Out-Of-The-Box Ways to Score Amazon Prime for Free or Cheap
Aside from the obvious 30-day free Prime trial, there exists some highly clever ways to get an Amazon Prime membership for free, or at least really CHEAP. Even the most loyal Amazon shoppers have no idea many of these Prime discounts exist. From credit card and cell phone companies offering a free membership, to Amazon themselves giving you a free Prime extension in certain circumstances, these clever tips will keep you from forking over $119 for a Prime membership for years to come.
Here are 6 ways to get Amazon Prime for free…I’ve also included 3 bonus tips at the bottom so be sure to scroll all the way down.
Get 1 Free Month of Prime if Package Arrives Late
If you’re a current Prime member, and your package doesn’t arrive within the 2-day guaranteed window, you need to start holding Amazon’s “feet to the fire”.
This is also true if you pay the shipping upgrade for 1-day delivery (see above chat session).
In many cases, when this happens, Amazon will extend to you 1 free month of Amazon Prime as a peace offering.
The free month won’t kick in until your current Prime membership expires, which is way cool.
To make it happen, simply contact Amazon customer service and politely explain the situation.
If they won’t give you a free Prime extension they should at the very least give you a $5 credit added to your account.
See Also: 7 Amazon Prime Benefits You Probably Had No Idea Existed
30-Day Free Trial Expired?
Out of curiosity, I started a live chat session with Amazon and asked how many free 30-day Prime trials a user was eligible for.
I figured they’d say one per email address or one per mailing address.
Much to my surprise, she confirmed that you can simply open a new Amazon account after your 30-day free Prime trial expires and “then try the Prime on that account”.
You’ll need a different email address to open a new Amazon account, but that’s not a problem for most shoppers.
The Amazon rep also informed me that if you don’t renew your Prime membership after your trial period ends, they’ll typically email you another free trial opportunity after a certain amount of time.
Buyer beware on this one.
This loophole surely won’t last very long and has the long term unintended consequences of Amazon raising the cost of their Prime membership and offering poorer customer service overall.
BTW, before you ask, my wife’s name is Aimee and her name is on our Amazon account. 😉
Snag Free Prime With Metro by T-Mobile
Another smart way to get Prime for free is to check out Metro by T-Mobile.
They recently launched a new $60/month cell phone plan that includes a free 12-month Amazon Prime membership.
It’s called the $60 Unlimited High Speed plan and is available to both new and current T-Mobile customers.
If you’re already with T-Mobile, or considering switching providers, it’s definitely a no-brainer.
It’s also worth noting that this offer is only available to new Prime members.
See Also: 4 Ways to Get Free Shipping at Amazon (Without Paying for Amazon Prime)
Skip Prime Altogether and Still Score Free Shipping
Perhaps the best way to get the service for free is to simply not fork over the $119 annually for Prime and still get free shipping.
Guess what? Amazon already offers free shipping on $25 or more, a threshold that’s much lower than most online retailers.
Many of which require you to spend $75 or $99 to qualify for free delivery.
Clever Hack Alert: If your Amazon order falls just short of the minimum order required for free shipping, simply add a “pre-order” item to your cart to get over the hump.
You’ll get your entire order shipped for free and then once your order is shipped you can cancel your “pre-order” item before it gets shipped and not be charged.
Don’t do this too often or you run the risk of Amazon catching on and making you pay for the pre-order items, or worse case, cancelling your account.
Use TopCashBack to Get $10 Off Prime
OK, I realize this tip won’t get you free Prime, but $10 off your 12 month Prime membership is nothing to laugh at.
When you use the cash back website TopCashBack, and purchase Prime, you’ll score $10 in cashback.
So basically you get 1-year of Prime for $109 instead of $119 for a couple minutes of your time.
Definitely worth it, especially if you can use TopCashBack to get money back on all of your online shopping moving forward.
Get Prime Student for $6.49/month
If you’re currently enrolled in college and have a .edu email address be sure you DON’T pay full-price for a Prime membership.
Amazon Prime Student offers you 50% off the regular cost of Prime and you still get free 2-day shipping, Prime Video, Prime Reading, and a bunch cool “student only” discounts. Full list here.
What exactly will you get? You’ll score everything that comes with Prime EXCEPT Prime Music and the Kindle Owner’s Lending Library.
Still not sure if Prime Student is for you? No worries, as you can take advantage of their FREE 6-month trial and you’ll know for sure once your trial expires.
Once your 6-month trial expires, you’ll have the option to sign-up for Amazon Prime for only $59 a year (essentially $4.92/month) for up to 4 years.
See Also: Amazon “Prime Student” Hacks (Plus a Free 6-Month Membership)
Bonus Tip #1: Major Amazon Prime Discount for EBT Holders
Recently Amazon offered a monthly discount of their Prime membership for EBT cardholders.
Here are the details:
- Confirm Eligibility: Click here to confirm your eligibility, you’ll have to enter your EBT card number along with an image of your card.
- Prime at a Discount: Once you confirm eligibility, you’ll get Amazon Prime for only $5.99 per month (Compared to $12.99/month or $119 annually). That’s essentially a 54% discount, not too shabby.
- Cancel at Any Time: You can cancel at any time and are not under any contract.
- Cannot Share Your Membership: Unlike a regular Prime membership, you cannot share your Prime membership with family members.
- Must Re-Validate Your EBT Card Every 12 Months: Also, you can only re-validate your card 4 times. After your 4 years of discounted Prime are over you’re stuck paying full price.
Important Note: You cannot use your EBT card to pay for your Prime membership.
Do You Get All the Same Prime Benefits?
Yes.
With this EBT Amazon Prime discount you get all the awesome benefits that come with Prime.
In addition to the free 2-day shipping on millions of items, you get everything else that comes with Prime.
This includes Prime Music, unlimited photo storage, Prime Video, Twitch Prime, Prime Kindle Reading, and free Amazon Audible channels.
Do You Still Get a Free 30-Day Trial?
Yes. If you have an EBT card you still get a 30-day free Prime trial.
So you really have nothing to lose. Try it out for 30 days and cancel if it’s not for you.
You’ll never be charged the $5.99 if you cancel within 30 days.
What Exactly is an EBT Card?
EBT stands for Electronic Benefits Transfer and the card works just like a debit or credit card.
The card is issued by the government and allows state and federal programs to easily add funds to your card.
You’ll probably qualify for this Amazon Prime discount if you’re enrolled in any of these programs:
- Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
- Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
Other programs vary by state.
Bonus Tip #2: Apply for Amazon Prime Rewards Visa
The new Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card pays you 5% back via reward points on all of your Amazon purchases plus you score a free $50 Amazon gift card when you get approved.
So basically if you order at least $165 from Amazon every month, this Prime Rewards card will pay for your $119 annual membership every year.
This card is a no-brainer if you fall into this category.
Bonus Tip #3: Wait for Amazon Prime Day
Typically in July, Amazon Prime Day is the one day every year where Prime often goes on sale.
If you don’t need Prime right away, it could be worth waiting.
If it doesn’t go on sale this year, pay attention to other days where it will.
Every year Prime goes on sale at least once, often to commemorate something “special” that Amazon has accomplished.
Ask the Reader: Have you found a way to get free or cheap Amazon Prime for an extended period of time? If so, let me know your strategy.
By Kyle James
I started Rather-Be-Shopping.com in 2000 and have become a consumer expert and advocate writing about out-of-the-box ways to save at stores like Amazon, Walmart, Target and Costco to name a few. I’ve been featured on FOX News, Good Morning America, and the NY Times talking about my savings tips. (Learn more)
