Amazon No Longer Offers 2-Day Prime Shipping (Here’s What To Do About It)
Have you noticed that Amazon doesn’t deliver on their 2-day Prime Shipping anymore? It’s actually not even close for my address and I’ve had to return stuff to Amazon as I don’t need it by the time the package shows up. Anything that I want to buy today (a Monday) won’t be delivered until Sunday at the earliest. I tested this on a bunch of different shopping categories and made sure it was all products sold and shipped directly by Amazon, and none could be delivered before Sunday, 6 days from NOW. But alas, not all hope is lost, here’s what you should do to hold Amazon’s feet to the fire. It’ll only take a few minutes and put an extra $10 or $20 in your pocket.
Call Them Up and Ask For a 1-Month Refund
When I have a problem with Amazon I usually start a live chat session as it’s easier to say exactly what I want to say.
BUT…for the first time ever, I recommend actually calling them at 1-(888) 280-4331 and say, “Why don’t I get 2-day Prime shipping anymore?”
I tried doing this via Live Chat and it just went in circles due to what I’m guessing was a language barrier.
At this point, give them your zip code and ask them to run it through their system to find out for sure whether your address qualifies for 2-day shipping.
Most addresses do indeed qualify for 2-day Prime shipping.
See Also: 5 Reasons Why Amazon Prime Is a Terrible Buy
If your address does qualify, then you probably already know the EXACT reason why you’re not getting your packages within 2 days.
It’s because Amazon can’t hold up their end of the bargain and they should pay for it.
This is when you politely ask for a 1-month refund on your Prime membership (approximately $10) because Amazon can’t hold up their end of the bargain.
I did this recently via a phone call to their customer service department and it took me all of about 5 minutes to score the $10 refund.
There was ZERO hesitation from the rep I talked with and I think they are trained to hand out this refund for those who politely ask for it.
Note: My family orders from Amazon at least 1-2 times per week and I’m not sure if that played a role in getting the 1-month refund, but in either case, it’s definitely worth a shot.
PRO TIP: AIM HIGH & ASK FOR EVEN MORE
From the comments section, several Amazon Prime members were actually given a $20 “inconvenience credit”.
Since we we know that a $20 credit is on the table, you might as well ask for it. You stand a decent chance of them giving it to you, and if they don’t just try again later with a different CSR.
Hold Amazon’s Feet to the Fire
I realize Amazon’s been hit by unprecedented demand in recent months, but let’s not forget they are one of the richest companies in the world.
Now that the economy and stores have opened back up in most of the country, the demand for online shopping has been greatly reduced.
Yet Amazon still can’t figure it out and solve their order backlog issues.
Originally, Amazon wanted to blame it on the pandemic and now they claim it’s 2-days from when the order leaves the warehouse giving them the green light to blame delivery services and bad weather.
I’d have no problem buying that argument back in 2021…BUT NOT NOW.
It’s my opinion that Amazon was losing money on the 2-day shipping guarantee and is using the current situation as a handy way to get rid of the fast shipping guarantee altogether.
PRO TIP: TIME TO LOOK AT OTHER OPTIONS
Fortunately Amazon is the not the only company offering free shipping with guaranteed 2-day delivery.
Notably, take a close look at a Walmart+ membership. For $98 a year (30-day free trial), you get free shipping with no minimum and most items are either next day delivery or 2-day. You also get free delivery from your local Walmart with a $35 minimum along with 10¢ cents/gallon savings at gas stations including Exxon and Mobil.
And it’s no surprise that the prices at Walmart are typically better than Amazon.
Sidenote: My wife is a Kindergarten teacher and she came home the other day telling me that many of her colleagues have stitched from Prime to Walmart+ and they couldn’t be happier. Very anecdotal I realize, but I think the momentum is building.
See Also: Not Getting Amazon Delivery on Sunday? Here’s Why
I’d be SHOCKED if 2-Day Prime shipping ever came back at this point.
So the bottom line is get your $10 refund NOW before they aren’t so generous.
The customer service rep also told me that MANY people are calling to cancel Prime, she said she had already cancelled over 50 memberships in the past couple days.
Here’s what a chat rep told me when I asked him if Prime members were complaining about the issue:
PRO TIP: TRY AN AMAZON BUSINESS ACCOUNT
Thanks to reader Joseph, who commented recently letting us know that his Amazon Business account has been delivering in 2-days since last September. The interesting part is that his “regular Prime account” is stuck at 4-7 days for delivery.
Since an Amazon business account is FREE to join, and also gives you quantity discounts, setting up an account could be worth a shot. Also, in case you were wondering, he said his business is not COVID related in the slightest.
Prime 2-Day Shipping Has Turned Into 5-Day Delivery
The reason that 2-day Prime shipping has turned into 5, 6, or even 7-day shipping has nothing to do with UPS or the USPS.
It falls 100% on Amazon as they now say that the “2-day shipping guarantee” is from when they actually process your order and get it in the mail.
So if it takes them a couple days to box it up and ship it out, then you’ll get it delivered to your home in about 5 days on average.
See Also: Amazon Package Arriving Late? Here’s How to Score a Refund
If you’re like me, the main reason you joined Prime and paid $139/year was for the 2-day shipping, so this is KIND OF A BIG DEAL.
Ask the Reader: Are you a Prime member? If so, when was the last time Amazon delivered something to you in 2 days?
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)
It’s funny because I was trying to find a pair of pants and I couldn’t figure out why every single pair was gonna take 5+ days then google led me here. I didn’t even realize it’s been every single order lately. I called and they gave me a $25 credit. The rep i talked to basically shit-talked amazon for 10 minutes because I definitely wasn’t his first phone call. He said as a multi-billion dollar company they really need to figure it tf out and start acting like they care about us. Shoutout to Pradeep!
I just cancelled my Prime membership and got a refund. Thank you for this article. Amazon set their own standards and broke them. To not communicate new expectations to customers is wrong.
I just found out that my item won’t be shipped for 2 months!!!! WTF???
YES! I totally agree with this article. This is the whole reason I pay for prime. Walmart has Walmart+ and offers 2 day shipping on a lot of stuff. I find myself using it more, now. 😟
Called yesterday to complain and was given a $12.00 credit for the month. Don’t want to cancel Prime all together because of Music and TV
Thank you for this. I live in a remote city in northern MN and have noticed that Prime delivery times have absolutely cratered since summer. I finally got angry about it, ran a search and happened upon this post and a Vox article about late deliveries in rural Washington state; it’s obvious what they’re doing, which is cutting costs by slashing the quality of service to their customer segment that is least populous, and thus most powerless to fight back, in their eyes. I’ve made dozens of purchases over the past months, and _nothing_ is even remotely close to 2 days anymore; on average, my deliveries are now 5-7 business days, and I haven’t received one in less than 4 since August. Hell, I have one order for a single Prime item that I placed on Nov. 26th that STILL hasn’t even left the warehouse, five days later. They’re not even trying. Pretty shameless conduct on their part, they know full well what’s going on, they should be proactively crediting refunds to the customers affected by their ongoing default under the terms of the agreement, but instead they’re hoping to skate by and only mollify the squeakiest wheels, where necessary, and just get fat off the masses of non-complainers. Fine, whatever, it’s their company, but the fact of the matter is that ALL their free shipping is 5-7 days, so Prime is giving me nothing anymore, ‘The Expanse’ was great but I don’t need to be paying $120/year for it.
Anyway, I would say this is actually THE one way Amazon could trigger their own downfall with the American consumer, so they’re playing with fire; convenience isn’t convenient anymore when it takes 168 hours, and their prices aren’t THAT good vis-a-vis the competition anymore, if they ever were. Just in the past two days I’ve made two expensive purchases I normally would’ve made on Amazon, elsewhere, specifically b/c of shipping: a kitchen island that they quoted needing a week to get here, but which Wayfair says they’ll have on site by Saturday, and some automotive electronics, which they wouldn’t get me until the end of next week, but which I ordered online from Best Buy this very morning and which will supposedly arrive TOMORROW, lol, at no extra charge. I got my $65 returned and have canceled the autorenewal that was going to occur in February, maybe I’ll join for a month when the next season of ‘The Boys’ comes out, but otherwise, that’s the end of Prime for me, it’s now a sucker bet for those in rural areas and smaller cities. Thanks for the heads up, best of luck to everyone else, and definitely CALL as suggested here rather than bothering with the chat, their chat operators are useless.
> which is cutting costs by slashing the quality of service to their customer segment that is least populous, and thus most powerless to fight back, in their eyes.
They aren’t just doing it to rural areas. I tested a few addresses of friends in mine in LA, Atlanta, and Chicago and they have the same slow as snail sh*t shipping times that my home does.
Just ordered a bike alarm if I paid a extra 2.99 next day if not 5 days.
And I am a prime member
Kyle,
I followed the advice and received a 1 month refund and a $20 account credit!
Thank you
Thomas
It seems hypocritical that Bezos is saying he will give away most of his money to charity in his lifetime. Why not channel that back into doing business in a better way, like paying employees more or reducing other costs to customers? Then maybe more people could afford what they need not what they desire.
I have been getting the 7 day shipping too, and they are still missing delivery dates, even that far out. If I don’t think an item will actually be delivered, I can usually tell because it’s usually still in an Amazon warehouse on delivery day, I will ask the representative if the item will be delivered, they always say yes. Then I ask them what if I don’t get the item, eventually I get them to say they will refund the price if it doesn’t arrive. I then screen shot that conversation, they will claim that was never said the next day. I then get into chat, they won’t honor the commitment, then I ask them for an email to send the screen shot, they already have this info so they go talk to a “manager” or something like that then I get my refund. Screen shot your customer interactions, they lie constantly. It’s great when you can catch them lying. I’ve gotten hundreds of dollars in credits, would prefer my items on time though.
I recently moved to Metro Denver from Metro Detroit. In Metro Detroit Same Day and 2 day were pretty much standard at east 90% of the time. Since arriving in Metro Denver my shipping is general 3 to 4 days with some items giving me a spread of 5 days i.e ordered a belt on the 28th of November that only offered delivery between Dec 2 and 7th. It was shipped USPS who was supposed to deliver today, 5 days later, that is now listed as arriving by Wednesday; NINE Days after ordering it. USPS tracking says it arrived in Aurora CO (25 miles from me) on the 1st. This means that the seller did NOT pay for priority shipping and that it is in fact at the lowest slowest level of shipping that the USPS offers. This was a Prime Shipping item. I get that shit happens but this is purely a breach of contract and indicative of neglect and dereliction of duty. I’ll be reaming someone at Amazon a new hole tomorrow.
Thanks for the info. I just got off the phone with Amazon. I was on for over an hour but got a full refund for the 2022 year. In two months when it renews, I’ll cancel it and sign up for Business and see if it makes a difference. BTW, they tried the line, “We ship when the item is available” but I shut that crap down by showing items I just ordered a week ago show “in stock” and “Prime Free Delivery by Monday (2 days) yet I’ve been waiting almost a week for it. So, someone is lying because your statement doesn’t hold up under scrutiny. Then, “In stock can just means we have the item but don’t “have” the item available to ship since most of our items are from 3rd Party sellers.” What?? I then called that misleading and deliberate and with current technology it’s possible to show how many items are in stock and where and they can include that on their site pages. I explained that my businesses have partnerships with Vendors that do exactly this and they have billions less money than Amazon therefore, it’s either lazy or intentionally left off to avoid losing subscribers and sales. Why wait a week when a trip to Walmart gets what I want today in most cases? I only wish to get what I pay for. Nothing more. Nothing less. Amazon has a lawsuit in their future, mark my words.
I have Prime and it’s been 10 days since the order was placed anti still hasn’t shipped and it is fulfilled by Amazon and is in stock. Estimate is not two more weeks out.Unacceptable.
It’s been this way all year. Has nothing to do with the holiday. I am 20 mins outside a large city and it takes sometimes 10-12 days (I ain’t kidding ) to get a package. I am prob dropping prime this yr. It’s not worth paying for. I’ve been a prime member for YEARS and even have the prime visa. They’ve lost me this year. I’m done.
I use an Amazon Business account (for an actual business), and we definitely do NOT get 2-day shipping. We order a ton from Amazon, but nothing gets processed AND delivered in 2 days anymore. I can’t wait to see how things turn out once they layoff 10,000 employees!
I live in NYC and things with prime are taking up to 12 days. When calling, I just got them blaming the vendor and a $5 inconvenience fee
I tried this trick earlier today and it did not work for me sadly. Glad it worked for those who tried.
I paid annual subscription $150 in June 2022 and Amazon will not give me a refund for the future portion. I used to get 2 days ship to my house but now everything is 1-2 week. They blamed the vendors for not giving their product to Amazon to ship. I can cancel the Amazon prime renewal on my own, no need to call. That is all they can do. Wasted at least 50% of $150 or $75. Amazon said I already used the prime service, how could I used it tomorrow until June of 2023. I will file a complaint.
Same here in Canada. My amazon prime increased to 99$ this year and at this point every deliver date is 5 days in the future not 2 anymore so I chatted with an agent and was able to get a 20$ discount. At first the wanted to give me 5$ then 10$ so I kept arguing that I was paying prime to get the 2 days and that amazon never warned anyone that the delay increased to 5 days and I was able to get 20$.
Unfortunately, same story as “above”. In addition Amazon Prime has completely stopped delivering to our area- claiming “Not profitable”,…….that’s BS!
All items are shipped through USPS. Tack USPS’s shipping time onto Amazon’s😳
We are only a few miles from fulfillment center.