Amazon Prime membership: Join for exclusive deals and shopping perks
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With spring in the air and summer around the corner, everybody's got some shopping to do. If you want the best discounts on the market, signing up for Amazon Prime will let you access exclusive deals and fast, free shipping year-round. Everything you need to know about the perks and benefits of an Amazon Prime subscription is right here, so read on for the best way to shop smart this spring.
Amazon Prime membership
Get exclusive savings and perks by signing up today.
An Amazon Prime membership has loads of benefits—most notably free, fast shipping on thousands of items across all categories—but while shipping is the main attraction, it's not the only benefit. With a Prime membership, you can also score discounted items and exclusive deals during huge sales like the Big Spring sale, Amazon Prime Day, and others throughout the year. Join today to start shopping for the best Amazon deals across all categories.
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What is Amazon Prime?
Amazon Prime is a membership with Amazon that you can pay monthly or annually to score lots of perks like free shipping and access to exclusive deals. The no-strings-attached membership lets you sign up or cancel any time within the given window to avoid being billed (the window runs before the following month for a monthly subscription and before the term year ends for an annual one). That means there's no commitment, especially if you opt for paying month-to-month.
How much does Amazon Prime cost?
Amazon Prime costs $14.99 a month or $139 a year (the equivalent of $11.58 a month), plus taxes. The monthly plan is ideal for those who don't want to make a long-term commitment, or just want to use Amazon Prime at certain times of the year, like through the summer or during the holiday season. If you lock in for the year, you end up saving $40.88 overall, a better option if you want to be able to order on a whim and take advantage of lightning and special deals and discounts that pop up day to day. With this link, you can enjoy a free 30-day trial to Amazon Prime to get familiar with the benefits before making a decision.
Is Amazon Prime worth it?
While fast shipping is what attracts most shoppers to Amazon Prime, it's just one of the many benefits you unlock with a membership, including:
Free, often 2-day shipping (and next-day delivery on certain items)
Recurring deliveries for household items, like toilet paper or laundry detergent
Daily deals (we love to help you with those!)
Prime entertainment
Access to exclusive sales
If you do take advantage of the entertainment benefits that come with Prime, you're coming out even further ahead. These include movies and TV with Prime Video, eBooks with Kindle, music with Amazon Music, and gaming with Twitch. An Amazon Prime Video subscription on its own will run you a monthly fee of $8.99. Prime members get this service by default, which means there's no more feeling guilty for paying every month if you only watch the odd movie or show.
How do I sign up for Amazon Prime?
Go to the main Amazon Prime page and click on "Try Prime," then follow the instructions. Note that you need an Amazon account before you can sign up for Prime, but if you don't yet have one, it's easy to set up. Go to Amazon and enter your details to create an account, then add Prime to get the 30-day free trial.
What are the benefits of an Amazon Prime membership?
1. Amazon Prime Video
Access to Amazon Prime Video comes free with a Prime membership. Subscribers get access to Amazon's wide selection of television and movies, with thousands of options, including both originals and network series. In some cases, you might require a separate third-party subscription to a network like Showtime, Cinemax, or PBS to watch select titles. You can watch Amazon Prime Video from a computer, mobile device or smart TV with the Amazon Prime app or any TV with an HDMI port and a streaming stick like the Amazon Fire TV Stick or the Roku Streaming Stick. If you want to subscribe to Amazon Prime Video alone, it's $8.99 a month.
2. Amazon Music
Also included with a Prime subscription is access to Amazon Music, which includes ad-free streaming of more than two million songs that you can listen to at home or on the go. You can play the songs through a smart speaker at home, like an Amazon Echo Dot, or from a mobile device on the go with a wireless connection. The upgraded version, Amazon Music Unlimited, with access to more than 75 million songs, is available for $9.99 a month for Prime members.
3. Amazon Kindle
Amazon Prime membership also includes special access to more than a thousand Amazon Kindle ebooks, magazines, comics, and even books with Audible narration. There's also a rotating selection of free eBooks that Prime members can choose from each month. You can read on a computer or mobile device, or download the eBook to an e-reader, like an Amazon Kindle.
4. Twitch access
When you sign into Twitch and you're an Amazon Prime member, you get access to a free selection of games, a free Twitch channel subscription each month and plenty of other benefits with Prime Gaming.
5. Two-day shipping
With Amazon Prime, you get fast and free shipping on thousands of items, including toys, electronics, clothing, groceries and more. As long as the item has the "Prime" icon beside the listing, it's eligible. You can also filter searches to only see Prime items that can be delivered quickly, often the next day, depending on the time of day you place the order, and sometimes even on the same day depending on the item, seller and where you live. Amazon Prime also includes the ability to—where available—schedule in-home or even in-car delivery with the Amazon Key app and a compatible vehicle.
6. Prime Try Before You Buy
For style-savvy shoppers, the Amazon Prime Try Before You Buy service could be especially worthwhile. The program allows you to try clothes on before you buy them. You can select up to eight eligible items, try them all on once the package arrives and pay only for what you keep. Everything else can be sent back using Amazon's free return policy.
7. Alexa Voice Shopping
Another perk with Amazon Prime is Alexa Shopping, which lets you add items to your virtual cart by simply dictating the instruction to a compatible Alexa-enabled smart speaker. For example, say, "Alexa, add cereal to my shopping list" and it will be added to the checkout in the account connected to the device. You can also give commands like, "Alexa, re-order laundry detergent," so you can shop as soon as you notice that you're running low to make sure essential items are delivered before you forget to add them to a written list.
8. Special offers
Amazon Prime offers a variety of discounts, coupons, and special offers that happen all throughout the year. Amazon currently has some of the lowest prices of the year and incredible lightning deals on best-selling items. For example, shoppers can expect to save up to 50% on select headphones, toys, speakers and so much more. These limited-time deals are only open to Amazon Prime members. Meanwhile, Prime members also get special savings at Whole Foods Market and a limited-time free GrubHub+ membership for a full year.
9. Consistent discounts
In addition to special deal days, Amazon Prime also offers 20% off to members on products like diapers and baby food. Search for items and, with a Prime membership, you will see the regular price as well as any discounts or additional on-page coupons you can get with Prime.
10. Curated gift guides
Not sure what gifts to get your loved ones for their next birthday? Amazon can do the hard part for you with its extensive birthday gift guide that features discounts as well as the most popular items from every major shopping category. Prime members can finish up their gift shopping and search this guide for the best deals available at Amazon right now.
11. Amazon RxPass
Amazon RxPass is the new generic prescription delivery service from Amazon Prime. For $5 a month, Prime subscribers can get access to over 50 shippable prescription medications, without having to rely on insurance to get a low cost.
Are there discounted membership options?
There are various ways you might qualify for a discount on an Amazon Prime subscription. Students get an extended six-month free trial period, then pay half the price, or just $7.49 a month. They also get exclusive offers, including just $0.99 a month to add Showtime or Amazon Music Unlimited for the first year (which provides access to more than 75 million songs), a 30-day free trial to Amazon Kindle Unlimited for accessing a variety of books and texts and free food delivery from Grubhub for orders $12 or higher.
If you have an EBT card or other qualifying government assistance documentation, you may also be eligible for Prime Access, which comes with a discounted rate of $6.99 a month and a standard 30-day trial.
How do I filter a search to see only Prime-eligible items?
From the Amazon homepage, type in a search term, like "headphones" or "water bottle." When the results pop up, check the box at the top left of the page that reads "Amazon Prime" and shows an orange checkmark with the word "Prime" in light blue. Doing this will automatically filter the results so you only see Prime-eligible items. You will also see the estimated delivery date below the "Prime Free One-Day" tag that appears with the item listing.
How do I cancel my Amazon Prime membership?
You can cancel an Amazon Prime membership at any time and avoid an extra bill if you do so before the next billing cycle. Once logged into your Amazon account, select "Account" from the drop-down menu on the top right. Select "Memberships & Subscriptions," "Prime Membership" settings and "Manage Membership" (update, cancel and more). From there, click "End Membership." You can also sign back up at any time, although, it should be noted that you can only use a free trial period once.
Amazon Prime membership
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