Getting the most out of Amazon prime

[AndyL]

Ok, I figure you ballers know best...

Recently took the Amazon prime trial - mostly for 3d printer filament... Being out in high river - actually works out, as definitely saves shipping and drive to the city costs for the little 1off needs.

But the question is - is there a website that shows you the deals on stuff you're not actually needing but could use up? Price notifications on stuff you're eyeballing etc?

How does one effectively use prime to actually save money on the day to day stuff?

Thanks in advance!

[ExtraSlow]

You do need to be careful, because not everything is cheaper. For items that you don't need right away, use camelcamelcamel to track prices and send alerts. For smaller things, I often compare to superstore, Canadian tire and Walmart. Read those flyers each week, and you'll get a good feel for things.

[dj_rice]

Redflagdeals.com


Your welcome. Theres tons of post in there about Amazon finds. Thats how I picked up my Instant Pot for cheap from Best Buy. Cause Amazon had it on sale and price -matching

[nismodrifter]

I've regularly found stuff I need cheaper at Superstore or Canadian Tire vs Amazon.

I too basically review weekly fliers as ExtraSlow mentioned, and then make purchases accordingly.

[ExtraSlow]

Good example is AAA batteries I needed recently. I wanted a lot, and found 48 on amazon for $13, which was a good deal, but the 24 packs were a bad deal. You have to comparison shop.

[AndyL]

Technically it already pays for itself, usual place I buy filament from - is 10% less and free shipping by prime (I don't get that logic?). So just in a week it's paid for itself on average... And Amazon filament is cheaper still!

But, yeah toner 13.50 vs 65$ at Staples... Some stuffs just a no brainer.

Just have a feeling there's way more to get out of this scenario

[ExtraSlow]

Buy amazon gift cards with. Reward credit card at Safeway, earn points.

[nzwasp]

Its really cheap for those hearing aid sized batteries that go for about $9 or so dollars each at shoppers I bought 20 for $15 on Amazon.

I wish that prime had some deal with audible for books, I'd rather that than amazon music which sort of sucks for the "free" version. Is it that amazon music only has prime or premium models, they market prime to be no ads etc but I cant find a version of amazon music that is more basic (ie if you dont get prime you get no music?)

[sabad66]

Diapers and baby wipes are cheap from amazon (pampers at least) especially if you do subscribe and save.
Amazon basics dog poop bags are also really good value. Buy a box of 600 or 900 and it will last you quite a while.
McDonald’s coffee (preground cans) is cheaper than reg price grocery stores.
I track two specific dog treats - pure bites chicken and greenies - using camelcamelcamel and stock up when on sale
If you watch tv, prime video is really good too.

Above are where I see the most value

[cyra1ax]

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Its really cheap for those hearing aid sized batteries that go for about $9 or so dollars each at shoppers I bought 20 for $15 on Amazon.

I wish that prime had some deal with audible for books, I'd rather that than amazon music which sort of sucks for the "free" version. Is it that amazon music only has prime or premium models, they market prime to be no ads etc but I cant find a version of amazon music that is more basic (ie if you dont get prime you get no music?)

Prime music got nerfed a little while back, it's ad-free but its not the full catalog. Have to get Amazon music premium or something to get everything you want.

[taemo]

I use Amazon Prime to backup photos (unlimited space).
Have these on my subscribe and save
-baby stuff (diapers, wipes, garbage genie) monthly
-kicking horse coffee monthly
-compost and garbage bags every 2-3 months
-toothpaste every 3 months
-soap every 3 months
-detergent every 3 months
-dish soap 3-6 months
-camomille tea
-instant film
-paper towel
-toilet paper
-banana bread mix
-swiffer wet
-lysol bowl cleaner
-qtip

we rarely go to costco/superstore/walmart/canadian tire/safeway so subscribing nonperishable goods is handy.
although if we go to those stores and find the stuff locally and cheaper ill buy them and reschedule my subscription


I also buy small pieces for family all the time for prime free shipping

[suntan]

Use ebates.ca
AmazonBasics batteries are usually a great price.

[taemo]

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Use ebates.ca

I booked something on Expedia through Ebates link and Swagbucks extension.. I wonder if I will get reward from both side.

[Mitsu3000gt]

I make hundreds of Amazon orders per year and spend about $10K+/year there. The perks are pretty good with Prime.

- Unlimited photo storage (Including RAW files), and 5GB for any other type of file, including movies. They have their own software for backups and it's also compatible with third party backup programs like Syncback Pro.
- Prime music is decent and free, but if you want a library comparable to iTunes of Google Play Music you need to pay for their premium service
- Prime Video is OK, they have some gems in there and a few shows that other streaming services don't have but it's not nearly as good as Netflix overall. For 'free' though, it's hard to complain and you can download for offline viewing just like Netflix.
- As mentioned above, ebates is a partner of Amazon
- $1.99-$6.99 one-day shipping is handy sometimes. Some items also have free 1-day shipping ($25 and over), and anything in the Balzac warehouse will probably come next day even if you select free 2-day shipping.
- Free Twitch channel subscription every 30 days - I never watch Twitch but I am told this is a pretty good perk
- You get a 30 minute head start on some lightning deals, but make sure it's actually a good deal - looking at the "% claimed" on some products that are $2 cheaper than normal boggles the mind when I see it at 80% or whatever on some no-name garbage product. It's amazing how little it takes to make people think they are getting some sort of deal.


As far as general tips:

- Use camelcamelcamel.com to track everything you think you might want, and check the same site to see historical pricing and historical lows before buying anything - for example if an item is $200 and I see it regularly goes on sale for $100, I wait. I've also been able to take advantage of ridiculous deals thanks to the price alerts. Make sure to set both the Amazon and 3rd party price alerts (they are separate) and make sure to set your region to Canada.

- Always check the average regular selling price before buying anything, especially with lightning deals and deals of the day. Sometimes what is advertised as 30% off is more like 5% off when you look at pricing history on 3camel.

- Not everything is cheaper on Amazon, but a lot of stuff is. Just as a recent example, a pack of 200 alcohol swaps is $13 on amazon with Prime, and the exact same thing is $3 at WalMart.

- Returns are always free only if you pick the right reason. As a rule of thumb, anything that isn't your fault will generate a free return label, and you can't go back and change it. For example "performance or quality not adequate". "Changed mind" or " Ordered wrong size" is not a free return.

- If anything ever misses your guaranteed delivery date, pop onto their online chat and tell them. At a minimum you will get a $10 credit or a 1 month prime extension. If it's several days past the guaranteed delivery date, you might get the item for free (I have many times, including several ~$50 items and a $250 pair of wireless headphones). They are usually pretty good with delivery dates (Intelcom and Dynamax deliver on weekends too), but I order so much stuff that my Prime membership pays for itself many times over every year with late items.

- Food items on Amazon are often pretty old from sitting in the warehouses, so buyer beware there. I find things like vitamins are way cheaper on Amazon than in-store.

- Anything sold by amazon.com.ca will come from the USA and take a bit longer. Even though you get free 2-day shipping, that starts after the item ships which might be a couple extra days.

- Most Amazon Basics stuff is actually really good, and on Prime Day and other holidays they usually have 20% off all Amazon Basics. They have everything from batteries to camera accessories to industrial paper shredders. Batteries in particular are dirt cheap, and the Amazon Basics high capacity low self discharge NiMh rechargables are actually re-branded Japanese-cell Panasonic Eneloops which are a phenomenal value.

- Lots of items, especially larger ones, do not ship in separate packaging (i.e. everyone will be able to see what it is). There is a checkbox at checkout that gives you the option to hide what the item is for free (they put it in an Amazon box). This is handy for gifts, or if you don't want neighbors knowing you have an expensive item or 18" dildo sitting on your front step.

- Around Christmas, I think starting Nov 1, you have until Jan 31 the following year to return anything you buy instead of the normal 30 days.

- If you want to guarantee yourself a zero-hassle return, make sure it is fulfilled by Amazon and not a third party - it always tells you below the price of the tiem. If it's a third party they are less flexible with customer service and you will need to ship the item back for a refund even if the item costs less than the postage. Amazon's A-Z guarantee covers you up to $2,500 if you get screwed over by a third party company, but there is an arbitration process.

- If you sign up for recurring purchases on consumables (i.e. toilet paper or cleaning supplies) you get a discount. Check prices vs. local though, it's not always better but the convenience is also worth something.

- Lots of local stores such as Best Buy will price-beat Amazon as long as it's in stock - even if it says "ships in 2-3 months" or something like that, if it's technically in stock they will match/beat it. The 10% "beat" is pointless (usually ends up being a couple dollars tops) but if you'd rather buy local or get the item that same day, it can be handy.

- If you put stuff in your cart or "save for later", Amazon alerts you when there is a price change (up or down)

- Be wary of items with very few overwhelmingly positive reviews. Sometimes Amazon resellers send products to people for free in exchange for a review, and some people are up front about it but some are not. The dead giveaway is photos, because the resellers usually require you to post photos as part of your review to get the item for free. This is against Amazon rules so what they will do is refund you via paypal. Personally I have never had this happen to me in all my time on Amazon, but it is something to be aware of. After that it's like anything else, if it has enough reviews, you can generally trust them and ignore the outliers.


Redflagdeals is OK but it's slow and people go absolutely nuts for very bad deals and crappy products on there all the time, so you still need to do all the same due diligence as normal. I find more time is wasted trying to verify if something is actually a good deal than it's worth, because it's mostly false alarms on there. You also need to spend time pouring through the forms and the members there are so cringey I hate reading it. It's basically soccer moms and armchair 'experts' spewing misinformation. You're far better off just adding everything you want on 3Camel, and make sure you select all the models you would be willing to buy - using the Instant Pot example, most of their pots are identical other than 1-2 features, so be sure to add all the models.

[AndyL]

Camelcamelcamel is broken lol. And what's with all the talk on Ebates about the Amazon purchases not registering and getting rebated?

Canada Post lady didn't love me this morning lol. 8 packages mostly filament.

[HiTempguy1]

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Camelcamelcamel is broken lol.

Works fine for me?

As for Amazon, even if an item is more expensive, the time savings and covienience far outstripts the extra price.

Yes, I can go to Canadian Tire or BestBuy for item X, but half the fucking time its out of stock or their system shows one left but its not there.

And Amazon is definitely at its best in conjunction with CCC, any big purchase should be searched. Makes the rush to buy something a lot easier when you realize a month ago it was $50 or $100 cheaper.

[AndyL]

?

[mzdspd]

I always price check between prime and other retailers. But sometimes just the convenience factor causes me to use Amazon. It is nice just buying something off of prime and having it delivered to my office the next day. Versus me going to a mall and buying it.

Also, I use Prime Video and Prime storage so that makes it worthwhile to have Prime IMO.

[jwslam]

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?

Try the Keepa add-on into Chrome. It shows a chart on most pages.
https://keepa.com/

[msommers]

Prime really surprises me how fast it is, and the prices are cheaper. We needed a cabin filter for the fiance's Hyundai...I ordered it Friday at lunch and the doorbell rang at 10am the next day to drop it off. However when we needed to find a replacement bulb for the license plate, bulbs + shipping were twice as much as going to Crappy Tire. So it depends.

We've enjoyed having the diversity of Prime and Netflix, though we'd be considered low-usage consumers for both platforms.

Whenever I'd looked at canned goods, or specifics like organic peanut butter, it's really expensive. I guess we don't buy a lot online anyways but I can see for baby stuff it'd be awesome.

If you know a student, try to get their account info

Now Click n Collect, that's the shit, for everything!