Is Amazon Prime worth it?

I have it. It's probably not it worth it on a pure dollar level unless you buy a lot of stuff, but I like it because then I just don't have to worry about shipping. It's great. One thing that sucks is that the discount doesn't apply to a lot of stuff that partners sell through Amazon, and there's no way to search for "amazon only" stuff if you're looking for something other then books.

It's changed the way I shop. I love it and now I can't imagine not having it! What some posters above may not realize is that the $79 covers everything - all year - no minimums - no nothing. I could order a single $1.95 G2 gel pen (if I wanted to) and I'd get it in two-days. You can use it as often as you want - and it includes electronics, groceries (tons of stuff available in bulk) - it's like Sam's or Costco without the sales tax. Many people think only "books" with Amazon (and I buy plenty), but Amazon is so much more than that. (BTW, it has nothing to do with the PRIME membership, but the DRM-Free easy-as-pie MP3 downloads are very nice too!) Take a look at what's available with free two-day shipping with Amazon PRIME: - Books (of course) - Electronics of all kinds - Groceries - Health and beauty stuff (like a huge drug store) - Toys & Games - Home improvement (like a giant Home Depot) - Patio, lawn and garden - Interior decorations of every stripe - Kitchen appliances - Apparel, shoes and jewelry - Huge outdoors store. Hunting, fishing, sporting goods of all kinds. - Tools, plumbing fixtures, automotive, on and on and on If you use Amazon like one big giant Big-Box and take advantage of their great prices on most all of the items in the categories above - $79 a year is a drop in the bucket, especially when you throw in the fact that most of us don't have any sales tax to pay. Which means, if you buy any of the above (and we all do) - it pays for itself. I think Amazon PRIME is the greatest deal on the web - no kidding. Sorry for the long post, but for anybody who buys anything it's a heck of a deal - delivered right to your door in two-days. No, I don't work for Amazon - I just LOVE Prime!

The only thing I dislike is that the extra charge for overnight shipping is $4 per item. So if you need two books tomorrow instead of one, you'll pay extra for it, even though it's the same box.

It is worth it for the groceries alone. They have a lot of items I cannot buy locally, and the prices on many items are better than the store prices. Cumin, coriander, agave nectar - all much cheaper from Amazon. It is also great for small items that I don't need immediately, that would normally require a special trip to a store. I needed a 4 gig flash drive for something last week. To get one at a decent price would require a trip to a store 20 miles away. Not worth my time, or the fuel cost. It took me about a minute to find what I needed and order it. My UPS driver must hate me by now.

I have it via my parents. It's really only worth it if you share it with several other accounts — at under $30 apiece it starts looking way more tempting.

To us it's worth it. If you pay shipping several times a year, especially if you ever find yourself needing something you can't find locally and it has to be sent 2 day or overnight, it's awesome. IIRC, standard shipping ran in the neighborhood of $7.00 before prime. Prime is ~$80. If you get 11 shipments per year from Amazon, that's basically your breakeven. Since I can do up to five during December (yay for internet Christmas) and I can make another five or six over the other 11 months easily, the time savings as far as getting it in two days is awesome. Last week we ordered a shredder, which was way less than a similar model anywhere local, and paid NO shipping for it. That thing is heavy, too. That alone may have made 1/2 the cost of Prime this year.

I had it for a year and I miss it. In fact, this question reminds me I've been meaning to sign up again. You mentioned a concern about spending more because you didn't have to pay shipping; if you shop Amazon at all like I do, you may spend less. For example: Gee, I need this $12 item. Wow, I'll have to pay $4 to ship that item. But if I find something else I want for $13, I can get it shipped for free! Yippee! That makes MUCH more financial sense than spending $4 for something I could get for free! And so I buy stuff I don't really need or wouldn't have otherwise just to get to the free super-saver level. If you don't find yourself doing this, nevermind. But in my case, if I calculated the cost of all the stuff I bought just because, I'm sure it would reach or exceed $79. Of course, I have actual stuff to show for it, so someone else might still think that's the better way to go.

It's fantastic. Can't tell you how much gas I have saved not having to drive to stores. Knowing I am running out of Art of Shave stuff and just get it shipped...have it in 2 days means I don't have to drive 40 minutes...plus I get the cheaper amazon price!

Get it, and pair it with an Amazon credit card. 3% back on all Amazon purchases -- every once in a while a lovely $25 gift certificate arrives in your mailbox. (Obviously pay it off monthly to get the most out of the deal.)