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Both the cost and the benefits of an Amazon Prime membership have increased steadily since the service was first launched in 2016. Launched at a flat $79/year rate, the growing cost of doing business and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic have shored up the rates to $139/year.
While the immense popularity of the service makes it seem like an absolute necessity, the growing cost does make one wonder if it's worth that extra header in your monthly or yearly budget.
Amazon Prime in 2022: Worth the money?
Before getting into the perks of Amazon Prime, let's go over the different plans available and their monthly/yearly cost. Standard Prime membership costs increased in March and the new rates are:
- $14.99/month or $139/year
- $8.99/month extra for Prime Video
Prime Student accounts will also be facing slightly hiked rates on renewals and new memberships.
- $7.49/month or $69/year
Readers on government assistance programs like Medicaid and EBT can avail a slight discount on their monthly Prime subscriptions at $6.99/month.
The value that Amazon Prime delivers is well known, with a report from JPMorgan suggesting that the true cost of each service rendered as part of the membership is nearly $1000. The main benefits offered by a Prime subscription are enlisted below:
- Expedited delivery: The most well-known perk of being a Prime member is access to free, faster shipping options like two-day, one-day, or same-day delivery on eligible products. It also provides complimentary access to two-hour deliveries on groceries.
- Reading: Prime Reading provides access to a considerable catalog of digital books and audiobooks for members, via the Kindle and Audible mobile and desktop apps. First Reads is also a great service for bookworms.
- Digital services: Amazon Music, Prime Gaming (including the freshly launched cloud gaming platform Luna), Kids+, discounts on Prime Video channels, and Amazon Photos (unlimited cloud storage for your photos).
- Special deals: Exclusive Lightning Deals, offers at Whole Foods, free shopping at Woot, and Prime Try Before You Buy (for items like clothes, shoes, etc). Prime members are also the first in line for major savings on Prime Day and other sales.
- Complimentary subscriptions: A Prime subscription makes members eligible for a free one-year subscription to GrubHub+, free faster shipping on Zappos, and free two-day and next-day shipping at Shopbop.
Conclusion
All things considered, a Prime subscription pays for itself in more ways than one. Even without the extra perks, readers who end up opting for two-day shipping more often than not will have earned back the cost of their Prime subscription in less than 25 orders a year (at an average of an extra $6 per order).
Additionally, due to Prime Members outnumbering non-prime members in most urban regions, the standard shipping times have increased heavily for the latter.
Simply put, if you end up shopping on Amazon even once every two weeks, a Prime Subscription will save you a lot more than it costs, not to mention all the little extras that it brings with it.
