Anyone else dropping Amazon Prime / thinking about it?

[Wraith]

Or if you've been off of Prime for a while now, have you found yourself coming back to it?

With my Prime renewal coming up next week, I decided to cancel. Something I thought about last year, but didn't end up doing.

Some of my reasons:

• The shopping experience on Amazon can be frustrating. I see so many brands with what seem like made-up, mash-the-keyboard names, a huge number of items that are only available from third-party sellers, and with the huge problem of fraudulent reviews, the star ratings for sellers and products are more and more useless (you don't know what's legit and what's not). These problems aren't exclusive to Amazon, but they are prevalent there. Sometimes even searching for a known-quantity item gets you search results flooded with junk.
  
  
• I find that I'm not actually using the benefits outside of free shipping all that often. Of the ones I could be using, I'm not reading the free ebooks on the Kindle store, I've played maybe one of the free games with twitch prime, and while I watch twitch some, I'm not big into that ecosystem so the free prime sub doesn't mean a lot to me. I'm not near any Whole Foods or Amazon retail locations, so I don't get anything from their same day delivery options. Even for free shipping, I rarely need it to show up two days later.
  
  
• Apart from The Expanse, I haven't gotten into any of Amazon's original programming. And I have a number of other streaming services (Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, Disney+), so I'm not short on content to watch.
  
  
• Amazon seems like a pretty bad company to work for? I mean no-ethical-consumption and all that, but apart from raising their starting pay a while back, there's just story after story of treating workers like trash.
  
  
• I've been doing more of my online shopping with other retailers. Target and Best Buy mostly, but I'm also willing to look at stores that aren't giant megacorps. Suggestions welcome.

I'll consider subscribing for a month or two later this year, to cover holiday shopping and Expanse Season 6. Or maybe just pay for those holiday shipping costs and buy the Expanse episodes, whatever ends up making sense. But I just don't need that yearly sub.

 

[fracas]

I dropped it about a year ago and haven't looked back. When I had Prime, it was way too easy to impulse buy cause hey, it'll be here in just a couple days.

Now that I have to think about what I'm buying (and drop at least $25 for free shipping), I'm buying significantly less and saving money that would have otherwise gone in Jeff Bezos' pocket.

 

[The Real Napsta]

Try Man in the High Castle, Invincible, Sneaky Pete

 

[Small Red Boy]

Yeah, I was planning on cancelling my prime but I accidentally bought a year. I definitely won't renew next year (or at least try to lol). I don't use Amazon that much, and the shows/movies they have don't really interest me.

 

[Servbot24]

I was considering it last year. Then I moved in with my fiancé and she cancelled hers, so with the price split between two people it's a lot easier to handle.

 

[Kyrios]

I dropped Prime once they increased the annual price to $120 or whatever it is now. They need to tier their Prime subscription as it's too expensive for a year for stuff I'll never use. It's just not worth it for just the two day free shipping.

I just use the free 1 month trials when they pop up.

 

[Jack Bauer]

It's pretty useless here in southeast Alaska. I much prefer to buy local.

 

[Deleted member 9241]

Savings on shipping pay for itself in a month.

 

[Laevateinn]

I decided not to renew last year when my subscription was up because I kept getting things late and wanted to ween myself off of Amazon entirely. Since then, when I do buy stuff on amazon I tend to get it in two days anyway with the free shipping option so now I wonder why I paid for it for so long.

 

[Lumination]

Dropped it when they increased the price and removed ad-free twitch.

Amazon USED to be the place to buy higher quality stuff priced decently. Now it's an alibaba warehouse and the actual brands you know are more expensive than walking into a brick and mortar store. Bonus points for Bezos being a horrible person.

 

[dpanim]

Why is Prime family sharing not a thing in Canada? I hate having to ask my partner to order shit I want.

 

[finalflame]

Nah, I'd absolutely never drop Prime.

 

[RoadDogg]

I'm getting tempted, nothing ever shows up in 2 days anymore even though it says prime, it is always 4-5 days. And everything is sold by a 3rd party that doesn't included free returns or simple Amazon customer service. We never watch prime video outside of ms masiel but we do use the free photo backup since it easy. It isn't our only backup though so we could move off if we needed to.

Edit: I need a new plunger so figured Amazon would be quick and easy. Cheapest one is $8 when I can just do curb side pick up from Walmart for $3 alongside my grocery order. They really do suck now for most things.

 

[selfnoise]

Thanks for reminding me about this, I'm going to cancel as well. Amazon is basically ebay now so might as well just shop there or anywhere else.

 

[SteveWinwood]

I never had it. I don't buy anything from the site so it's pretty easy.

 

[Grym]

nah. free shipping and the Amazon originals on Prime (have really enjoyed Expanse, Maisel, The Boys, Fleabag and others...looking forward to WoT and LotR) are more than worth the price tag for my family.

 

[JustinBB7]

It's only 3 or 4 euros here, and I use the free sub on twitch (which is worth 6 euros) so I already am saving money there.

Don't watch prime video much but I watch The Boys and might check out Invincible.

Don't shop there often but when I do buy something, it's nice to have free shipping

Game goodies via twitch can also be nice sometimes.

So I'll keep it for sure.

 

[Captain of Outer Space]

Dropped Prime a few years ago and am very happy with that choice. Their service is awful and I have no interest in their bullshit.

 

[Vincent Grayson]

I still use their free shipping for small things constantly, especially in the last year.

That, and they've got the Wheel of Time series coming, which I 100% must watch.

 

[vypek]

I considered it a while ago but between all the things I am getting from it/using it for, its still worth it for me at the moment. Even though I've been shopping and spending less in general when it comes to miscellaneous purchases.

 

[Soliloquy of a Dogge]

Nah. Netflix, Prime and Spotify (as well as Game Pass) are things I'd never consider dropping.

 

[abellwillring]

Nope. It's too useful for me and my wife. The video stuff is a bonus -- I would drop every streaming service under the sun before getting rid of Prime.

 

[Wraith]

Amazon USED to be the place to buy higher quality stuff priced decently. Now it's an alibaba warehouse and the actual brands you know are more expensive than walking into a brick and mortar store.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, that's one of the things that's gotten worse over the last, I don't know, five years or so?

And I know even most of the stuff from "brands we know" is made in China anyway. But when I'm looking at a laundry list of brand names I've never heard of, I have no resource outside of the flawed Amazon review system to tell me if they're worth a damn. So I mostly stick to brands I've heard of/bought from in the past, unless it's under a certain price threshold, where if I'm just out that money, it's not going to bother me. (A comb? Sure, who cares. A mesh wi-fi router system? No thanks; I'll stick with what I know.)

 

[blame space]

amazon is bad and you shouldn't order things from them

 

[HylianSeven]

I'm still keeping it. I use the shipping all the time, and I think part of it's value depends on where you live. I'm in the Austin area, so we basically have all the Amazon services available here. Amazon's own shipping is very consistent, and usually delivers almost all the packages we order from there. Pretty much never have to worry about new games not making it on the launch date.

Amazon Prime Now comes in really handy here, we have used that a number of times, even pre-COVID. Amazon Video has been good, I particularly liked watching Borat 2 on it back when that came out.

Like I said, I think it really depends on where you live. In some places, the shipping speed may be the only real benefit you can get from it, and in that case may not be worth it for you.

 

[It’s Time To Go]

If I didn't get cheap student prime I wouldn't pay for it.

 

[SkyMasterson]

Try Man in the High Castle, Invincible, Sneaky Pete

Click to shrink...

Man in the High Castle started great...terrible last season though :(

 

[Wraith]

It's only 3 or 4 euros here, and I use the free sub on twitch (which is worth 6 euros) so I already am saving money there.

Click to shrink...

For reference, in the U.S. it's $120 USD/year (99.37 euro), or $12.99 USD/month (10.76 euro) on the monthly plan.

 

[The Omega Man]

Going through The Expanse for the first time so no, also I liked the Boys too, plus I order quite often from Amazon, so I am good

 

[KillingJoke]

Unless something better comes along, I'll never drop Prime.

 

[Dr. Zoidberg]

I think about it mainly because my wife and I never watch Amazon Prime and find it to be the least appealing major video streaming app to use from a UI perspective. Really the only reason I keep it is for the shipping benefits. It's probably not worth it but I keep re-subbing...

 

[Deleted member 36054]

The shipping benefits are worth it alone. Let alone add-ons like Fresh, and it's video service.

 

[Hrodulf]

Haven't used Amazon in years, largely because they are a trash company.

 

[Wraith]

Amazon Prime Now comes in really handy here, we have used that a number of times, even pre-COVID. Amazon Video has been good, I particularly liked watching Borat 2 on it back when that came out.

Click to shrink...

Oh yeah, I did watch that. And probably a handful of other movies (not prime originals) over the last year.

 

[Space Gomez]

I'm sure this was intentional, but Amazon made 2-day/next-day shipping feel like a crazy technological leap when really all it is is exploiting workers lmao

When I stopped buying from them it felt like a serious downgrade but that's a first world problem that I'll get over.

Fuck Amazon.

 

[JustinBB7]

For reference, in the U.S. it's $120 USD/year (99.37 euro), or $12.99 USD/month (10.76 euro) on the monthly plan.

Click to shrink...

I wouldn't do that I think no. That's a lot more expensive than here.

 

[Chopchop]

I'm fairly close to dropping it myself.

The search feature is kind of meh, and sorting is completely worthless because of the endless flood of cheap knockoffs. You're mostly confined to going with their own recommendations and sponsored items, which suuuuucckkkss.

As mentioned, they are not a good company and have a history of treating their workers horribly.

I don't get that much benefit from their shipping either.

 

[Deleted member 24907]

Dropped it years ago and haven't felt an issue tbh. It's very situational though. For me the fact that the quality has dropped precipitously and now you're far more likely to get trash quality or straight up knockoffs is enough reason for me to get off it. Their miserable working conditions and insane dreams of building a police state with Ring products is just the cherry on top. I can't support this company.

My advice is if you're considering cancelling it, drop it for a month or two and see if you still want it. It's not like it won't be there if you want to have it back.

 

[Kill3r7]

The convenience and savings justifies the price which in my experience is the case for most families with young children.

 

[karmaforgotme]

I will probably have Prime until the day I die (well market will change before that I hope).

nah. free shipping and the Amazon originals on Prime (have really enjoyed Expanse, Maisel, The Boys, Fleabag and others...looking forward to WoT and LotR) are more than worth the price tag for my family.

Click to shrink...

I will add to that Patriot which I think is one of the most overlooked shows in recent memories.

 

[jph139]

I've always been curious what people actually buy on Amazon, because it's probably the site I shop at most and I'm still averaging like... one purchase every couple months. It's easy enough to lump stuff together and get it over $25 for free shipping that way, and even if it's slower I still get it within 2-3 days more often than not. But even if I paid for shipping every time it wouldn't make up for the $100+ cost of Prime.

 

[Phantom_Snake]

Yeah I'm gonna let it expire this month. I dont watch enough TV to justify it and I dont order enough to care about the two day shipping.

 

[Space Gomez]

Yeah, that's one of the things that's gotten worse over the last, I don't know, five years or so?

And I know even most of the stuff from "brands we know" is made in China anyway. But when I'm looking at a laundry list of brand names I've never heard of, I have no resource outside of the flawed Amazon review system to tell me if they're worth a damn. So I mostly stick to brands I've heard of/bought from in the past, unless it's under a certain price threshold, where if I'm just out that money, it's not going to bother me. (A comb? Sure, who cares. A mesh wi-fi router system? No thanks; I'll stick with what I know.)

Click to shrink...

For the past few years I've been using The Wirecutter to help me with bigger purchases. There's been kind of a lack of focus in what they cover since the NYT buyout but I still trust them.

 

[FRANKEINSTEIN]

Me and the wife decided not to re-up it last year. Had a buddy order me a couple things but other than that, been fine. I'd like to watch a couple things on Prime streaming but I have a free 30 days I can use for that.

 

[BringBackSonics]

Nah. Way too many side benefits for our family (Amazon Photos, Amazon Music, Audible, Twitch). We also use Amazon Prime all the time. Also Their Amazon Fresh/Amazon Now services are worthwhile.

THey are also have the Sounders on Amazon Prime. And who know what kind of benefits will they have with their brand new Arena in Seattle (also Andrew Jassy is a owner of the hockey club)

Just way too many benefits for our family..Besides even video (Expanse, Carnival Row, The Boys, Upcoming Lord of the Rings etc)

 

[smisk]

I rarely buy stuff from Amazon, so Prime Video is the main reason I subscribe. The Boys and Expanse is great, and I wanna watch Invincible and Underground Railroad also. Defintely better content than Netflix.

 

[Squarehard]

I'm still grandfathered in from the og prime that still had full sharing, so just going to let it ride.

 

[butalala]

I use amazon as little as possible, but I still have prime, which I realize is a bit contradictory. I use prime video a lot and it's nice to have the ability to get quick shipping when there really isn't any other option.

 

[Otakunofuji]

I haven't had Prime for more than a month at a time here and there since they jacked the prices up years ago.

I will say as a non-member, though, that they treat you like shit as a customer if you don't have Prime. If you use the free shipping option for orders over $25 they just sit on it for 2-3 weeks and then ship them out overnight or second day anyway. I've cancelled a ton of orders in the last 2-3 years because stuff takes forever to ship and won't show up when I need it. If you can be patient it's fine, but if you actually need stuff in a timely manner shopping on Amazon without Prime blows.

 

[RedNalgene]

I dropped it about a year ago and haven't looked back. Instead of shopping there I'll shop other large online vendors - Target, Walmart, etc that don't have annual fees. These places have really speedy delivery too, so 2 day shipping isn't as compelling. There are times where I'll get something from Amazon and just wait the week for delivery (I typically don't NEED something in 2 days, but just WANT something in 2 days) simply because I can't find it anywhere else, or the price is just way better, but Amazon is now one of the last online stops I make. And occasionally there will be something on Prime Video that I want to see, but there's so much content out there now that I get plenty via Cable, Hulu, Netflix, etc.

Although no vendor is perfect, Bezos seems particularly terrible.