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Amazon Prime vs Walmart ShippingPass
- Thread starter max2
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I think Amazon Prime is a waste of money Just queue up your orders (i.e. buy a bunch at once) and get free shipping from Amazon without paying the $99.00 / year.
Then you have to wait to fill up with things that you need/want instead of getting one or two things that you might need now. Plus the shipping for those is still not nearly as quick in many instances. And that's aside from other things that Prime offers beyond shipping.
I would consider it if it was under $50.00 and didn't include the other stuff (I would only get it for the shipping).
A huge waste of money? Um no....Amazon Prime is a deal considering what you get for $99/year. 2 day free shipping (same day shipping with a $35 purchase), Amazon Video, Amazon Music, and Amazon Photo. Where else can you get all these services for $8.25/month?
Skip the services and offer free two day shipping for under $50.00 / year and I would consider it.
Out of toothbrushes? Order one. Need a jar of mace? Choose one. Is the faucet broken? Get an aerator shipped.
My Mom lives about an hour away from the nearest city-- Merced at 70,000 people. With Amazon, she doesn't have to spend a day shopping for anything more exotic than what the local grocery stores, general stores and gift shops offer.
I don't own a car, so even though I live in a built up area, ordering this sort of thing from amazon saves me a hike or a bus ride.
And if one does have a car, perhaps driving to the store costs gas money, and wastes a perfectly good afternoon.
Amazon offers this because it changes how you buy things. If you suspect that you will run out of laundry detergent in a few days time, are you going to buy it at the grocery store on your next trip, or are you going to add it to your monthly 35 dollar Amazon basket with super saver shipping?
With Amazon Prime, it will arrive in two days-- fast enough to compete with your brick and mortar supplier.
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Amazon Prime is fantastic, been a member for several years now. And considering I would pay $100 for The Grand Tour when it comes out, the free shipping will just be a bonus.
I just started to use the Prime Photos. Very basic, but does the job. We use Amazon Prime so much in my household it's a no-brainer. I don't use Amazon Music as I prefer Apple Music (barely). And Video seems to mirror mostly what we like on Netflix, but I think it's a fantastic deal... even moreso when I'm only paying $50/year.
Do all of you with prime who buy stuff off Amazon just look up whatever you want to buy and order it or do you guys check if the same item is cheaper elsewhere?
Don't even check if it's cheaper elsewhere. It's likely it's either cheapest or very cheap on Amazon and i won't have to spend time searching online to try and save $.37 and not have it here in two days.
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Yeah. So here's the thing. The vast majority of items, I don't need immediately. If I wanted, say, replacement toothbrushes (a pack of 10 or something) what would I have to do to get those without using Amazon (or online retail).
I'd have to get in a car, drive probably 10-20 minutes each way to a store, walk around that store find the item, stand in line to check out, 10-20 minutes back home. Of course with no guarantee that it's in stock, unless I go to their website and check or call.
Whereas if I buy the same item on Amazon I just get it in two days and can spend that same hour or so doing something I enjoy or something else that needs to be done.
So if you don't need something immediately, or you aren't visiting a local shop/boutique that you support because it's in your community, why would you go to a big box retailer?
Frankly I don't like seeing these giant stupid strip malls and massive unfilled parking lots ruining the country. I prefer to live in a mixed-use development neighborhood and use technology to make my life easier. Anything else is just nonsense. Just think about it. One or two trucks delivering a bunch of packages versus a huge strip mall, huge, inefficient use of space, gigantic parking lots, massive amounts of individual cars going in and out, traffic, etc.... Why would you do that when you can just have something delivered to you? Then your car isn't on the road, we stop spreading out suburbia and instead return to traditional, mixed-use development neighborhoods, and take advantage of low prices and support local businesses in that neighborhood.
[doublepost=1471044342][/doublepost]
Yeah. So here's the thing. The vast majority of items, I don't need immediately. If I wanted, say, replacement toothbrushes (a pack of 10 or something) what would I have to do to get those without using Amazon (or online retail).
I'd have to get in a car, drive probably 10-20 minutes each way to a store, walk around that store find the item, stand in line to check out, 10-20 minutes back home. Of course with no guarantee that it's in stock, unless I go to their website and check or call.
Whereas if I buy the same item on Amazon I just get it in two days and can spend that same hour or so doing something I enjoy or something else that needs to be done.
So if you don't need something immediately, or you aren't visiting a local shop/boutique that you support because it's in your community, why would you go to a big box retailer?
Frankly I don't like seeing these giant stupid strip malls and massive unfilled parking lots ruining the country. I prefer to live in a mixed-use development neighborhood and use technology to make my life easier. Anything else is just nonsense. Just think about it. One or two trucks delivering a bunch of packages versus a huge strip mall, huge, inefficient use of space, gigantic parking lots, massive amounts of individual cars going in and out, traffic, etc.... Why would you do that when you can just have something delivered to you? Then your car isn't on the road, we stop spreading out suburbia and instead return to traditional, mixed-use development neighborhoods, and take advantage of low prices and support local businesses in that neighborhood.
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Fair enough. I was curious because previously on this thread someone was posting about detergent so I looked up Tide liquid detergent on Amazon and Walmart sites - and I was surprised to say the least:
A 100oz/64 load Tide Original scent, Amazon has a list price of $20.26 while Walmart has it for $10.7. I might be missing something here but I don't think paying almost double the money on Amazon for things like detergent which you can very well plan ahead makes sense (for me at least)
https://www.amazon.com/Tide-Liquid-Detergent-Original-100/dp/B000V9QMGQ
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Tide-Original-Liquid-Laundry-Detergent-100-fl-oz/19406216
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Yup that could happen. Detergent I normally pick up at my local grocery store when I go get food. But that's besides the point you are making.
But I think on average (and please somebody show me differently if it is the case) Amazon is close enough on prices most of the time.
For me the biggest issue is that I just don't want to comparison shop, clip coupons and spend my whole life trying to save sense. It costs me more money, but ultimately I am more concerned about time than money. If you are poor or very thrifty you probably have the opposite viewpoint.
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I always check. Prime not necessarily competitive on grocery items. I like it for when I have Amazon card rewards and blow it on 72 k-cup coffees "for nothing" or something like that then of course its competitive LOL Green Mountain ain't cheap.
When Snow's clams got scarfed up by Bumblebee they stopped having sales on them in the grocery like 10/$10. I like to keep them in a winter pantry. so I looked on Amazon, they were even more expensive than the new non-sale price at the supermarket. Maybe that's changed now and it was a temporary pricing situation. Now sometimes I can get them for 1.25 on sale in the store, but back then they were running 2.68 at Amazon. LOL no. Anyway it made me decide always to check.
Most of the time I use Prime for stuff I'm not about to try to find in brick and mortar stores around here esp since they're all at least 30 miles RT. Or real cities, Binghamton, Albany are 60 and 90 miles one way. So I go to Amazon for replacement gaskets for a blender. for rechargeable batts. for new coleman batt lantern when i forgot to swap out the nonrechargeable batts in the old lantern dammit, etc.
Depends on where you live.
http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/...-prime-goes-one-hour-delivery-in-phoenix.html
Yes, one hour is extra, but two hours is free.
Yeah, I haven't really explored Prime Pantry. (I live really close to a grocery store)
https://www.amazon.com/Tide-Origina...ref=sr_1_1_s_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1471050536&sr=1-1
Same price as Wally World.
Everyone's shopping habits are little bit different. For some, moving to Amazon Prime won't make sense, even if you subsequently adopt novel strategies.
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WalMart figured out that people hate going to their miserable stores. Hey, you can still buy our stuff; we'll just ship it to you and spare you the grief and awful fast food smells.
Every buzz of the fluorescent light fixtures is a sign that we're saving you money!
Studies have shown people who have Prime spend more than those of us who wait for Free Shipping. AMZ is manipulating you but thanks for helping my stock climb in price, so keep up the good buying experience!
I would be willing to try that for utiity clothing items like long winter underwear that when I go there in September they never have it stock that early, but you can see if it's in stock online...