An Amazon shopping trick

I alluded to this the other day, but some people might find it worth mentioning in its own right. As most people know, Amazon offers free shipping on orders over $25. And if you’re buying something small, shipping can end up being a large chunk of the total bill.

So when buying something sold directly by Amazon or fulfilled by Amazon, you can save the shipping by building a shopping list, if you can put off the purchase a little while.

When you see an item you want to save for later, look for the “Wish List” link on the right. Click the dropdown arrow next to the word “Wish List,” and you’ll see a link called “Shopping List.” Click that, and Amazon will save the link for you.

The next time you’re making a purchase, hover over the “Your Account” menu and click “Wish List.” Then click the “Shopping List” link on the left. Instead of padding a $24 order with stuff you won’t use, pad the order with something you actually needed, but just not immediately.

I’ve been using this trick a lot the last few weeks, as I do my Christmas shopping.

Note that this trick doesn’t work with most third-party Amazon sellers. If you see “Ships from and sold by the Frobozz Magic Secondhand Store Company” (or similar) on the item listing, it doesn’t count toward your total for shipping purposes, either for Amazon Prime or the over-$25 Super Saver shipping. Third-party sellers just use Amazon for billing and listing. Buying from them supports small businesses and sometimes is cheaper than buying from Amazon itself, but keep the caveat in mind.

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One thought on “An Amazon shopping trick

  • December 2, 2012 at 1:07 pm
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    Ohfercryinoutloud, I never noticed that!

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