Amazon is raising the price of its popular membership program, Amazon Prime, from $119 to $139 a year, starting Feb. 18. For members who pay monthly, the price is increasing from $12.99 to $14.99 per month. The retail giant says it plans to increase membership benefits along with the price hike, such as added video content and expanded shipping options.
Some Prime members who take full advantage of Amazon’s perks may not bat an eye at the new $139 fee. But for those who are not so sure — especially members who pay monthly and will now shell out nearly $180 a year for a membership — here’s everything to know about Amazon Prime pricing, discounts and benefits, as well as how to get the most value out of an Amazon Prime membership.
[See: Retail Rewards and Loyalty Programs Worth Joining]
How Much Does Amazon Prime Membership Cost?
An Amazon Prime membership is now $139 per year. You can also pay $14.99 per month, which comes to $179.88 a year.
For college students, Amazon Prime Student goes up $10 and now costs $69 a year (or $7.50 a month, which comes to $90 a year). Anyone interested in trying Prime can take advantage of a free 30-day trial; Prime Student members can opt for a free six-month trial.
The price hike is definitely something to consider, just as shoppers mulled over the last major price hike in 2018, when the membership jumped from $99 a year to $119.
After all, while there’s no doubt that Amazon Prime has a host of benefits, including complimentary streaming services for Amazon Prime Music and Amazon Prime Video movie and TV content, you may still wonder if it’s really worth paying $14.99 per month (or $139 annually) for a membership, especially if you’re on a tight budget.
Amazon says the higher price of $139 a year will come with “expanded benefits,” though it hasn’t fully described what those are, other than more Prime Video content and expanded free same-day shipping.
So is the Amazon Prime membership worth the extra money? That depends on each shopper, according to Trae Bodge, a New York City-based lifestyle journalist who runs the shopping blog TrueTrae.com.
“Now that Amazon has raised its annual Prime Membership to $139, it’s a good time for current Prime Members to ask themselves if this continued expense makes sense for your budget,” she says. “After all, this is a $20 hike.”
She points out that any shopper who isn’t a Prime member can still get free ground shipping on orders over $25. “So if you aren’t usually in a hurry to get your items with Prime’s free two-day shipping and you usually order $25 or more, it might be time to allow your membership to lapse,” Bodge says. “Another consideration is whether or not you use the other benefits that come with Prime, like Amazon Music, video, photo storage, discounts at Whole Foods and Amazon Prime Day.”
In other words, if you’re an Amazon disciple and superuser of its services, the extra $20 annually is probably not a big deal. But if you’re on the fence and wondering if it’s worth the cost, consider what you’re getting for $139 a year.
[Read: 15 Items You Should Always Buy in Bulk.]
What Are the Benefits of Amazon Prime?
Here are the key benefits of Amazon Prime:
— Free shipping.
— Music streaming.
— Movie and TV streaming.
— Books.
— Photo storage.
— Access to sales.
— Access to Amazon Family.
— Access to Prime Gaming.
— Access to Amazon Household.
Free Shipping
Let’s get one thing out of the way: Free shipping isn’t really free if you pay a membership fee. Once you do, you get unlimited “free” shipping, and Amazon has significantly improved the speed of its delivery service over the years. (Meanwhile, Amazon’s competitors have been improving, too.)
Still, Amazon is the leader in free shipping and fast delivery. It delivers most items to Prime Members within two days. More than 10 million items can be delivered to members within one day, with no minimum purchase. In some areas of the country, there are more than 3 million items that qualify for same-day delivery on orders over $35. (Generally, if you order before noon, you can get these items by 9 p.m.)
In 5,000 cities and towns throughout the country, Amazon also offers free two-hour delivery service on many grocery items, including meat and seafood. Amazon Pharmacy offers free two-day delivery on prescriptions and discounts when paying without insurance.
Music Streaming
With Amazon Prime, you’ll get access to Amazon Prime Music; you can listen to more than 2 million songs without ads. For $7.99 a month, or a cheaper $79 a year, you can sign up for Amazon Music Unlimited, which provides access to 75 million tunes. (If you aren’t an Amazon Prime member, it’s $9.99 a month.)
Movie and TV Streaming
Amazon Prime Video offers streaming of thousands of TV shows and movies.
Books
Membership includes Prime Reading, which offers access to more than 1,000 books, comics and magazines. You don’t need to purchase a Kindle to read the books; they’re available to download on any device.
There are other features for book lovers, like First Reads, which allows Prime members access to books that haven’t been released to the general public, often for free or at highly discounted prices.
Photo Storage
With Prime Photos, you can add your pictures to Amazon’s cloud drive. Members receive unlimited photo storage and 5 GB for video. If you want more storage, plans start at $1.99 a month for 100 GB of storage.
Access to Certain Sales
For years, Amazon has held its annual Prime Day, typically in the summer, and often in July. It’s an event known for a variety of steep discounts for Prime members. During other days throughout the year when Amazon has lightning deals — offering products in a limited quantity for a discount over a short period of time — Prime members will get 30 extra minutes on the front end to shop.
Access to Amazon Family
If you’re a Prime member, you can subscribe and get things like diapers and baby food sent to you regularly for up to 20% off.
Access to Prime Gaming
Amazon’s Prime Gaming (formerly Twitch Prime) is a streaming service that specializes in gaming. Among other things, you will get games, in-game content and a Twitch channel subscription.
Access to Amazon Household
Amazon Household lets you share Amazon benefits with your partner and your children, up to a total of 10 members. That means you can have up to 10 people in your family accessing free movies, books and photo storage.
[See: How to Save Money When Grocery Shopping on a Budget.]
How to Get the Most Out of Amazon Prime Benefits
There are a number of strategies that can make an Amazon Prime membership even more valuable, Bodge says.
Here are the benefits to take advantage of:
TV/videos. While you’re enjoying free TV shows and movies, including Amazon original programming, “there is also a new feature where you can create a watch party and view content at the same time as other Prime members,” Bodge says.
Downloads. These are beneficial for travel. “Some TV shows and movies can be downloaded, which is handy for long journeys where you don’t have Wi-Fi,” Bodge says. “Just browse content and look for the download icon or click on ‘downloads’ at the bottom of your screen followed by ‘find something to download.'”
She adds: “Some music can be downloaded as well, which I have found to be helpful when I am traveling in remote areas with no Wi-Fi.”
Whole Foods. Your membership also gets you access to deals at this grocery giant, “which, given how much you can spend at Whole Foods, is a benefit worth taking advantage of,” Bodge says. She adds that Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card holders also get 5% back on Whole Foods purchases.
Amazon Key. If porch piracy is a concern where you live, “Prime Members in select areas can use Amazon Key, which allows delivery personnel to have access to your garage or a door in your home where they can deposit your Amazon packages,” Bodge says. “You can monitor these deliveries via the Amazon app.”
What Are the Amazon Prime Card Benefits?
If you want to go all in, you can apply for the Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card.
The card gives you 5% back on purchases on Amazon and, as Bodge mentioned, at Whole Foods. (If you apply for the card without a Prime membership or later let your membership lapse, you’ll get 3% back.)
At other stores, Prime members and nonmembers will get 2% cash back at gas stations, restaurants and drug stores and 1% back on anything else. There’s no annual fee (other than your Amazon Prime membership annual fee) and no foreign transaction fees. It also comes with a welcome bonus: a $150 Amazon gift card.
[Read: Best Store Credit Cards.]
Is It Worth It to Get Amazon Prime?
Some people love Amazon, while others can certainly take it or leave it. If you’re unsure about signing up for an Amazon Prime membership, consider these factors.
The objectives of your membership. In other words, what’s your goal?
For Michael Foguth, founder of Foguth Financial Group with offices in Michigan, a membership is worth it. He and his wife have five children and do a lot of shopping online. “It can be a lot easier for a family that’s on the go to have everyday items purchased and delivered from Amazon Prime, including water and vitamins to clothes, shoes and toys,” he says.
If you use the other services, such as streaming music and TV, that’s another perk, Foguth says. He says his family pays for Netflix and Pandora, but acknowledges, “You could be saving quite a bit of money by not paying for Netflix and using Prime Video. If you have Amazon Prime, you could also be saving a decent amount of money by utilizing Prime Music and avoiding having to pay for Spotify, Pandora or another music streaming service.”
The cost of items you regularly buy. Amazon Prime isn’t for everyone, says Michael Gerstman, CEO of Gerstman Financial Group LLC, a financial advisory firm in Dallas.
He finds it incredibly convenient, but says it’s not always the cheapest place to buy things. “If you have the time and the proximity, you will find on certain items that other big-box retailers may provide greater value. These include Costco, Sam’s Club, Walmart and Target,” he says.
The membership fee. Gerstman also points out that if you pay membership fees to both Amazon and another big-box retailer, such as Costco or Sam’s Club, you may be wasting money.
“You probably don’t want memberships with too many retail clubs because any cost savings on products will be lost due to the cost of the memberships,” he says. “I would recommend that, once a year, you do a price comparison on the staples you purchase. I would then commit to that retailer and keep things easy.”
Also keep in mind that as Amazon becomes more popular and more expensive, other retailers will take notice and copy the Amazon playbook, offering their own memberships with benefits like speedy delivery and more. It’s worth comparing services and not assuming Amazon’s membership is the best deal.
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What to Know About Amazon Prime originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 02/09/22: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
