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Amazon Prime is one of the most famous and popular subscription services.
Since it existed, competitors like Walmart and CVS have had to add comparable subscription services.
Most people shop at Amazon at some point in time.
I said I would review the service.
Remember, you can get a free Prime trial if you want to test the waters.
While most people shop on Amazon, some people shop less frequently than others.
An Amazon Prime membership is $119 per year or $12.99 per month.
Populations like students and Medicaid recipients can get a discount.
Is an Amazon Prime subscription worth it for you?
We think we can help you answer this question by the end of this post.
Amazon Prime Major Benefits
1. Free two Day Shipping
This is the main reason most people get Amazon Prime.
Get free two day shipping on eligible items in the United States.
Although this is not on every item, it is on most items.
Some areas of the country will give you free same day shipping.
Furthermore, in select cities, certain items qualify for the Prime Now feature.
That means your purchase will be delivered within an hour.
Amazon Prime is not the only way you can get free shipping though.
Other ways to get free shipping are on orders of $25 or more and on the subscribe and save program.
In terms of orders of over $25, not all items qualify for this though.
Of these methods, Amazon Prime is the easiest and most efficient way to get free shipping.
On orders of over $25, when your purchase qualifies, you will need to wait 5-8 days.
2. Prime video
You get unlimited streaming of movies or tv shows for free or paid.
Amazon has some popular original series as part of the free shows.
Though this is a nice extra, one of the complaints is not all shows and movies are free.
This is not meant to replace Netflix or Hulu.
It is meant to be used with one of those two services.
When I did my free trial, it was a little confusing.
Some things were free, and some were not.
3. Prime Music
You get free unlimited ad free streaming access to more than a million songs.
This will not compete with a paid Spotify membership, but may be enough for some.
They offer an Amazon Unlimited Music subscription that you will need to pay for if you want more songs.
Amazon Unlimited gives you 10 millions songs.
4. Prime Day deals and other discounts
Get access to Prime Day deals which will include everything from 4 K televisions to Echo Dots.
Get thirty minute early access to “Lightning Deals.”
Get 10% off on certain Whole Foods items.
Get 5% back with the Amazon Prime credit card.
Enjoy “Just For Prime,” a section of Amazon where you enjoy deals for only Prime members.
5. Prime Photos
Secure unlimited photo storage in the Amazon Cloud.
Just know if you cancel, you could lose your photos.
6. Free books with Kindle and ability to borrow magazines
Get a free Kindle book with Kindle Owners’ Lending Library.
Members get access to over 800,000 e-books.
You can borrow one per month.
You must use an Amazon device like a Kindle reader or Fire tablet.
You also get access to one Kindle pre-released book per month with “Kindle First.”
The program also lets you read magazines for free.
7. Amazon Games
Get a selection of free games.
This is in collaboration with Twitch.
8. Amazon family
Get 20% off diapers with the Subscribe and Save program.
9. Membership Sharing
Two members of the same household can share benefits.
10. Student Discount
Students get a discount.
They pay $59 per year or $6.49 per month.
11. Medicaid Discount
You can get Amazon Prime for $5.99 per month.
12. Prime Pantry
You can fill a pantry box with low priced items and have it shipped for $7.99.
Is An Amazon Prime Membership worth it then?
This is the magic question.
Again, the answer will be different for each person.
Answer the following questions.
If you answer yes to any of these questions, then yes Amazon Prime might be for you.
If you answer no to all these questions, then more than likely Amazon Prime is not for you.
1. Did you spend $119 last year in shipping or will you this year?
If you spent that on shipping last year or will this year, then this is an easy one.
That is the price of a yearly membership.
2. Can your whole household use Amazon or can you share with others?
Amazon allows households to share a subscription with two adults.
If you can split the cost, it may be a no brainer.
3. Will you get use out of the video or music subscription?
If you can get use out of these and save on other subscriptions, then this may be useful.
4. Do you buy Kindle books every month?
With the Kindle program as an Amazon Prime subscriber, you can borrow one Kindle book a month.
They don’t have all books, and you must use an Amazon device though.
5. Will one of these discounts benefit you.
If you are a student or recipient of Medicaid, you get half off.
With this discount, maybe Prime is a no brainer.
Summary
If you answered no to every question, then an Amazon Prime membership is probably not for you.
Remember, you can do a free trial and test the waters.
Most people shop at Amazon, but the frequency varies.
If you are a frequent Amazon shopper, Amazon Prime may be for you.
Again, if you spent $119 on shipping, then you should consider it.
If you are an infrequent Amazon shopper or can get free shipping in other ways, then Amazon Prime is more than likely not for you.
Amazon Prime is great for people who will use the free two day shipping, Prime Video, music, and other features.
It really does offer a lot of features for one subscription.
It really gives you a lot for a small price.
It is not for everyone though.
Do you have an Amazon Prime subscription?
Does it save you money?