Amazon Prime: Is it Worth It? (Plus FREE One-Month Trial!)

Do you remember the thrill you felt the first time you opened up a joint savings or checking account with your fiancee or spouse?  Or the first time you signed a lease together?  Applied for a loan for a car or a house?

The first joint account that my then boyfriend (now husband) and I had together?  Our Amazon Prime account.  Ah, the romance.  We could purchase books and Christmas presents and save on shipping!  (I knew I had found my soul mate because he got just as excited about saving money as I did!)  Even though I was living in New Mexico and he was in Oklahoma, we bonded over Amazon.  🙂

That was 8 years ago.  We’ve had an Amazon Prime account ever since.

Recently we have been reexamining some of our recurring bills and yearly expenses to see if we could get them lowered or eliminate them altogether.  Our cell phone bill?  My husband got that reduced by $20 a month.  Our cable add-ons?  Ditched them.

We decided to take a look at our Amazon Prime membership.  Did it actually save us money?  Or, was it a $99 we could pocket each year?

In order for the $99 to be worth the price, we needed to save more than $8.33 per month.

Amazon Prime: Is it Worth it?

After doing some research, we decided that Amazon Prime helps us save in 3 (soon to be 4) ways:

1. Free Shipping

We get free 2 Day shipping on all of our purchases, and we make A LOT of  purchases through Amazon.  My husband is a PhD candidate, which is a fancy way of saying that buying and reading books is his main job right now.  He makes, on average at least two purchases a month.  If he was paying the typical shipping costs associated with them, he would pay at least $3 per purchase just for shipping.

During the weeks leading up to Christmas, I do the majority of my shopping on Amazon.  I always have gift cards that I have earned through Swagbucks or Amazon Trade-In that I can apply to my purchases.  When you throw in the free shipping, I often get presents for nothing!  Just last year I bought a big box of Kinex for Big Brother’s main birthday present.  The box was on sale for $13, and I had $10 in gift cards.  Combine that with the free shipping, and I paid $3 for his Christmas present.

Estimated Savings Per Month:  $8

2. Movies and Television Shows

We don’t have a Netflix account.  It is quite possible that we are the only household in America that doesn’t.  However, we are able to watch television shows and movies through our Amazon Prime account for free.  They have thousands to watch!  A couple of years ago we watched all of the Downton Abbey seasons.  We’ve cuddled down on the couch to watch Christmas classics, children’s television series, and more.  By combining our Amazon Prime movies with the movies that we check out from the library, we haven’t had to pay for entertainment for a long time!

Estimated Savings Per Month:  $8 per month for a Netflix account

3. Music

One feature that we’ve only recently begun using is the Prime Music feature.  There are millions of songs and custom-built playlists available.  I love listening to music while I’m working on the blog or folding laundry.  Fun and free!

Estimated Savings Per Month:  $1-$2.  We had purchases a few songs/ albums through other online sources each year.

4. Kindle Lending Library

Amazon Prime also has a fantastic feature called the Kindle Lending Library.  Through it you have FREE access to over 500,000 e-books.  These include classics, children’s books, New York Times best sellers, and more.  Each month you can borrow one e-book for free.  We don’t currently use this feature, but I am debating getting a Kindle for Christmas.  This lending library may push me over the edge on that decision!

Estimated Savings Per Month (if we use this feature next year):  $5-$10 per month

My Conclusion:

For our family, Amazon Prime makes perfect sense.  We actually come out ahead.

Now, I am not going to say that every family will experience the same amount of savings.  If you are considering Amazon Prime, I would suggest making your own analysis of the amount you typically spend on shipping, movies, music, and e-books per year.  If it is more than $99, then Amazon Prime  could be a great fit for you!

If you’re unsure, then I would recommend trying out this FREE offer below.

FREE One Month Trial

You can get a free one month trial of Amazon Prime just by clicking HERE.  If you want to check out all of the features to see if you will actually save money, you can do so risk-free.  You are not locked in to an Amazon Prime account.  You literally have nothing to lose.

This is an especially great offer with Christmas coming up.  Use your free month trial to get free shipping on some amazing Black Friday/ Cyber Monday deals.  That could save you some serious cash!

My husband and I feel ridiculously nostalgic about our Amazon Prime account.  After all, it knew we were a couple before our parents did!  We’re glad we’ll be keeping it for another year.

Do you have an Amazon Prime account?  What is your experience?

(This post contains affiliate links.  Please see my disclosure policy for more information.)

(Linked to Tips and Tricks, The Thrifty Couple, Share the Wealth, Small Victories Sunday, Frugal Friday.)