Author Topic: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine  (Read 8526 times)

Cowardly Toaster

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Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« on: May 23, 2017, 09:53:40 AM »
So a few months ago I weighed how much I really needed a Prime account. What convinced me I didn't was a perusal of my order history. 95% want vs 5% need.
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A few months in and everything is fine. If I need anything from Amazon, I pool it all into a big order every six months. What are Prime fees now? 99$? Bottom line is, don't be afraid to ditch that membership.

Mr. Green

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #1 on: May 23, 2017, 10:05:38 AM »
I think we order from Amazon once or twice a year. Usually ends up being something for Christmas. Aside from ebooks that is.

lunahsol

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #2 on: May 23, 2017, 10:12:27 AM »
I also declined renewing it when mine expired last month.  Haven't missed it yet.  :) 

ketchup

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #3 on: May 23, 2017, 10:19:27 AM »
I'm in a bit of a different boat than you guys (121 orders in last six months, probably about 70% us and the rest from those who we share our account with).  Of course that's even more inflated, as plenty are one-item orders.

It's where we buy pretty much everything that isn't fresh groceries or Home Depot.  Last few orders: fish sauce, dog crate, car parts, light bulbs, shampoo, books, HDMI cable, computer parts, etc.

Also, we have the Chase Amazon Prime credit card and it now gives 5% back with a Prime membership (3% without).  According to Mint, we spent enough on Amazon last year that the extra 2% more than pays for the Prime membership right there.

marielle

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #4 on: May 23, 2017, 11:10:41 AM »
I think it's a waste since you can still get free shipping on orders over $35. I only use it because my mom insists on having it, so we share an account. She never drives anywhere so it makes sense because she buys a lot of stuff for household repairs. Amazon music is nice, but I wouldn't pay $99 just for that.

MasterStache

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #5 on: May 23, 2017, 11:14:37 AM »
I only get Prime when they offer the 1 month free trial. I think you can claim that once per year. I've been buying less and less stuff from Amazon. Finding it cheaper at local stores, EBay, etc. I think their free shipping on non Prime orders has slowed down considerably as well.

Cowardly Toaster

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #6 on: May 23, 2017, 11:25:24 AM »
I'm in a bit of a different boat than you guys (121 orders in last six months, probably about 70% us and the rest from those who we share our account with).  Of course that's even more inflated, as plenty are one-item orders.

It's where we buy pretty much everything that isn't fresh groceries or Home Depot.  Last few orders: fish sauce, dog crate, car parts, light bulbs, shampoo, books, HDMI cable, computer parts, etc.

Also, we have the Chase Amazon Prime credit card and it now gives 5% back with a Prime membership (3% without).  According to Mint, we spent enough on Amazon last year that the extra 2% more than pays for the Prime membership right there.

Sure but you could just pool up those orders and make one quarterly. I still use Amazon.

Mr. Green

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #7 on: May 23, 2017, 11:26:32 AM »
For us it's not that we tend to buy things at other stores. We just tend to not buy stuff. We don't really think about not buying stuff, it just kinda happens.

acroy

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #8 on: May 23, 2017, 11:30:14 AM »
We just tend to not buy stuff.
^^ that would be ideal.
Seems like I buy a lot of crap. I mean, necessary items. Crap. Necessary items. so confusing, they look so similar.

MsFrugalista

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #9 on: May 23, 2017, 11:35:20 AM »
I think it's a waste since you can still get free shipping on orders over $35.

FYI, it's back down to $25 now. They recently made this change to be competitive with other online retailers. But I agree with you, this is my reasoning for not paying for Prime membership. Although, we were spoiled when we had it for a year or so (received it as part of a sign up bonus on one of my Amex cards a couple of years ago).

wildbeast

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #10 on: May 23, 2017, 12:57:20 PM »
Same here.  I realized a few years ago that there is very little that I need immediately.  And a lot of amazon shopping was impulse buying.

Another thing that started to bother me was the impact of all that shipping - in terms of packaging materials, fuel, global impact, etc...  It felt so wasteful.

And - I felt that Amazon was becoming very much like Walmart in that it is pushing out local businesses that provide benefits to the community in terms of jobs, tax revenue, personal service, etc.  It's hard for local businesses to compete with amazon on price because amazon is willing to operate at a loss in order to gain market share. 

So I am now supporting local businesses even if it means spending an extra dollar or two.  I'm also supporting big businesses that are willing to operate locally - ie, Barnes and Noble, Costco, etc.  I like going to B&N to pick up a book and sit in their big comfy chairs enjoying their book selections and interacting with their employees.  Same with Costco, they provide a good wage, benefits, paid holidays, etc to their employees and fantastic customer service.  So they get a lot of my business.

I try to remember that we vote with our dollars.

Inaya

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #11 on: May 23, 2017, 01:00:23 PM »
I use Prime Now for big bulky/heavy things that I wouldn't otherwise be able to carry home. I don't use the free shipping all that much, but I didn't get Prime for the shipping. I use it for Prime Video, Prime Music, Twitch Prime, Prime Photos, and Prime Reading. And I have a student account, so I only pay $50/yr. Twitch Prime alone is worth it ($5/mo vs. $50/year). I have no idea how they are making money.

Oh snap! This was my 1000th post!
« Last Edit: May 23, 2017, 09:55:18 PM by Inaya »

Aggie1999

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #12 on: May 23, 2017, 02:24:52 PM »
For me Prime is no longer worth it. The number of add-on items is getting way to high. Why pay for Prime if half the stuff doesn't ship for free unless you spend $25? Why pay for Prime since returns are not free? Why pay for Prime when a lot of items can be had a decent bit cheaper on Ebay if your willing to wait? Their crappy streaming service certainly is not worth $99 per year. BTW, neither is Netflix.

financial_muse

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #13 on: May 23, 2017, 02:50:46 PM »
I've been debating on whether I truly need my Prime membership any longer.  I've noticed that I really don't use it as much for video streaming as I thought I would.  That and the free shipping were the two main points as to why I got it in the first place.  The free shipping has become close to obsolete since I am trying to save money, not spend it.  Thinking of cancelling it in an effort to save money on the membership fee but also in hopes that my Amazon shopping habit will go down even more than it already has.  Double bonus :)

marielle

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #14 on: May 23, 2017, 04:09:46 PM »
For me Prime is no longer worth it. The number of add-on items is getting way to high. Why pay for Prime if half the stuff doesn't ship for free unless you spend $25? Why pay for Prime since returns are not free? Why pay for Prime when a lot of items can be had a decent bit cheaper on Ebay if your willing to wait? Their crappy streaming service certainly is not worth $99 per year. BTW, neither is Netflix.

What streaming service would you recommend, if any?

MasterStache

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #15 on: May 24, 2017, 05:13:52 AM »
For me Prime is no longer worth it. The number of add-on items is getting way to high. Why pay for Prime if half the stuff doesn't ship for free unless you spend $25? Why pay for Prime since returns are not free? Why pay for Prime when a lot of items can be had a decent bit cheaper on Ebay if your willing to wait? Their crappy streaming service certainly is not worth $99 per year. BTW, neither is Netflix.

What streaming service would you recommend, if any?

Netflix is alright. My SO and kids love it. I am fine without it. Heck I would be perfectly fine with regular old antenna TV. I don't have the patience for any of the series Netflix offers. 

HipGnosis

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #16 on: May 24, 2017, 08:05:20 AM »
Keep in mind you can now get a prime membership by the month.  It could come in handy if your orders are concentrated in a certain part of the year.  I could even see it being valuable to pay the monthly fee for a single order (or two) you need right away if prime monthly is cheaper than expedited shipping.
Thank you!  I didn't know about prime monthly.   This looks like it will change how I purchase things from Amazon.  I dropped prime last year, because I usually don't need things in just a couple days, but the shipping costs do add up.

Mr. Green

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #17 on: May 24, 2017, 02:32:08 PM »
We just tend to not buy stuff.
^^ that would be ideal.
Seems like I buy a lot of crap. I mean, necessary items. Crap. Necessary items. so confusing, they look so similar.
Lol. You have a bunch of kids so I imagine the demand is higher. Seems like once I'm loaded up on shampoo and other things I only really need to see the grocery store for the next few months.

TartanTallulah

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #18 on: May 25, 2017, 03:54:53 AM »
We let our Amazon Prime (one subscription in a household of five adults) go last year too because it wasn't earning its keep. We haven't missed it, and knowing that delivery wouldn't be free has been an additional barrier to impulse purchases of books and small things we don't need.

The Money Monk

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #19 on: May 25, 2017, 04:48:48 AM »
I have prime and share it with my girlfriend. I keep it simply for convenience. I have the chase amazon card so I get 5% back on all my purchases as well.

less than $10 a month split two ways is worth it to me. Most of the things we buy other than groceries we get on amazon, so the free 2 day shipping is nice. Also they have free movies and a bunch of other stuff too, so get some entertainment out of it as well.

So yeah, not necessary, but convenient and a very minor expense when all is taken into account.

cantgrowone

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #20 on: May 25, 2017, 10:25:36 PM »
I enjoy my Amazon Prime account. Although I inherited from a shared account, and honestly don't know if the original account still has Prime.

The quick shipping is nice. The cost has gone up since they started charging state sales tax on some items we order. I wouldn't pay for it if we didn't have it. Not that it matters, I don't use Amazon Video because tit doesn't stream to a Chromecast.

JoshuaSpodek

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #21 on: May 28, 2017, 01:01:58 PM »
Amazon prime = garbage.

I mean literal garbage from all the packaging. I reduce my landfill and recycling waste as much as I can, to where I empty my landfill trash about twice a year.

When I got prime free for six months, suddenly my waste increased a lot. So much packaging garbage!

Some is recyclable, but recycling is closer to landfill garbage than not consuming the material in the first place.

I dropped my Amazon prime garbage producing account.
« Last Edit: May 28, 2017, 01:03:33 PM by JoshuaSpodek »

eostache

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #22 on: May 28, 2017, 02:01:58 PM »
For us it's not that we tend to buy things at other stores. We just tend to not buy stuff. We don't really think about not buying stuff, it just kinda happens.

I never had a Prime membership. I only shop at Amazon maybe once a year. I also do not keep my credit card number on file with my account. So no click and buy.

But I actually do "buy" a lot on Amazon. I collect free Kindle books. They always have hundreds of free ones, and some books are free for a day or so. I subscribe to an email list (fkb.me) that tells me what's new that is free right then. I have over 2000 Kindle books now (I read on my phone). They are hit or miss on quality but I have found some that are very good.

As for not buying stuff anymore, I have been working on getting rid of stuff and finding out that it's not so easy to get rid of stuff. It's a lot of work! That has now made me hesitant to go into thrift stores and yard sales. It's tiresome to look through things now. I've decided that the free stuff that people occasionally give me (some I keep, some I pass on) is a fast enough rate of accumulation of stuff. Yesterday a friend gave me a really nice pair of mtn bike shorts (baggy ones nice enough to wear all the time) and I like them a lot. I gave her some nice zipoff hiking pants that I was looking to pass on.

cl_noll

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #23 on: May 30, 2017, 07:19:20 AM »
Amen, Jane X. Keep it local, support the little guys and gals when possible, not Bezos' robots

thisisjeopardy

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Re: Cancelled Amazon Prime, I'm just fine
« Reply #24 on: June 03, 2017, 10:21:17 PM »
We buy lots of things off Amazon. Saves us gas money to the store. Also it's a part of the entertainment budget for the shows and movies included.