Have you used an Amazon coupon recently to save money? If you’re like most, you probably had no idea that coupons for Amazon even existed. The majority of Amazon shoppers love the site because it’s so darn convenient, especially if you’re a Prime member. But very few will take the time to use a coupon to save even more. In this article I breakdown how to find and use Amazon coupons, along with some other out-of-the-box ways to save money with the retail giant.

Amazon Offers 2 Types of Coupons:

1. Coupons You Activate by Clicking on a Link

Amazon regularly has coupons that require you to click on a specific link to get your discount added to your account. Let’s call them “Click & Save” coupons.

These coupons typically aren’t good for a discount on a specific product, but instead are often site-wide discounts or savings on specific Amazon services.

Current “Click & Save” Amazon Coupons:

• Up to 75% off your order with Amazon coupons – Click Here
• Free Shipping without Amazon Prime on your $25+ order – Click Here
• 50% Off + 6 months of Free Prime with Amazon Student – Click Here
• Free 2-day Shipping with 30-day Prime Free Trial – Click Here
• Amazon Warehouse Deals – Deep Discounts on Open-box and Used Electronics – Click Here
• Free 3 Month Trial to Amazon Music Unlimited – Click Here

I’ll be sure to keep this section updated with all of Amazon’s current coupon offers.

2. Coupons You Digitally “Clip”

These are the coupons where you can really save some money.

Amazon has a ton (like 1,000’s) of digital coupons that you clip before you buy, then the coupon savings automatically gets added when you make the purchase.

These coupon offers are all found on the hard-to-find Coupons Section of the Amazon website.

Popular coupon categories include beauty, pet supplies, Prime Pantry, home & kitchen, grocery, electronics, and toy & baby.

To “clip” the product coupons you want to use, just find the items you want to buy and press the “Clip Coupon” button (see screenshot below).

The coupon will then get added to your account and your discount will automatically be taken when you complete the purchase.

Always read the fine print of the coupon as some are only for Prime members and some are only for those who use the Amazon “Subscribe and Save” program.

More Amazon Savings Tips & Tricks

In addition to using Amazon coupons to save money, there exists some other highly clever ways to save.

I should preface this by saying, “Hello, my name is Kyle and I am an Amazon.com addict. It has been 17 hours since I placed my last order.”

Because of my addiction, I have learned some pretty cool tricks over the years to maximize my savings at the online retail giant.

So I thought it was time to put all my tips in one place so you can maximize your savings at Amazon as well.

See Also: Want to Split your Amazon Payment? Follow These Simple Steps

Is Amazon Prime Worth It?

Many people these days think Prime is NOT worth it, but I say the magic number is 2.

If you buy from Amazon, or think you might, at least 2 times per month, then in most cases it’s worth paying the $139 annual fee for the Amazon Prime membership.

Essentially, I did the math based on a $5 shipping charge which is fairly conservative as larger items have shipping charges way above $5.

The math came down to 24 purchases per year, at $5 shipping on each package, for a total of $120 annually spent on shipping.

Bottom line, if you think you’ll shop at least twice per month on Amazon, Prime is totally worth the money.

This is especially true if you can take advantage of an Amazon coupons and save even more money.

Here are a few of the additional services you get with your $139 Prime annual fee:

• FREE Unlimited 2-Day Shipping. This is by far the biggest benefit, especially since Amazon carries pretty much every product you can think of. Order something then 5 minutes later remember that you are almost out of toothpaste, no problem just log back in and place another order for some Crest. Also, it is very impressive that 2-day Prime shipping is also available on really large items like microwaves, televisions, and basketball hoops. How do I know this? Oh, just take my word for it.
• Access to Amazon Prime Video. You can stream hundreds of TV shows and movies for free through your Fire TV Stick, Smart TV, Wii, Roku, or other Internet connected device. Important Note: Only the primary Prime member has free access. Family members that have been added to the Prime membership are not eligible.
• Kindle Owners’ Lending Library. If you own a Kindle device you get to borrow one pre-selected book title per month. In my experience the titles are very good and include many new releases.
• Amazon Student Discounts Available. If you are a student you can get the Prime membership for an affordable $49 a year. You’ll still get almost all of the same features as a regular membership, plus student specific discounts on thousands of products. Your best bet initially is to sign up for a 30-day free Prime Student trial membership to test out the service and make sure it fits your needs and is worth your money. The only downside I have seen with Amazon Prime is it makes it VERY easy to overspend if you are not careful. This is especially true if you use the 1-Click checkout option. They make it way too easy to make a purchase. College students, consider yourself warned.
• Share Your Prime Membership. Also, it’s worth noting that the best way to get the most bang for your buck is to “go in” with some family members and split the $119 Prime membership. The primary member can extend an invitation to one additional adult and up to 4 children in the their family.

For a full list of Prime benefits, see 7 Amazon Prime Benefits You Probably Had No Idea Existed.

Let’s keep this going and talk about even more ways (besides Amazon coupons) to help you save money with the online retail giant.

CamelCamelCamel.com

CamelCamelCamel.com hands down wins the ‘Dumbest Name of the Most Useful Website’ award. It’s a terrific site to use in addition to coupons to basically stack your savings.

The free website allows you to track the price of millions of products sold by Amazon.com and sends you a cool alert via email or Twitter when the price drops to historically low prices.

OK, now back up a second. Maybe you weren’t already aware that Amazon.com is constantly changing the prices of their products.  Yes, they must certainly do.

You can quickly see this by adding a few products to your ‘Save for Later’ folder in your Amazon account and track them over the course of a few days. They can change in price by up to 20% on certain product categories.

So this is where CamelCamelCamel comes into play. They’ll track the prices for you which allows you to only buy items when they are at, or below, historically low prices.

I nice little tool for those that always wondered if they were getting the best deal possible.

Amazon “Deals of the Day”

Amazon.com Gold Box Deals of the Day are essentially a daily deal site within the Amazon platform.

The main problem with these deals is they are really hard to find on their cluttered homepage so your best bet is to bookmark the actual link to their daily deals page.

Most of the deals are kitchen items, small appliances, tech-gear, and electronics and the savings are substantial.

For example, today they have a Logitech Wireless Keyboard and Mouse for 50% off the original regular price.

If you don’t care about owning a particular brand, their Daily Deals can really save you some money, especially when doing your Christmas shopping this year.

Subscribe and Save Program

The Amazon ‘Subscribe and Save’ program is a nifty little free program to help you save money on re-occurring purchases. Your diapers, paper towels, toilet paper, things like that.

Essentially, you set up automatic delivery on specific items and if you have 5 or more set up you get 15% taken off your order total.

Crystal at Money Saving Mom did a little experiment on toilet paper and paper towels and found them to be cheaper than her local Costco. The kicker is that they show up on your doorstep for free and you can cancel your subscription at any time.

A word of caution, always make sure that the prices are competitive. Since Amazon changes their pricing all the time, a good deal on Huggies in February may be a ripoff come June.

Amazon makes this process a little bit easier by sending you an email if the price goes up so you can make an informed decision to cancel or not.

Amazon’s Outlet Store

Have you ever tried to find the Amazon Outlet from their homepage?

If you have, you know that it is NOT possible. For whatever reason, they just don’t advertise it. My guess is they’d rather have you buy stuff at full price.

The only way I have been able to land in their outlet is through a Google search.

In any case, the outlet offers some great savings up to 70% off the original price. Some of the best deals are on clothing, jewelry, shoes, and electronics.

If you have a Prime membership you can still shop in the outlet and get free 2-day shipping. The secret is officially out, so go forth and save money.

Ask the Reader: Have you used Amazon coupons to successfully save money? How about any of my other savings tricks I mention?

By Kyle James

With Mother’s Day coming up this Sunday, I thought it would be fitting to research some companies that go above and beyond when offering parental perks for moms. From paid time off, to on-site baby sitting, to mailing home breast milk when you’re on a business trip, these companies understand that a happy mom is a productive mom. Hope this info helps if you’re looking for a new job. Happy Mother’s Day to all the hardworking moms out there!

Adobe

Adobe offers up to 26 weeks of paid maternity leave and 16 weeks of paid paternity leave.

The company also provides a generous adoption assistance program, access to childcare resources, and flexible work options.

Adobe’s comprehensive parental perks ensure that parents have the support they need to balance their work and family responsibilities.

Amazon

Via their new “Leave Share” program, Amazon gives new moms 20 weeks maternity leave and dads get 6 weeks.

But the best part is employees can share their 20 weeks with their un-wed partner.

You can actually share up to 6 weeks with them, in which case you’d get 14 and they’d get 6.

When parents come back to work they can also take advantage of their “Ramp Back” program which eases you back over an 8 week period.

You’ll also be able to take advantage of reduced schedule to ease back into work life as well as an employee discount.

Apple

Moms working for Apple not only get 14 weeks after birth, but 4 weeks before the due date to get ready.

Dads get a respectable 6 week paid leave.

Not ready to have children? No worries as Apple also offers free egg-freezing services.

Etsy

Etsy offers 26 weeks of fully paid parental leave for all parents, regardless of gender.

Etsy also provides flexible work schedules, remote work options, and a variety of resources for new parents.

Facebook

The Zuckster gives out a very liberal 16 week paid maternity, paternity, and adoption leave.

Facebook also hands out $4,000 in no-strings attached “baby cash” along with free egg-freezing services.

To top it off, their Menlo Park HQ has breast-feeding rooms set aside for lactating moms.

Genentech

Genentech offers up to 16 weeks of paid parental leave for both mothers and fathers.

The company also provides adoption assistance, fertility benefits, and on-site childcare at some locations.

Google

Google is renowned for its employee benefits, and its parental perks are no exception.

The company offers up to 18 weeks of paid maternity leave and 12 weeks of paid paternity leave.

Additionally, Google provides on-site childcare, backup childcare services, and generous parental support groups, making it easier for parents to balance their professional and personal lives.

IKEA

The Swedish-based furniture company also offers 4 months of paid leave for moms, dads, and parents who adopt.

The most note-worthy piece is that this paid leave applies to both hourly and salaried IKEA employees.

Johnson & Johnson

Moms get 17 weeks leave and dads get 9 when employed for Johnson & Johnson.

They can also take advantage of grocery and laundry pickup services.

Heck, I might get a job with J&J just for the grocery service, that’s so awesome.

But the goodness doesn’t stop there. J&J will also ship breast milk home, on their dime, when you’re on a business trip.

Netflix

Both hourly and salaried Netflix employees can take advantage of their unlimited parental paid leave.

Then when you come back to work, you can choose either part-time or full-time work. Plus, you can go back out on leave if you need to.

Throw this liberal parental perks policy on top of their unlimited vacation policy and Netflix seems to be a great place to work.

Patagonia

Patagonia offers a revolutionary on-site child care program as well as 16 weeks of paid leave for new mothers, 12 weeks for fathers and adoptive moms.

They actually claim that their expensive to run on-site child care program actually makes them money in terms of employee happiness and productivity.

The outdoor clothing outfitter will even send babysitters with you when you embark on a business trip.

Spotify

The music-streaming service known as Spotify offers a strong 6-month paid leave for both moms and dads.

You’re also given the cool option of splitting up your 6 months into whatever time periods work for your family.

Upon your return, you’re given the option of working from home, as well as working a reduced schedule.

Starbucks

Starbucks recently introduced a new parental perks package.

The new and improved policy offers ANY new parent, including non-birth parents, 12 weeks of fully paid maternity leave, up from 6 weeks.

To be eligible you must work a minimum of 20 hours per week on average.

Ask the Reader: Have you ever worked for a company with great parental perks? Let me know in the comments.

By Kyle James

Similar to Costco’s return policy, the return policy at Nordstrom is really liberal and quite popular. But as with any retailer’s policy, there are always questions that many shoppers have, especially since Nordstrom changed some of their policies recently. Here are the 8 most popular questions that shoppers have about the Nordstrom return policy. Some of these answers can’t be easily found on the Nordstrom website.

How Many Return Days Does Nordstrom Offer?

Unlimited.

While Nordstrom reserves the right to handle returns on a “case by case basis” they do not have a set number of return days in place.

I’ve actually heard of some shoppers return items that are well over a year old and have clearly been worn.

But be warned, if you abuse Nordstrom’s return policy to often you’ll probably end up getting banned.

See Also: Nordstrom Price Match Policy: Everything You Need to Know (and Much More)

Does Nordstrom Offer an Extended Holiday Return Policy?

Yes.

I’m a little confused why Nordstrom offers an extended holiday return when they have unlimited return days.

But…for all purchases made between 10/16/23 – 12/23/23 you have up until 1/15/24 to return.

Can You Return An Item Without Receipt?

Yes.

It definitely helps (speed wise) if you have your receipt but it IS NOT required.

If you return something without a receipt, Nordstrom will attempt to find your purchase within their computer system.

If they can’t find your purchase they’ll refund you the current price of the item in the form of a Nordstrom gift card.

See Also: All the Stores That Allow you to Return Items Without a Receipt

Can You Return Shoes or Clothing You’ve Worn?

Yes, you can.

Nordstrom does almost everything possible to keep their customers happy, this includes allowing returns on items that have been worn.

All they ask is that you treat them fairly and don’t abuse their liberal return policy.

The Wording “Case by Case Basis” Seems Bad for Shoppers…

While the policy states you can return stuff at any time, many of the folks in the comments have had their returns denied recently.

It’s safe to assume that Nordstrom management is taking a stricter stance on those returning items 1-2 years after they bought them.

They definitely are using the wording “case by case basis” to their advantage and denying returns when items are clearly worn and not in saleable condition.

What About Makeup…Can You Return It?

Yes indeed.

Both used and unopened.

If you’re not happy with it, for any reason, just bring it back in (hopefully with the receipt) and get a full refund.

What If The Item Has No Tag?

Not a problem, bring it in for a refund.

Heck, you can even return it if the item doesn’t have a tag and it’s been worn.

How Do You Return Online Purchases?

You have two options.

You can either mail them back with the enclosed return label or bring them back to your nearest Nordstrom location.

If you don’t have a Nordstrom account or are missing your order information, you can click here and print out a blank return form.

The best part? Return shipping is FREE.

Can You Return “Special Occasion” Dresses Without Tags?

No way Jose.

Because of recent abuse of Nordstrom’s return policy, “Special Occasion” dresses now come with a tag that reads “if this tag is removed the garment cannot be returned”.

After all, nobody wants to pay big bucks to wear a beautiful dress that’s already been worn once, or multiple times.

See Also: Macy’s Return Policy: We Untangle ALL the Confusion

Can You Get a Cash Refund at Nordstrom?

As of January 2017, you can only get a cash refund if the purchase was made in cash.

All other refunds will be given in either store credit, or put back on the credit card you originally used to make the purchase.

Nordstrom is cracking down on shoppers who abused their return policy, especially those whose store account shows more in returns than actual purchases.

Nordstrom Return Policy “Nitty Gritty” Stuff:

1. Be Prepared to Show your I.D.

When returning anything without a receipt they will ask you for your I.D. and enter your info into their system.

This is how the keep track of those who abuse their return policy.

2. Nordstrom Rack has Different Policy

If you make a purchase from their “Outlet”, known as “The Rack”, be aware that they have a less lenient return policy.

Namely, they only give you 30 days to make a return and you better have your receipt with you.

Also, they will NOT take back items that have been worn.

3. You’ll Catch More Flies with Honey than Vinegar

Make sure you’re polite and conversational when making a return at Nordstrom, especially when returning used items without a receipt.

Employees are much more likely to help you if you are. It’s simple human nature.

Ask the Reader: Have you ever returned anything to Nordstrom and was it an easy process?

By Kyle James

Photo credit to Phillip Pessar.