27 Amazon Prime Money-Saving Secrets: Ultimate Guide
If you love to shop at Amazon but also want to save money, then you should consider getting an Amazon Prime membership.
My family uses our membership to save hundreds of dollars a year! These tips and hacks are so easy that anyone can use them.
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Amazon Prime Tips & Hacks That Save Money
Below, I’ll show you the best Amazon Prime money-saving secrets to get the most out of your membership. At the bottom, I break down the estimated cost savings my family was able to cut out after using Amazon Prime instead.
✅ Don’t have a Prime membership? You can try it out here!
1) Overstock Outlet
A little-known feature is the Amazon Outlet store. All of the items listed are brand new but are discounted due to having too many.
Overstocked items are sold at a cheaper price to make room for other products.
2) Warehouse Deals
This is my favorite Amazon hack and one that most people know nothing about! You’ll find some of the best deals at the Warehouse.
Just know that the products in the Amazon Warehouse are pre-owned, used, open box returns. If that doesn’t bother you, you’ll find some great deals.
Amazon Renewed
Feeling a little wary about buying pre-owned items online? Opt to browse through Amazon Renewed. It’s still pre-owned and open-box products, but they’ve been tested by Amazon and backed by the Amazon Renewed guarantee.
3) No-Rush Shipping Reward
While most people rave about Amazon’s free 2-day prime shipping, you can sometimes earn a discount or promotional reward by choosing the No-Rush Shipping option.
Perfect for when you don’t need your items right away. Often, it’s only a day or two arrival difference. This option can be chosen on the checkout page under “shipping.”
The rewards and discounts frequently change but in the past, I’ve saved money on digital downloads and Amazon Pantry orders.
4) Receive 2-Day & 1-Day Shipping
Amazon Prime does not require you to make a minimum purchase to benefit from its free 2-day shipping unless one of the products is part of the Plus Program. This is a totally different program that offers dozens of products at exceptionally low prices.
You also have express delivery, one to four business days, or standard three-business day delivery completely free. If you were to order items from other retailers, you’d pay an average of $10 for every shipment so this savings adds up.
Free one-day or same-day shipping is available in select areas for orders that meet the minimum. If you want to take advantage of this, make sure all of the items you’re ordering are eligible.
- Artisan publishers
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5) Daily Exclusive Savings
Even though Amazon’s products are at lower price points than most competitors, they have a number of ways to save additional money.
Amazon Coupons
Amazon’s coupons are completely digital which makes it easy to clip them. You can search specifically for coupons here.
Coupons will also show up on the product page directly under the price. If there’s a coupon available for a particular item, it will have an orange “coupon” banner and a green box for you to check to “clip” the coupon.
Subscribe & Save
You can save a percentage on every item you subscribe to. If you order something regularly, like diapers, pet food, or vitamins, it makes sense to have it sent to you automatically.
Subscribe & Save is an option on the product page before you add it to your cart. Click the Subscribe & Save button instead of the one-time purchase option.
The more monthly subscriptions you have, the higher the percentage of savings you’ll unlock. It’s also super easy to manage your subscriptions and skip a month’s delivery if needed.
Today’s Deals
There are new deals every day on Amazon. Some of them are Prime member-exclusive deals that non-members don’t have access to.
Deal Of The Day
Deals of the Day are selected deals that change daily. They’re usually at a much higher discount than regular deals.
Lightning Deals
Prime members get 30-minute early access to lightning deals. These deals typically go fast so it’s beneficial to get a head start.
6) Amazon Prime Day
Amazon Prime Day is a super-discounted mega-deal day similar to an online Black Friday. Prime Day’s dates change yearly but are usually during the summer.
This deal extravaganza is only open to Prime members and can make getting a membership worth the cost alone.
7) Watch TV and Movies for Free
One of the best advantages of being a member is that you have free access to Prime Video.
This is Amazon’s series and film streaming service, which has its own exclusive Amazon Originals content as well as an interesting series and film catalog. It’s like Netflix, but it’s included in your subscription.
✅ You can easily stream the shows to your TV using Amazon’s Fire TV products.
Prime Video Channels
The Video Channels option is only available to Prime members. You can watch your favorite show from HBO, Showtime, Starz and more for a set monthly fee depending on your channel subscription.
This is a viable option for people who want to cut their cable subscriptions to pick and choose their premium channels. You can try it out before committing to the monthly channel subscription.
8) Free 2-Hour Delivery On Groceries
Prime Now is a local service for the delivery of groceries, restaurants and other products within two hours. If you want your groceries in under an hour or quicker, a delivery fee will be added.
At the moment, Prime Now is only available in a handful of cities.
9) Free Samples
I never knew Amazon Product Sampling existed until recently and all the samples are FREE! Select your sampling preferences to start getting free samples.
You can choose from multiple sampling categories including food and beverage, women’s beauty, men’s grooming, cat food and supplies, dog food and supplies, baby products, sports nutrition, health and wellness, feminine care, household essentials, and office supplies.
10) Video Game Pre-Sale Credit
If you love video games and have to have the latest and greatest, by pre-ordering the game through your Prime account, you’ll receive a credit on select titles.
11) Amazon Pantry
As a Prime user, you will also have access to Amazon Pantry. This is a special catalog of everyday products such as toilet paper, dog food, shampoo, and your favorite cereal. With their Shop & Save, you can save a percentage off.
Prime Pantry will make these deliveries (virtually anything that doesn’t require refrigeration) free of charge. However, you need to order at least their item minimum; otherwise, there is a delivery fee.
12) Free Music Library
Just like Amazon has its own Netflix, it also has its own version of Spotify. Its name is Amazon Prime Music, and you can listen to more than 2 million songs online, as well as download them to listen offline.
This is a service that can be a great option if you are not already a user of another streaming music service. One thing to note is that they don’t have as large of a variety as Spotify or Apple Music.
Amazon Music Unlimited
Alternatively, Amazon also has Amazon Music Unlimited, whose catalog has much more variety, more than 50 million music tracks at your disposal. Try it out before you commit to the monthly fee.
✅ Both of these options allow you to listen to music on any of the Alexa devices.
13) Get Free eBooks
If you love reading, you’ll love getting free and discounted ebooks. Amazon’s ebooks are made specifically to be compatible with their Kindle E-readers.
Prime Reading
Amazon Prime includes a reading service, Prime Reading, which gives access to hundreds of books for free through the Kindle application.
First Reads
Amazon First Reads allows you to choose one Kindle book a month at the exclusive First Reads price.
The books are early access new releases for next month picked by the editors. The books change every month which makes this a great addition.
Kindle Unlimited
Want even more books? With the Kindle Unlimited service, you can read their entire catalog of books in Kindle format (electronic) wherever and whenever you want for a small monthly fee. Click to try it out!
Audible
If listening to audiobooks is more your thing, then getting an Audible subscription is a good idea.
The monthly cost of the Audible credit more than covers buying each audiobook individually.
14) Free Photo Storage
With a Prime membership, you also get access to Amazon Photos, a cloud backup service that allows you to safely have a copy of all our photos in the cloud.
This storage is unlimited and full-resolution which allows you to save space on your phone by deleting them after they’re uploaded. Also included is 5GB video storage with options to upgrade if needed.
15) Free Magazines
Magazine subscriptions can add up. Retail, each title can be $20 a year or $5 an issue when purchased separately. That’s why I love that Prime includes access to many of my favorite publications for free.
✅ Magazine reading is a perfect fit for the colorful Fire Tablets.
Electronic Magazines
Prime Reading includes tons of popular magazines for free. They’re simple to download onto your Kindle, Fire Tablet, or Kindle app.
Check out which free magazines are trending now!
Physical Magazines
If physical magazines are more your thing, you’ll love the Prime Membership Magazine Exclusive. You can choose from select magazines at their Prime-exclusive rate for a 4-month subscription.
16) Earn 3-5% Rewards
Amazon has two cards that let you earn a percentage of cashback on Amazon purchases. They are the Amazon Store Card and the Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card.
Amazon Store Card
The Amazon Store Card is only for Prime members and earns 5% cash back with purchases on Amazon.
- Financing available on Amazon.com orders over $149 2, 3
- 5% back for eligible Amazon Prime members6
- 24-month special financing on select Amazon-sold items4
- 12 Month Equal Pay Offer on select Amazon-sold items5
- No annual fee7
Pro: You get a percentage of cashback.
Con: You can only use it at Amazon.
Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card
The Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card works more like a traditional credit card. You earn 3% cash back on purchases from Amazon and Whole Foods and a lower percentage cash back on purchases elsewhere.
- 3% Back at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market* 2% Back at restaurants, gas stations, and drugstores* 1% Back on all other purchases*
- No annual fees*
- No foreign transaction fees*
Pro: You can use it anywhere, not just Amazon.
Con: You get a lower percentage cash back on Amazon compared to the Store Card.
17) Gift Card Reload Bonus
Simply by being a Prime member and reloading your Amazon gift cards using a debit card or bank account will snag you a reload bonus.
Using Amazon Reload adds the reward to your gift card balance at the time of the reload. So simple!
18) Prime Wardrobe
Prime Wardrobe is included free with your membership. It’s an easy way to get clothes sent to you to try on and keep what you like; perfect for busy professionals who don’t have time to go shopping.
You choose up to 8 items and get a 7-day try-on period. You’re only charged for what you want to keep. Everything else is returned for free in an easy pre-paid package.
Prime Wardrobe is for women, men, children and even babies!
Personal Shopper by Prime Wardrobe
This service lets you have a personal shopper for only a small fee a month. You tell them your preferences, style, and budget and the stylist will make selections.
After previewing their monthly selections, choose 8 items to have sent to you to try. Just like with Prime Wardrobe, you are only charged for what you keep.
19) Baby & Child Discounts
If you have kids at home, Amazon Family is a huge money saver and is included free with Prime membership.
Save on diapers, baby food, and other baby items you order regularly. You also get a Baby Registry completion discount which can save hundreds when buying big-ticket baby essentials like nursery furniture, strollers, and car seats.
20) FreeTime Unlimited
FreeTime Unlimited is fee-based monthly access to an all-in-one media bundle for kids ages 3-12 years old. Your child will be able to watch educational shows, apps, books, movies, and more that are safe and parent-approved.
- SAVE UP TO $70 — Get a full-featured tablet (not a toy) for kids ages 3–7, 1 year of Amazon Kids+ content, and a Kid-Proof Case with a built-in stand and save versus purchasing items separately.
If you were to buy individual memberships to similar apps, streaming services, books, etc. it would be cost-prohibitive. Having them all-in-one like this is a time saver and money saver.
21) Prime Book Box for Kids
Amazon Book Box is a kids’ book subscription service. The book boxes are for babies through age 12 years old. This takes the guesswork out of making sure you have age-appropriate books for your child and also makes a great gift.
If you were to order each book individually retail, the books you get in the book box would cost more than the price of the subscription.
22) Wedding Registry
Amazon’s Wedding Registry makes it easy to add everything to one list and even easier for your guests to purchase.
Plus, after the wedding, you can make use of the registry completion discount to save money on items you still need.
23) Twitch Prime
Twitch Prime is included with Prime membership. This is a live streaming service mainly used by gamers. You’ll get a free channel subscription and more.
24) Save On Groceries
By combining a few of the above tips, you can maximize your Amazon grocery savings.
- If you have an Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card, you can now get 5% back on Whole Foods purchases.
- Use Amazon Pantry’s Shop & Save to save on regular household items.
- Use Amazon Family for diapers and baby food.
- Clip Amazon’s coupons.
25) Amazon Household
Amazon Household allows you to connect your Prime membership to two adults, 4 teens, and 4 children living in the same house.
The benefit is that you can share digital content in your Family Library without having to repurchase it.
26) Pay The Same In Store As Online
Amazon is starting to make its way from solely being online to having brick and mortar stores.
While I haven’t been able to visit a physical store myself, this is what their website says. Amazon 4-Star stores have trending and top products. Amazon Books will carry books rated 4-stars and above.
The stores are only in select locations but Prime members will pay the Amazon.com price for products.
27) Bonus Tip – Cash Rebates
Shop through Rakuten (formerly eBates) and Ibotta for an additional percentage cash back on your total purchase.
The percentage of cashback changes all the time so it’s best to check them both out to see which will give you the largest percentage back before you shop.
You should also check out Rebaid before you shop on Amazon to see if you can participate in one of their deals that are between 70-100% off.
Is An Amazon Prime Membership Worth It?
Overall, if you use as many of the benefits included in an Amazon Prime membership, the savings are substantial.
Below I break down the estimated monthly costs we were able to get rid of after getting an Amazon Prime membership.
Service Type | Cost per month |
Pet Food Shipping | $10 |
Spotify | $9.99 |
Netflix | $12.99 |
Hulu | $7.99 |
Magazine Subscription | $2 |
Ebooks | $5 |
Cloud Photo Storage | $9.99 |
Total | $57.96/month |
These monthly costs total $695.52 a year! Even after subtracting the Prime membership fee, that’s still a ton of savings.
How To Save Money Using Amazon Prime
While some of the entertainment selections are less robust, I find that fewer things to select from aren’t a bad thing. For me and my family, an Amazon Prime membership is definitely worth it.
If you’re on the fence, do a cost comparison analysis as I did above to see what your potential yearly savings could be.
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