SAVING CENTSABLY: Amazon Prime has helped me save
Last year I wrote about joining Amazon's Prime service for the first time. You know, from reading my column for many years, that this decision to purchase the Prime service was not made without quite a bit of price comparisons and cost analysis.
However, after nearly one year of membership with Amazon Prime, I am happy to say that our family is planning to continue our membership after the first year ends.
Let me explain why. In the past, year I have made 58 purchases with my Prime membership. I have ordered everything from books for my husband's pastoral office to toilet paper. When I find a deal, I want to be sure it's the best deal possible, and for that reason I have purchased all sorts of items -- like our family's quinoa or steel cut oats or even, yes, toilet paper.
I like that I can save time by ordering the products online and I do not have to drive to pick them up. I appreciate that I receive email updates that let me know when the things I need are on the way, and when they have been delivered.
In short, this is how this year's membership panned out. With 58 purchases, and a membership price of $79 (which was an introductory rate and will not be the rate for 2016), this averages out to a cost of $1.36 for shipping on each delivery.
Let me just tell you, when I shipped one package to North Carolina for Christmas I paid nearly $10! I know that the Amazon Prime membership certainly saves me money on shipping.
The other thing I know about 2015 is that not even once did I need to hunt for a deal to make my purchase price greater than $35 in order to qualify for free shipping. In previous years, I found myself doing that many times. I would either add items I did not really need to my cart to achieve that $35 threshold or I would simply miss out on deals while doing so. That was not the case in 2015 -- and it will not be the case in 2016!
The second benefit I have found with our membership is that my husband and children have had the opportunity to watch all sorts of movies and television series that they would not otherwise have had access to. We would have had to purchase the DVDs of these series in order for them to get to see these series. Therefore, I know the Amazon Prime membership has saved us a good bit of money in that way.
We are looking forward to keeping our Amazon Prime membership up to date. It sure has made purchasing items much easier. With reliable delivery and easy returns, this is one membership I wish I had purchased earlier on in my savings journey.
I'd love to hear from y'all. Did you buy an Amazon Prime membership last year? Are you planning to buy an Amazon Prime membership this year?
Keep up with your purchase history and that way you will know how much you have saved and whether the membership helps you save money!
Contact writer Rachael Mercer at savingcentsably@gmail.com.
This story was originally published January 5, 2016 at 6:50 PM with the headline "SAVING CENTSABLY: Amazon Prime has helped me save ."