In 2007, Amazon started delivering groceries as a beta service in a Seattle suburb, expanding over time to cover the entire city as a full-fledged subsidiary of Amazon. With same-day delivery of food from numerous local merchants, Amazon Fresh offered Seattle residents a simple, cost-efficient alternative to the twice-weekly trips to the grocery store.
Earlier this summer, Amazon expanded the program to greater Los Angeles, the company's first expansion of their program, which now offers over 500,000 different products in each city for shoppers to choose from. And although the overhead cost of a Prime Fresh membership may appear steep ($299 a year), we've got some great tips on how to maximize its value.
90-Day Free Trial
Already have Amazon Prime? Then you've got three months of free Amazon Fresh service right at your fingertips. If you've considered dropping the $299 on the yearly subscription fee, just sign up and try it out for a season's worth of grocery delivery: at worst, you'll save $75 on the equivalent price of a Fresh subscription, essentially rendering your Prime membership free for the next year.
Save on Non-groceries
Amazon Fresh isn't just about local groceries – their unique position as a marketplace for international retailers and local businesses alike allows them to offer home delivery of a variety of objects. Televisions, cameras, baby-related accessories, sporting goods... there are over 100,000 different items available through Amazon Fresh that aren't food-related, all available with the same low prices found in Amazon's normal marketplace.
If you're looking for a television or other large order, this could be a great option: delivering fragile and valuable objects to your front door via delivery truck, rather than leaving it up to the slower, more treacherous delivery options of traditional shipping services (for example, if you're facing a hard drive crash, Amazon Fresh can get a new one to your door in a matter of hours, without an overnight shipping cost of $100 or more attached to it).
Amazon Prime + free delivery = happiness
Having a Prime Fresh membership comes with all the benefits of having a regular Prime membership: that means free two-day shipping on any order, and access to Amazon Instant and their growing library of movies and television shows. It also gives shoppers access to their Kindle rental program, with one free rental a month from their selection of hundreds of thousands of books. Sure, this isn't the reason why most people will join Prime Fresh, but there's no denying the value: those who shop on Amazon frequently can easily save upwards of $200 on shipping a year alone.
Save on in-store prices
Amazon Fresh's well-organized, simple-to-navigate site makes comparing food prices a simple matter. There are numerous reports that the average price of groceries through Fresh are 10-15% higher than in normal grocery stores, but it varies wildly from item to item. With the Sunday circulars in your hand, shoppers can pick and choose what they'll get from Amazon Fresh, picking only the items that are cheaper than visiting the store. It may not make Fresh a one-stop option for all grocery needs, but it ensures that everything bought through Amazon is the freshest it can be - and with an Amazon Fresh promo code, the cheapest.
Use Amazon.com Visa for Savings and Rewards
Like many other marketplaces, Amazon has their own store-specific credit card, which comes with some valuable extra benefits for shopping. First, it awards double points (100 points = $1.00 in rewards) for non-Amazon purchases at gas stations, drugstores, and restaurants, all of which can be redeemed on your next Amazon purchase. The Amazon.com Visa also awards triple points on anything bought through Amazon, which will add up quickly over time for frequent shoppers (especially those who utilize the Subscribe & Save monthly deliveries).
Best of all, Amazon awards your account with a $30 gift card after your application is processed and approved - which often happens within minutes or hours after submission, and can be applied instantly to your next purchase. And with no annual fee, it's a great credit card for students or consumers looking to avoid some of the more frustrating credit card expenses.
