Amazon Prime is over one hundred million members strong and currently building, but is the cost of the membership worth it? Will becoming a Prime member save you money? For many people the convenience of using Amazon important enough that the free 2-day shipping and other included features are worth the cost of the membership, without even thinking about the money saving benefits involved. As a parent myself, I use the perks of the family discounts Amazon offers as well. So here is the question…is Prime worth the membership fee and does it really save you money?
When deciding if becoming a prime member is worth it, there are 4 main points to look at in terms of cost and what you get out of the membership that either makes it worth the money being spent, or doesn’t. These things are:
1. Shipping
2. Reading
3. Streaming
4. Convenience
Looking specifically in dollars and cents to see if the membership will save you money, you need to look at not only the cost of the membership itself, but also the cost of the services included in the membership.
Shipping:
This aspect of the membership makes the cost worth it in money and convenience for many Amazon customers. If you are someone who orders regularly offline rather than shopping in the store, even if it is not always on Amazon, think of how much this will save you in time and money in the long run. In most cases, shipping is standard 3-5 business days and can often be expensive even for that. Forget even thinking about the cost of expedited shipping! Having the ability to get free 2- day shipping will not only make up for the cost of the membership if you order often, but it is also a faster way to get things online! Make sure before you join, that you will order often enough that it would cost you more not to join. If you are someone who does not order often, but you think it may be helpful, you can always share the membership with a roommate or family member. There are always reasonable options as long as your smart amount it. This is not the only feature that makes becoming a prime member worth it, but in the opinion of a lot of members, including myself, it is the most important feature offered.
Another thing to consider if you live in a large city, is the Prime Now feature, that offers same-day delivery, sometimes in as little as 2 hours! Unfortunately, this option is only offered in select cities. I’d say those members are very lucky!
Reading:
Having a kindle is a great way to always have your favorite reading materials with you. More recently it has become even easier to have your reading materials with you, just by downloading the kindle app onto your phone or tablet. With the Prime membership you have the availability of Kindle Unlimited. This allows you to read thousands of books, magazines and comics as a part of your membership.
You also have the ability to read 1 free downloadable e-book a month, from the Kindle First.
You do need an actual Kindle device for this feature since you are borrowing from the Kindle Owner Library.
Streaming:
You not only have access to shows and movies through Amazon Prime, but you also have the ability to stream music with thousands of shows movies and songs at your disposal, this feature is definitely a positive aspect of being a prime member.
Amazon has joined the world of creating their own series and movies. Prime also offers a wide variety of shows, as well as movies that are included in the membership at no extra cost. They are in direct competition with apps such as Nextflix. If you have your Prime membership, you may not need other streaming apps. This will save you money over time, because you will have all of the streaming costs bundled into one along with your other Prime perks.
The music streaming gives your choices of doing a station or a playlist just like Spotify but always commercial free. With Spotify you can upgrade to be commercial free. If you have a Prime membership, Amazon music is always commercial free. Similar to the video streaming, if you have Prime, you will not have to pay extra for other streaming services. If this is a feature you will use, it is definitely something that will save you money, by bundling in the cost of your music streaming service with the cost of your Prime membership.
Convenience:
For many members the convenience of having everything shipped to their house for free in 2 days is the end of their list for why Amazon Prime is worth it, but there are other benefits that make being a member more convenient as well.
Prime Day and Prime Early Access:
This feature provides access to offers and deals on Prime Day.
Lightening Deals are also provides on all other days with a 30 minute head start to purchase products with the deal, that those who are not Prime members, do not get.
Prime Photos:
With the Prime membership, you can store unlimited photos. This is a money saving feature, because it stops you from having to pay for space to save your photos in another cloud system, that will charge you if you go over a certain amount of storage space.
Prime Pantry:
Using Prime Pantry is a helpful feature of the Prime membership because you get low prices for household items and groceries.
You can also get discounts on household items by signing up for a subscription and getting them automatically.
Prime Elements:
Special prices on Amazon’s own products such as baby wipes.
Everyone can order these products, but not at Prime member pricing, if you sign up for the monthly subscription!
Amazon Family:
You will get family centered deals and coupons for items such as wipes and diapers.
20% off on diapers with order and subscribe!
Prime members also get 15% off on baby registry at completion of the list.
So now that we have looked at the best ways to measure if Prime will save you money, let’s go over how much it actually costs to become a member? Does it actually save you enough over the year to cover the cost of membership? You won’t know for sure until you see the prices and membership options, which include:
-Prime Full Access: (Lump Sum)
-$119.00-
This membership is priced for members to pay once a year in a lump sum. This is the best price for full benefits.
-Prime Full Access: (Monthly Payments)
-$12.99 per month/$155.00 yearly
This membership is priced for members to pay monthly. It comes out to be a bit more, but it allows the member not to pay the full price of the membership.
-Prime Video:
-$8.99 per month/$108 per year
This membership provides limited access to TV and video steaming.
-Prime Student:
-This membership includes a 6-month free trial and then a discounted rate of $59 a month. This option is only available to those who have a student e-mail account.
During the trial period there is no instant video or kindle book access.
Based on the information collected above, you can now tell if joining Amazon Prime will save you money based on your individual or family budget. This service is very functional and convenient, but is it worth it for you?