With its July sale just around the corner, we share the expert-approved ways your family can save money when shopping with Amazon and make sure you are getting value for money.
Ask any parents at the school gates, and you'll be hard-pressed to find one that doesn't shop on Amazon. Not only is it really convenient, but nine times out of ten, its got what you need at a reasonable price. Become an Amazon Prime member, and you'll get a whole load of extra benefits too - including exclusive deals when Amazon Prime Day comes around.
However, there are plenty of other ways you can keep costs low when shopping with Amazon year-round, if you know where to look.
10 ways to save money when shopping with Amazon
1. Sign up to a Prime membership
If you regularly shop on Amazon, it's worthwhile becoming an Amazon Prime member - even if it's just for the free postage. Membership guarantees free and fast delivery, exclusive member-only discounts on select items, and early access to Amazon sale events, as as access to Prime Video, 12 months free Deliveroo Plus and more.
You can start by signing up for a free 30-day trial. If satisfied, an annual membership will set you back £95 (or you can pay a monthly fee of £8.99, but this is a more expensive way to pay as it will cost you £107.88 over the course of 12 months rather than the annual fee of £95). If you know there is a Prime sale event on the horizon (there's usually one in July, one in October and the Black Friday sale at the end of November) then you can time your trial to coincide and bag some bargains.
2. Use 'Subscribe and Save'
If you regularly buy consumable items from Amazon, like toiletries, nappies or laundry products, then Subscribe and Save could help you save money. Subscribe and save offers up to 15 per cent off the original price of these when you schedule repeat deliveries of these items. The good news is that it's flexible too. You can choose a repeated delivery time frame that suits you and Amazon will additionally check in with you via email before shipping your products to ensure they're still required.
"There is no commitment once you subscribe," reads the Subscribe and Save information page. "We will send you a reminder email before each delivery showing the items, price and any applicable discount. Skip your deliveries if you have enough already, or cancel your subscriptions at any time."
3. Save even more with Subscribe and Save vouchers
Savings on savings. Yes, you read that right. In addition to the 15% off repeated delivery items, you can also get exclusive Subscribe and Save vouchers that can be applied on top of the original discount. These additional vouchers boast extra deals that vary from five to 20 per cent off. They're not all Amazon brand items either, with many of these Subscribe & Save vouchers also applying to well known household names like Finish, Andrex, Listerine and Garnier.
Next time you go to order or check into your repeat delivery subscription be sure to check out the Subscribe & Save Vouchers page first to make the most of your money.
4. Keep your eyes peeled for Amazon vouchers
As families are probably used to with the weekly food shop, coupons are a great way to cut the cost of your shopping, and Amazon is no exception. To reap the rewards, check out the Amazon Voucher homepage to see the exciting deals. Some are percentage based - with up to 60 per cent off products like clothing, footwear, tech and toiletries, while others specify an amount, e.g. save £3.00.
Applying them to your order couldn't be easier. Simply select the 'collect voucher' button on the deals page and then after you've added all your items, head to your basket where the voucher will automatically apply.
You might even see money off promotions on a specific product page, which could be a small percentage off, or a buy one get one free offer. If you want to redeem the offer, just click on the promotion link and you'll see it applied when you check-out.
5. Shop Amazon's Daily Deals
While the most deals drop during big sale events, like Prime Day, there are always offers available thanks to Amazon's Daily Deals. These boast discounts on thousands of different products like books, toys, baby gear, personal hygiene products, clothing, electronics and more. "Amazon offers two types of one-off deals: "Deals of the Day", running daily for 24 hours from 00.01am to 11.59pm and "Lightning Deals", posted as often as every 15 minutes and lasting between two and six hours," explains MoneySavingExpert Martin Lewis. You can find both of these on the Today's Deal homepage. And they'll often highlight how long the offer is available for.
Another clever money-saving hack is to select the 'Upcoming' category link on the side-bar of the deal page. This will come up with a hundreds of future deals - some of which might be expensive products you're wanting to treat yourself to but want to pounce on at the right deal-saving time. It'll show you the items and when the deals are expected to go live. So make sure you set a reminder to save those £££s.
6. Check out the Amazon Warehouse
Save money when shopping pre-owned items with Amazon. Be it big name electronics, baby essentials like the best pushchairs or handy kitchen gadgets like slow cookers, the retailer has thousands of previously purchased and refurbished products available to buy online that are like new and significantly cheaper that buying brand new.
As Martin Lewis explained during a recent appearance on This Morning, Amazon Warehouse is where you can buy items that have been returned to Amazon by other customers. In some cases, the item may be completely unused, but the box is missing, or slightly damaged.
The good news is that each product up for sale on Amazon Warehouse goes through a rigorous quality control check, so you'll know what condition it's in before you decide to purchase. Amazon says: "We thoroughly test the functional and physical condition of each item and give the product a specific grade before selling it. We also inspect our products for missing accessories and packaging damage."
After this testing process, the item will be given one of the following condition categories:
- Used - Like New: Almost perfect working condition. The item is fully functioning and comes with all relevant accessories but may bear some minimal damage.
- Used - Very Good: An item in very good condition will work as it should but could feature some minor cosmetic flaws. "It may arrive with damaged packaging or be repackaged and could be missing some non-essential accessories," Amazon adds.
- Used - Good: 'Good' products will show signs from moderate use previously. There could be some scratches, missing accessories and it might not come in it's original packaging.
- Used - Acceptable: "An item may have clear signs of usage but still serves its main function," Amazon states. Expect more visible scratches, dents and a few worn corners. Plus some parts may have been replaced to ensure it works properly again.
7. Bag a bargain with Amazon Outlet
From refurbished to discontinued and overstocked items , Amazon Outlet is another sub-section to know about when trying to save money when shopping with Amazon. "Amazon Outlet is becoming the go-to place for customers to shop for highly discounted markdowns, overstock deals and clearance products," says the retailer. "Amazon Outlet offers a wide selection of items, such as Car & Motorbike products, electronics, clothing and toys." Check out the Amazon Outlet store for yourself and see what savings you could nab.
8. Save when you choose No-Rush shipping
If you're shopping on Amazon and you don't need your order the next day, why not chose a more flexible delivery option? Not only is it better for the environment, but sometimes Amazon will reward you for it too. "No-Rush Shipping helps us prioritize our fastest deliveries for customers with urgent needs," Amazon states on their No-Rush shipping Q+A page. In return for being more flexible, Amazon will add either an automatic discount to your current order or give you a reward to apply on your next order. No-Rush shipping usually means it will arrive in 3-5 days. It's worth noting that if you later cancel or change the speed of your delivery, the discount will no longer be valid.
9. Prime 'Try Before You Buy'
If you want to buy clothes or shoes for the family on Amazon, and you're a Prime member, then you can take advantage of the mega retailer's Try Before You Buy service. This means you place your order, and get a few days to try it on before you are charged. You get seven days to try them out, and you'll be charged for any items you decide to keep. You'll see a Prime Try Before You Buy badge on all eligible items, which can include women's, men's, kids' and baby clothing as well as shoes, bags and accessories.
You can order up to six items at a time under the service. And as its part of your Prime membership there's no delivery or shipping fees, and a returns label is provided for free - should you need to send them back. Visit the Try Before You Buy homepage for further details.
10. Make the most of Amazon sale events
Amazon holds at least two sale events each year that are exclusive to Prime members. Amazon Prime Day 2024 is just around the corner, and for the last couple of years, Amazon has added another two-day sale event to the calendar in October. While these haven't been called Prime Day, they are essentially the same thing - 48 hours of discounts for those with a Prime membership. Amazon can also be relied upon to hold a Black Friday and Cyber Monday event too - this sale is often longer than 48 hours, with discounts often available for more than a week (although the specific deals change during that time). This year, keep your eyes peeled for huge discounts on Amazon products like the Fire Stick or bestselling Amazon Echo Kids devices, amongst the thousands of products discounted.
Got a wish list of bargains you're waiting for? Our Shopping Editor has rounded up the best early Prime Day baby gear deals available right now, and spotted this epic deal on a kid-friendly smart speaker.
