3 Signs You Should Sign Up for Amazon Prime

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Is an Amazon Prime membership worth it for you? 

Amazon Prime is one of the most valuable membership services out there because you get tons of perks in exchange for paying your $14.99 per month or $139 per year. But, it doesn’t necessarily make sense for everyone to be a member.

If you’re not certain whether signing up for Prime makes sense for you or not, watch for these three signs that it might make sense to put a Prime membership on your credit card before your next Amazon purchase.

1. You regularly pay shipping fees (or add items to your cart to get over Amazon’s threshold for free shipping)

Amazon Prime members get free two day shipping. If you are not a Prime member, you may have to pay shipping fees for most items purchased from the site unless you meet a minimum purchase threshold (usually by adding at least $25 worth of items to your cart).

If you regularly find yourself either paying shipping charges or buying extra items just to qualify for free shipping, then you might be better off just paying for Prime service.

2. You want free grocery delivery and you live in a qualifying area

Amazon offers two different options to get groceries delivered directly to your door. You can use Amazon Fresh or you can get groceries delivered from Whole Foods. Prime members can get free delivery through Fresh if they order at least $35 worth of groceries, although Whole Foods delivery costs $9.95 in many cities.

If you can qualify for free grocery delivery through Fresh, this can save you a lot of time and money. You won’t be tempted to make impulse purchases in the store and you won’t spend on the gas to get there. Fresh also has a great selection of items, including many organic brands at good prices.

You can pay for grocery delivery through other services like InstaCart, but if you join Prime you won’t have to shell out extra cash — you can get your food brought to you while also taking advantage of all of the myriad other services that Prime membership has to offer.

3. You want to save money on streaming music and video

With Amazon Prime, you’ll have access to both Prime Video and Prime Music as part of your membership. Paying the monthly fee for Prime can be cheaper than the cost of getting a separate video and music streaming service. For example, if you signed up for Spotify Premium, you’d be paying $9.99 per month just for music alone and would need to tack on a video streaming service costs on top of that.

Amazon’s music service has more than two million songs and is ad-free so it’s good enough for most casual listeners. Prime Video has tons of hits, including blockbuster movies and Amazon original series. When you figure that you get these services along with all of the other things that Amazon has to offer, they can feel like essentially free add-ons that provide lots of entertainment bang for your buck.

If any of these three signs applies to you, you should consider getting a Prime membership ASAP to try out. If you haven’t used the service ever or in a while, you may be eligible for a free trial if you check your account. If you sign up for a paid membership but don’t like it or don’t end up using your benefits, you can always cancel.

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We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Christy Bieber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon.com. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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