out of the house much. Online shopping is often the only way for me to buy what I need, when I need it.
I live in a small town that does not have a Walmart or Target. The nearest Walmart is 45 minutes away and the nearest Target is 120 miles away. So yeah, it’s worth it to me. Every time my kid needs something for school or I need to send something to my college daughter I don’t have time to go out of town. The school won’t wait until I have a full shopping list and can go out of town or have my Amazon cart full of $49 products.
Totally get it Mary. If I lived in a rural area Prime would be a no-brainer.
Is that town in California ? We are looking for town with a cheap houses and really I don’t care about shop only I need is gas station .
I love Prime. I use it a lot and I price things when I’m at other stores using the app to see if in store is cheaper or Amazon is. The prime shows have stepped up their game too with more original series and better movies being added it makes it worth while. Prime music is great too because there is a large collection of music and artist available for no andetistdditional charge. In reality you get quite a bit for $99/year and they’re constantly improving their t.v and music services. 2 day shipping works great for me because if I see it cheaper on amazon then I can get it almost immediately. I might Amazon.com. that was live in a small town with a small walmart so it’s hard to find certain things in store. I use walmart site to store a lot also because somethings are just cheaper at walmart!
I think it’s important that if you’re going to write a broad sweeping article like this that you consider the following;
(A) Don’t break the cardinal rule of telling people their lifestyle is wrong. You are not a government, you are not a religion, and you are not their family. Get into a neutral stance and STAY there.
(1) Not all people are like YOU. Some are disabled and easier shopping, no matter the cost, is a blessing for them.
(2) Many, many people do not live right near other shops. Many people have limited choices. Online shopping opens the doors that they would not otherwise have available to them. My husband goes on the road to work in small towns and trust me, choices ARE limited. There are far, far more small towns than big cities and vehicle fuel is expensive.
(3) Don’t be lazy and not update your articles. Additionally don’t be lazy and stop responding to comments. IF this is your business then take care of it. You posted a strong position against something and then abandoned it.
We have Prime BECAUSE of my husband being on the road in small towns. When he needs a tool he can often find it 3-4 times cheaper at amazon than in the local stores. While we would like to support local merchants we cannot justify them bleeding the customers dry.
NOTE: Consider that if the local businesses got some smarts and rented, bought or built a local warehouse together they could ALL afford to buy large lots and offer a discount to their customers. They just have to stop being jealous of each other and protecting tiny profits (no sales) just because they are against others in town. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
Thanks for coming by and leaving such a detailed comment Namma. The article was meant to be a devil’s advocate piece and hopefully spark some smart discussion, which I think it has.
Ironically, by calling me lazy more than once, you broke your cardinal rule of not telling people their lifestyle is wrong.
Ouch, that was a burn! You are absolutely right, Kyle, and you made a great point about the lazy criticism. However, you are not being lazy with maintaining this article whatsoever – even after two years, I still see replies to folks’ comments from you. It looks like you do a great job keeping up with your work, so with that being said, please keep it up.
I just cancelled prime on there free trial prime pantry 35 dollars I would spend more an still be billed for shipping I called them on the first orders they fixed there mistake but I am not going to deal with company every time I order I have to fix there mistakes
I just happen to run up on this article and I am so happy you posted this. I am at Amazon prime member I use it a lot however I don’t think it’s worth it I thought it was $98 but I’m gonna call Amazon right now and cancel my order thank you very much for sharing this and opening my eyes
Hi Martha, it really comes down to how much you use the extra perks like Prime Video, Prime Music, and the Amazon Audible. If you can use those and can cancel Netflix, Apple Music, or Spotify then Prime is totally worth it.
First off, this article should be called “Why I think” instead of is since this entire article is mostly your opinion.
I am an avid Amazon shopper. I also have a couple of Echo Dots and play music true my Prime account through them. I also paid extra for the unlimited plan so I can access every single song on every single album that Amazon has. That in itself is pretty awesome.
The food that I feed my cats and my ferrets is far cheaper through Amazon, comes to me with free shipping and I don’t have to waste gas picking it up or go to the store to find out it is out of stock. With my Echo Dots I can even ask Alexa to order more cat food and she recalls my last order, asks if that’s what I want to order and bam – order placed.
The lotion I regular use by Eucerin is about $15 a bottle. I pick up three the bottles for about $20 on Amazon and again delivered free.
The laser printer I saw and really wanted at my local Staples was $189. I used the Amazon app and found out it was only $79 on Amazon and have it there the next day.
During the holidays I can send gifts to friends and family again, free of shipping. I even recently sent a couple of things to a friend in Scotland and paid nothing for shipping. All I had to do was login to the UK Amazon site and do the order through there!
The TV that I wanted for my bedroom that was the same model as the living room but a bit smaller they did not carry at Costco. I ordered it through Amazon and it was $80 less than what Walmart sells it for. Again, free shipping.
I wanted a really good raincoat that was truly waterproof and couldn’t find anything decent in local stores. I also didn’t want to spend $100 or more to buy one through Lands End. I ordered one on Amazon and was able to read the reviews from other saying it truly was waterproof. I ordered the jacket, loved it but it was a bit too small period was able to send it back since I made sure it was a free return item and ordered the next size. Perfect jacket.
I could go on but these are just some of the examples of great deals on really good items that I found via Amazon that could not be found locally.
Am I lazy person? Am I handicapped so have mobility issues? No to both. But I’m a very busy person. I run my own business and also take a day off every week to volunteer. I don’t want to spend my weekends going to malls and shopping all over the place when I want something. I used my weekend to go hiking, do things with friends, relax!
So shopping via Amazon may not be right for you but that doesn’t mean it isn’t right for others. It isn’t factual it is just your OPINION.
Amazon prime video is a sick joke! Everything, and I mean everything, worth watching requires you to either rent or buy it or you have to subscribe to a third party provider. I got suckered into their web of deceit only to find there was literally nothing I wanted to watch that cost me money above and beyond my prime video membership fee. Needless to say I cancelled immediately and they only got to steal one month of my money. I say save your money and go with Hulu or Netflix, either of which are 100X better than prime video.
I can’t find any good movie which give me enjoyment. To save some money I removed Netflix and now on you tube I am looking for movie .
Amazon Prime is a great buy! I have birth defects and chronic pain that prevents the shopping that I did in my younger years. I don’t buy something just because it’s a prime item. I research and compare prices. There are items that aren’t prime, but they have a good price and offer free shipping—just not in two days. I also enjoy just looking. You can see stuff you didn’t know existed (diapers for chickens) and discover things you need (a soft little heating blanket, perfect for my legs). The Prime movie and TV selection has improved in the last few years—especially their own productions. If you have shows you don’t want to rent or buy, add them to your Watchlist anyway. I had one show that had recently been on TV and I could hardly wait to see it, but I added it to my Watchlist. One evening a few months later I was going through my Watchlist and there was the show I had been waiting on—“Prime” written across it. What an unexpected treat! Yep, Amazon Prime is a great buy!
Prime is worth it for me simply because we literally don’t have stores here.
If I need something in two days, sure I can take a trip to Walmart for the things they carry. For the things they don’t? Oh, it’s a 94 mile trip ONE WAY to go get it!
That’s not something that’s going to happen.
The standard shipping via USPS through amazon? I have to go pick up my packages from the post office to get them, they won’t deliver.
I still comparison shop online, but amazon is my go to because it makes life more convenient… and that’s a price I’m willing to pay. Tack in the shipping I’ve already paid on stuff, it gives an edge to Amazon for smaller purchases that other retailers don’t have. Factor in the ease of returns and that’s something else too (which, admittedly, is available to everyone).
For me? Amazon is a whole lot easier than taking a day to go and drive out of town for anything I might need that Walmart doesn’t carry.
I don’t care about streaming. I have it and don’t use it; it does not add value to me. I don’t have an electronic home, so I don’t use Amazon echo.
I definitely use it for buying things I can’t locally though.
Plus the 20% off video game preorders definitely helps.