Amazon Prime price increase to $139/yr

[Spanky]

Hey, why not? Everything else is going up.

But not by 17%.

 

[REWahoo]

But not by 17%.

That's steep, but then it is the first increase in price since 2018.

 

[Katsmeow]

+1

The 5% back I get on that card more than pays for my annual Prime membership.

Exactly.

 

[dmpi]

I'm a amazon stockholder so I see this as the net of -$20 & +$1000s.

 

[CoolRich59]

My prime membership [-]is about to renew in a few days[/-] just renewed as it happens!

I got in under the wire too as mine membership just renewed today.

 

[NW-Bound]

I don't buy enough from Amazon to make Prime membership worthwhile. The membership fee is perhaps 1/10 of the total of my annual purchases from Amazon.

When I buy, I bundle enough items on one order to get free shipping. I don't get the stuff the next day with this free shipping, but I rarely need anything that urgently.

 

[foxcreek9]

It was inevitable because of higher shipping costs.

Here's an interesting strategy I read about:



I haven't tried this, but it looks like it should work.

This refers to buying a prime membership gift card for 119 and using it next year.

Keep in mind if you have the now discontinued family plan, this work around will end that, as you are grandfathered in until you let your plan lapse (which this requires).

 

[Dtail]

Still worth it to us.

 

[EastWest Gal]

Worth it to us. I buy a lot on Amazon, more than I expected when I started. It’s often difficult to find some of the products locally. I bought my sous vide setup on Amazon. I could have bought the machine elsewhere, but not the perfect plastic box with lid cutout and rack. I found Miracle Noodles (konjac noodles) in a local health food store, but then the store closed permanently. And so on. Hardly a month goes by without an Amazon order.

An additional 5¢ per day won’t be life changing.

Shipping costs are up. And Amazon is raising their starting wage to $18/hr. There’s that.

 

[CincyDave]

I don't buy enough from Amazon to make Prime membership worthwhile. The membership fee is perhaps 1/10 of the total of my annual purchases from Amazon.

When I buy, I bundle enough items on one order to get free shipping. I don't get the stuff the next day with this free shipping, but I rarely need anything that urgently.

This pretty much describes us as well. I did get their credit card to get a $50 amazon credit. Card got hacked before I even used it. Got new card and have still not used it. Should just cancel it I guess. Honestly, I don't find their prices all that cheap anymore but you can find pretty much anything there.

 

[JoeWras]

If your renewal is soon, you may not be affected this year.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=202213110

On February 3, 2022, we announced price increases for our Prime membership plans. The updated pricing will apply to Prime sign-ups beginning on February 18, 2022. For current Prime members, the new prices will apply after March 25, 2022, on the date of their next renewal.

 

[samm]

Prime Student only $69 per year if you are a student

"An annual Prime subscription will go from $119 to $139... The Prime Student price is also reportedly going up from $59 per year to $69 per year."

Anyone that takes educational classes, with a receipt and student card, can have Prime Student. Just select student prime and sign-up, attaching proof. Approval is subject to Amazon verification of credentials.

I have had Prime Student for years. This is a benefit of pursuing education in retirement.

 

[street]

I don't buy enough from Amazon to make Prime membership worthwhile. The membership fee is perhaps 1/10 of the total of my annual purchases from Amazon.

When I buy, I bundle enough items on one order to get free shipping. I don't get the stuff the next day with this free shipping, but I rarely need anything that urgently.

This is how we operate also. I do see a change with this way of doing business with them at some time though.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

But not by 17%.

I would disagree with this assertion. Especially if you were to figure "shrinkflation" into the equation which is almost never considered and so it's *only* a 4.2% annual rate of increase...much lower than what most other items have increased. Oh, and in those 4 years, they have added a LOT of stuff that is included with the membership.

Not only that, but between the 5% cash back and holding quite a bit of AMZN stock (one of the few "stand alone" stocks we own), I have no issue with the increase; I find good value in it.

 

[ncbill]

It was inevitable because of higher shipping costs.

Here's an interesting strategy I read about:

I haven't tried this, but it looks like it should work.

Can't find "cancel auto renew" on my Prime settings anymore.

It was either switch to monthly billing (instead of annual) or cancel Prime altogether.

Anyone have a direct line to an Amazon page that will let me cancel auto-renewal?

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Can't find "cancel auto renew" on my Prime settings anymore.

It was either switch to monthly billing (instead of annual) or cancel Prime altogether.

Anyone have a direct line to an Amazon page that will let me cancel auto-renewal?

Looks like the best you can do is get a reminder 3 days prior. This is a screenshot of the "manage Prime membership" page.

 

[kgtest]

Just saw the announcement. You knew it was coming!

Now we know how Bezos is paying to get that bridge dismantled so his newly constructed super yacht can make it through the channels to the ocean.

 

[ElizabethT]

No point for us. All we ever do is buy stuff, none of the other add-ons. We always buy enough to qualify for free shipping, and more than half the time we get the product within 3 or 4 days anyhow. Last time I bought chocolate it was late in the afternoon and I got it delivered the next day.

Same here, however . . . as I was reading about Amazon's price increase announcement, I gave thought to how much longer non-Prime members will be able to rely on free shipping over a certain purchase amount? If that ever goes, back to brick and mortar I will go, high ho, high ho.

 

[CaptTom]

But not by 17%.

Actually, the price of most things in the supermarket have gone up between 20% and 35%. Even the dollar store is now $1.25.

Anyone in any business these days is jumping all over the opportunity to raise prices and rates. Even if your costs didn't go up, you'd be crazy not to take advantage of the fact that people expect your prices to go up.

I don't like it, but I also don't blame them.

 

[calmloki]

We sprang for a few extra AMZN shares yesterday morning. Mostly because it was down about a third over the last year. The bounce up was an unexpected treat, even though we didn't buy at the absolute lowest of the day.

 

[NW-Bound]

I don't buy enough from Amazon to make Prime membership worthwhile. The membership fee is perhaps 1/10 of the total of my annual purchases from Amazon.

When I buy, I bundle enough items on one order to get free shipping. I don't get the stuff the next day with this free shipping, but I rarely need anything that urgently.

This pretty much describes us as well. I did get their credit card to get a $50 amazon credit. Card got hacked before I even used it. Got new card and have still not used it. Should just cancel it I guess. Honestly, I don't find their prices all that cheap anymore but you can find pretty much anything there.

This is how we operate also. I do see a change with this way of doing business with them at some time though.

While it is true that you can find anything on Amazon, I have often found better prices on eBay or Walmart, or even through Web sites of the vendors or manufacturers.

Obviously, Amazon includes the cost of shipping and the middleman fee in the price of the item. It pays to shop around. And I also do not like any single company to have to have the power of a monopoly.

 

[audreyh1]

If you cancel your prime membership now, doesn’t it still give you the remaining time on your already paid annual membership?

Apparently not! Very complicated.

But looks like if you cancel within 3 days of buying the membership you can get a full refund.

Clear as mud overall.

 

[ownyourfuture]

While it is true that you can find anything on Amazon, I have often found better prices on eBay

Same for me.

 

[steelyman]

My Netflix (standard) plan is going up too. I’ll pay it on the monthly billing.

[ADDED] I’d rather do it annually but didn’t find that option.

 

[JoeWras]

I welcome our new overlord named inflation.