Prime (US) price increase. Ouch!

[issybird]

Amazon raises Prime price

Amazon is raising the price of its Prime membership in the U.S. from $119 to $139 annually, the first time the company has boosted the price of its popular subscription service since 2018.
The new prices will go into effect Feb. 18 for new members, and beginning after March 25 for people who already have a membership. The monthly cost will also jump, from $12.99 to $14.99.

It’s hard for me to see the value, but obviously mileage will be all over the place.

[Deskisamess]

Wow, that is a huge jump. We will most likely keep it, we placed just under 100 orders last year, and 115 in 2020. Our Chase Visa more than pays for Prime with the points it earns, and we do use Prime Videos.

But that is a large increase, almost 18%.

[DiapDealer]

Pretty sure bacon and ground beef went up more, I think. I'm now getting next-day delivery for most purchases, and possibly same day for some things very soon (when the new warehouse is up and running). That's better than the 2-day turnaround and crappy TV I was getting in 2018. Another $1.60 a month won't really make me blink. Half a latte less each month should cover the increase.

[Catlady]

Not thrilled, of course, but I've been using Amazon Fresh extensively for grocery delivery, and with Prime the $10 delivery fee is waived. Just that perk makes renewal worthwhile, even before adding in free shipping and access to Prime video.

[imaredr]

It could be because shipping prices are are higher. I buy enough to make the cost worthwhile. I also like Prime Videos.

[Tony1988]

Its not just shipping. They also said its because of higher wages. $12-15 minimum wage is unofficially here. Supply shortage is not the only thing affecting price. I dont expect prices to come down much even after everyone goes back to work and the supply chain is restored. Maybe on beef but we definitely wont be going back to pre pandemic prices.

[tubemonkey]

Amazon Prime

• 2005 --- $79/yr -- Prime launched
  
• 2014 --- $99/yr -- $20 price hike
  
• 2018 -- $119/yr -- $20 price hike
  
• 2022 -- $139/yr -- $20 price hike

[drofgnal]

I'm guessing shipping costs have driven the increase for prime free shipping. Every year a friend of mine in MI sends me a speciality IPA that comes out only once a year for a limited run in January. Usually I'd have him send me a case and shipping is around 20 bucks. This year I just had him ship me a couple of six packs. It cost 29 bucks to ship. Half the weight, almost 50% increase.

I don't order much from amazon that requires shipping. When I do I make sure I order enough for free shipping without Prime. Most of my non ebook purchases are occasional music CDs and movies as most retailers have quit carrying them. My wife orders a few things for her mother.

[John F]

It doesn't look like you can renew early, but googling says you can gift yourself a prime membership. Anyone try this in the past?

[Quoth]

Simple, cancel and instead buy what you want, when you want from wherever you want.

Vendors LOVE subscription selling as they make much bigger profits than a la carte sales. They charge what the market will bear.

Amazon shipping costs have actually dropped in some cases due to special deals with couriers and postal agencies. Those are or have been under investigation.

[DrNefario]

I'm already in a place where I swap my subscriptions around every few months. I just cancelled Prime after 4 or 5 months, and rejoined Netflix, which I don't expect to keep very long. I also have Disney+ at the moment, but that's on borrowed time. They've split the market so much that none of them are really worth it long-term any more.

The additional benefits of Prime over other streaming video services just aren't enough for me. Delivery is mostly still "free" but maybe a bit slower. The free is in quotes there because I have found amazon not to be particularly cheap any more. Other stores with paid delivery regularly beat amazon's prices (sometimes when it also them selling through amazon) so it looks like the "free" delivery is just added to the base price. Prime Reading is OK, but the loss of the KOLL was huge for me. It means I can't continue the series I started through Prime Reading without paying, and unlike KOLL, there's no real time pressure on the loans, so I often just don't read them.

I'm in the UK. I don't know if we're getting a price rise - it wouldn't surprise me - but I'll just take more time off.

[salamanderjuice]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Simple, cancel and instead buy what you want, when you want from wherever you want.

Vendors LOVE subscription selling as they make much bigger profits than a la carte sales. They charge what the market will bear.

Amazon shipping costs have actually dropped in some cases due to special deals with couriers and postal agencies. Those are or have been under investigation.

It's more than just shipping at this point. You get Prime Video streaming (similarish to Netflix), a lite Music subscription service with less songs but isn't horrible, they also give out free video games (sometimes pretty good ones!) and DLC through Prime Gaming, plus other stuff I'm probably forgetting.

Whether it's worth it depends on the individual. I get my monies worth from Prime Video and the music sub IMO.

[DiapDealer]

You have to remember that Quoth isn't entirely rational when it comes to hating on everything Amazon.

[Deskisamess]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Simple, cancel and instead buy what you want, when you want from wherever you want.

Vendors LOVE subscription selling as they make much bigger profits than a la carte sales. They charge what the market will bear.

Amazon shipping costs have actually dropped in some cases due to special deals with couriers and postal agencies. Those are or have been under investigation.

You make it sound like having a Prime membership means you can't order online from other sources. I do order/buy what I want, when I want it, from the vendor who offers the best deal. In just the past month we've ordered from Amazon, Home Depot, Clifbar, DTYstore, and eBay.

Sure vendors like the subscription model, but that doesn't make it unethical. I make decisions for myself on what I join because the subscription offers benefits and perks that suit me. Amazon isn't taking advantage of me. They are meeting some needs/wants that I have as a consumer.

Walmart, Amazon, Kroger, C&S Wholesale Grocers, Associated Wholesale Grocers, Procter & Gamble, Tyson Foods, McLane Co., and Kraft Heinz, all are being looked at by the FTC concerning supply line issues. Not just Amazon.

[Apache]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Simple, cancel and instead buy what you want, when you want from wherever you want.

Vendors LOVE subscription selling as they make much bigger profits than a la carte sales. They charge what the market will bear.

Amazon shipping costs have actually dropped in some cases due to special deals with couriers and postal agencies. Those are or have been under investigation.

What is illegal about negotiating a better price for shipping costs? This is especially true if you pay many millions of dollars a year. The biggest company, for tools, findings, mountings and finished goods, in my industry has always negotiated cheaper deals. They are so busy they have a Fed Ex office in their plant. They also have a dedicated plane at the local airport just for their packages. They also ship worldwide. Did I mention they also pass on the savings to their customers? They have a program that costs me $199.00 a year membership. This program gives me next day air for $8.99 and $3.99 for ground. If I had to pay regular shipping prices, I would spend a lot more than $199.00 a month. I also pass on shipping charges to my customers. I place a regular order every Tuesday, for Wednesday Delivery and do not charge my customers for the shipping. If they want something quicker, I charge them $8.99 for next day shipping.
Apache