Is Amazon Prime Really Worth It?

If you are an Amazon shopper, you know all about the debate between whether Amazon Prime is really worth it. After all, it costs $99 to join! I have had Amazon Prime for approximately 15 years, so I can tell you and answer your questions from first-hand experience. Amazon offers many perks with Prime, so let’s go through them one by one:

Need a last minute gift? Can’t get out of the house? Realize you forgot to pick up something? With FREE Two-Day Shipping from Amazon Prime, your shopping problems are solved. You get unlimited deliveries with no minimum order size, and with 20 million eligible items, the options are practically limitless. From big to small, A to Z, home to office, and everywhere in between, satisfying that shopping itch —or need— is just two days away. Prime members also get FREE Same-Day Delivery on over a million items when shipping to selected metro areas across the US.

My take on Free Two-Day Shipping – this is an invaluable perk for those of us who can’t get to the store easily, have children, live in any kind of dwelling, have a busy schedule, eat food, have to make repairs or replace anything. Basically, everyone. I do the vast majority of my holiday and birthday gift shopping on Amazon for two reasons – first, I can get a great price and second, it will arrive at my house in two days with no shipping costs. I regularly order items like cereal or other shelf stable foods, bottles of iced tea or juice boxes, electronics, replacement backpacks or laptop bags, school books, socks, underwear and more. Best of all, I don’t have to meet a $35 threshold for my purchase to ship; I can buy regardless of the price – based only on my need – and have it in two days. I know that this is the primary reason that most of us value the membership.

It’s always prime time when your options include blockbuster films and popular TV shows. Watch thousands of movies and episodes on your TV, laptop, Fire TV, smartphone or choice of more than 600 devices. You can take them anywhere with your Kindle Fire. You can enhance your video streaming experience with premium, ad-free Add-on Subscriptions.

My take on Prime Video – This is a HUGE perk. You can watch tons of different television shows and movies from your computer, device or smart television. These include Amazon exclusives like Transparent and Orange Is The New Black in addition to shows from Showtime and HBO. And again, that’s all free with the membership, so you’re also saving on premium cable costs!

Introducing Prime Music, our new benefit that gives you unlimited, ad-free access to over a million songs and hundreds of custom-built playlists. Now you can listen to the music you love and find new music that fits your taste. It’s like having a backstage pass that lets you access your favorite musicians.

My take on Prime Music Steaming – Another huge perk. You no longer have to buy most of the music you love – you can get access to it for free!

Introducing Prime Photos. Your cherished memories are safe in Amazon Cloud Drive and accessible anywhere you are. It’s like having a virtual album of every one of your photos that you can access at any time, no matter which device you use.

My take on Unlimited Photo Storage – With the availability of the Gmail Drive and many other cloud services, this isn’t a function I think of as a huge benefit. That said, it is valuable if you have no other cloud options, and may become more valuable with the announcement of the end of the Google Drive app.

Consider yourself a techy, the best-styled fashionista on the block, or just an everyday savvy shopper? Be among the first to decide what’s hot and what’s not. Get 30-minute early access to select Lightning Deals on Amazon.

My take on Amazon Lightning Deals and MyHabit.com – This is a great perk. Amazon Lightning Deals provide deep discounts for a limited time and can sometimes be bought out in seconds. If you are an Amazon Prime member, you get the first shot at that item. If you are not an Amazon Prime member, you can sometimes watch as everyone buys up the item you’ve been stalking for hours.

Enter the hallowed halls and stocked shelves of the Kindle Owner’s Lending Library, where over 800,000 books are ready to be checked out. Fiction or non-fiction. New York Times best sellers or lost classics. Borrow one book a month, with no due date. Discover your next favorite book, and your next one, and your next one.

My take on Free eBooks – One of my favorite perks! Looking for something new to read? You have over 800,000 free options to choose from! These range from best sellers to classics to books you’ve never heard of, but you’re going to love!

My final take – I am biased because I have been a member for so long, but remember – each and every year I pay for this service. In my opinion, the benefits are invaluable – and they are always adding new ones. You are saving on cable, you are saving on shipping costs, you are saving on the cost of gas to get to and from stores, you are saving on your music and books and most importantly, you are saving time. I think that Amazon Prime is completely worth the money, and if you want to try it, you can check it out with a free 30-Day Trial now!