How to Save Money on Amazon: 15 Ways That Work In 2022 (2024)

If you’re one of the millions of people who shop on Amazon every month, you already know the site offers consistently great deals on almost everything under the sun.

What you may notknow is that you can maximize your savings by using a few simple tips, tricks and strategies.

This article lists 15 easy ways to save on Amazon that can help you spend less and stretch every penny of your shopping budget.

The first rule of shopping on Amazon is to remember that while the site does often have the lowest prices, it’s notthe only game in town.

You can frequently find better deals elsewhere with a little bit of digging, especially when you’re buying products sold by third-party sellers rather than by Amazon itself.

That’s why it’s helpful to use a free comparison tool like Capital One Shoppingor Honey, which can help you check for lower prices at other merchants.

These are just two of many browser extensions that do the work of price checking for you. They also search for coupons that apply to your purchase and test them to see if they’re legit, saving you not only money but also precious time otherwise spent combing through junk codes on coupon websites.

Honey is great for comparing prices between third-party Amazon sellers, but Capital One Shopping has a few additional benefits, such as loyalty rewards (called Credits, which you can redeem for gift cards) and price-drop notification emails.

You can learn more about how it works in our Capital One Shopping review.

Once added, you’ll see a green “S” followed by a period (S.) in the extension section of your web browser. When browsing on Amazon, the Capital One Shopping logo will appear next to the price, with a note telling you that Amazon either does or does not have the lowest price in the Capital One Shopping database at that exact moment (see the screenshot below).

It’s a great way to avoid overpaying, and we think it’s a must-use for frequent Amazon shoppers.

Learn more about it in our Capital One Shopping review or add the free browser extension.

#2. Save 3.25% by Using the Fluz App

Fluz is the only cash-back app we’ve found that works for all items on Amazon (not just Amazon-branded products and devices).

To use it, you have to add one extra step to your purchase process: instead of paying Amazon directly, you buy a digital gift card from Fluz in the exact amount of your purchase, then you immediately use that gift card to check out.

How much you can save depends on the payment type you use within Fluz. These are the app’s Amazon cash-back rates as of December 2022:

• Apple Pay: 0.25%
• PayPal: 0.25%
• Credit Card: 0.25%
• Debit Card: 1.75%
• Bank Account: 3.25%

Cash-back is available at more than 400 merchants — including major retailers, restaurants and supermarkets — and the money you earn credits to your account instantly.

Sign up for Fluz or learn more in our Fluz review.

Note: Drop Rewards also pays cash-back on Amazon purchases, and it’s even easier to use than Fluz — just link your payment cards and activate the offer once per week to earn. Unfortunately, the cash-back rate is very low (less than 1%). Still, it’s an option if you shop on Amazon frequently and don’t want to deal with the extra step required to use Fluz. Learn more in our Drop Rewards review.

#3. Use an Amazon Price Tracker

Have you ever ordered something on Amazon only to see the price drop a few days later? That price volatility is because both Amazon and its marketplace sellers utilize dynamic pricing that relies on artificial intelligence to try and find the optimal balance between supply and demand, automatically adjusting product prices in real time.

While a price tracker can’t completely eliminate buyer’s remorse, installing a price-tracking browser extension like CamelCamelCamel or Keepa can help you determine the overall price range for a given product, as well as give you valuable insight into the optimal times to make a purchase.

For example, you might see that the price of an item typically drops by 10% near the end of the month, or that it goes down on the weekends. Identifying these patterns, and holding off from purchasing when it makes sense, can save you significant amounts of money.

Here are two price trackers worth checking out:

CamelCamelCamel.com.This price tracker app (known as The Camelizer) works on Chrome and Firefox. When you’re on an Amazon product page, simply click the camel logo in your browser to pull up a chart of how that product’s pricing has changed over time.

The Camelizer breaks out Amazon prices, third-party sellers of new goods, and third-party sellers of used goods, so that you can compare the three product classes appropriately. You can change the length of time of the graph and set price notifications to alert you via email when an item falls below a certain threshold.

Here’s what the graph looks like:

Keepa: Keepa is very similar to CamelCamelCamel. The chart is a little easier to use, since it’s embedded within the Amazon page as opposed to a dropdown box, and it’s also compatible with Opera and Edge.

There are many great money-saving features built right into Amazon. Knowing about these programs can save you solid chunks of money, especially when it comes to household items and grocery staples.

Amazon Coupons

Just like regular coupons you’d clip from the paper, Amazon promotes certain products (which rotate periodically) via coupons. Most Amazon users know that when a coupon is available for an item, a prompt to “clip” it will appear below the price. But fewer people know about the site’s coupon portal, where you can browse the full list of discounts available at any given time. If you’re willing to brand swap, starting here can be a great way to cut down your order total.

Subscribe & Save

The Amazon Subscribe & Save program allows you to schedule automatic recurring deliveries for items you purchase regularly, and gives you between 5% and 15% off the retail price for each shipment.

Here’s the thing: you can change the frequency of your deliveries to as little as every six months, and you can cancel your subscription any time — even immediately after placing your order.

Note that when you choose to Subscribe & Save, the first shipment doesn’t automatically go out the day you place the order. However, you can click on “change” next to the delivery date and opt to receive the item ASAP (as shown in the screenshot below).

We love Amazon’s Subscribe & Save program for a couple of reasons.

First, it’s a great way to get a discounted price on everyday items that need to be replenished.

But second, you compound your savings by avoiding the need to pay a premium for these items at drugstores or gas stations when you forget to buy them and run out.

TIP: When you want to cancel your subscriptions, just click “Accounts & Lists” and then choose “My Subscribe & Save.” Hover over the subscription you want to cancel, and click “Edit.” Click “Cancel Subscription,” and then “Confirm Cancellation.”

#5. Shop Amazon’s Sale Sections

Like most brick-and-mortar stores, Amazon has a clearance section (several, actually). Check out these lesser-known areas of the website to discover some killer deals.

Amazon Warehouse Deals

Items in the Amazon Warehouse section have been returned or refurbished and are sold at a discount. Often they’re like new, but are open-box or lack the original packaging. All Warehouse items have been inspected and graded, and Amazon’s 30-day return policy still applies — even on less-than-perfect items.

Amazon Renewed

Amazon Renewed is a collection of certified refurbished products that are sold directly by Amazon and a limited number of approved third-party sellers — often at deep discounts from the item’s list price.

All products within this category are backed by a 90-day satisfaction guarantee (even products sold by third-party sellers). This guarantee covers defective items, but it also allows you to return Renewed products for any reason within this window.

Additionally, Amazon Premium Renewed products are backed by an even more generous one-year satisfaction guarantee.

Amazon Outlet

Just like a typical outlet store, Amazon Outlet products are overstocks that are offered at deep discounts of up to 50% (and occasionally more). They span all categories and are available from both Amazon, and third-party sellers.

Today’s Deals

There are several daily deal types on Amazon, and you can view them all on this portal.

• The “Deals of the Day” section includes single (or closely related) items that are discounted for a 24-hour period.
• “Savings and Sales” is a selection of discounts and promotions all across Amazon.
• “Lightning Deals” are single items that are discounted for a specific time period, or until a determined amount of discounted stock runs out.

#6. Take Full Advantage of Your Prime Member Benefits

Many Prime members aren’t aware of just how many benefits are available, and taking advantage of the included services below may allow you to cut subscriptions or costs elsewhere. For example, if you don’t watch a lot of TV, having Prime Video might mean you can live without a Netflix subscription.

Here’s what’s included:

• Prime Videooffers thousands of TV shows and movies, including original content and new releases. It also has one of the better collections of foreign films among streaming services.
• Amazon Musichas over 50 million songs available for streaming. However, Prime members only have access to about 2 million of those without upgrading to an “Unlimited” plan ($9.99 per month). Still, if you’re someone who doesn’t dig too deep into the music archives, 2 million tracks is probably more than sufficient and negates the need for an Apple Music, Spotify or Pandora subscription.
• Amazon Driveoffers 5 gigabytes of cloud storage space free with Prime membership, as well as unlimited photo storage. This should be more than sufficient in most use cases, potentially allowing you to downgrade or cancel your Dropbox, Box or iCloud subscription.
• Prime Readingis a rotating library of over 1,000 e-books and magazines. Some e-books even have Audible narration, so users can switch between the Kindle and audiobook versions without losing their place. This benefit can be shared among household members.
• Grocery delivery: Time is valuable — whether you use it for making money, relaxing, or putting in quality time with your family. Save more of it by getting groceries delivered. Amazon Fresh delivery is free for all orders over $35.
• No-rush shipping: One of the key benefits of paying for an Amazon Prime membership is the free expedited shipping on every order. But you also have the option of choosing no-rush shipping instead. If you do, you’ll get credit for use on Amazon digital items (like Amazon Prime Video purchases and Kindle ebooks). Most of the time, you’ll only earn $1 in credit per delivery — but this can add up to substantial savings if you regularly purchase digital products on the platform.

Get $15 in Amazon credit(off of orders of $25 or more) when you back up your photosusing the Amazon Photos app. This offer is good for Prime members only. Check hereto see if you’re eligible.

#7. Opt In to Amazon Family

Amazon Familyis included with Prime membership, although you have to opt in to the program. It provides unique benefits, especially for families with children. Check out these perks for Amazon Family members.

• Personalized deals sent to you via email: These include exclusive deals and coupons, along with product suggestions and parenting tips. You can set your children’s ages in your account for personalized product recommendations.
• Up to 20% off diapers and baby food subscriptions. Once you’re an Amazon Family participant, click “subscribe now” on applicable items. You must have five subscriptions arriving to one address on the same day to take advantage of the discount (which unfortunately excludes baby formula).
• 15% off baby registry completion discount. If you have a baby registry with Amazon, you can get a 15% discount on any items that you buy after the baby gifts stop coming in (or a 10% discount without Prime membership). The discount is good for purchases of up to $2,000, between 14 days after you create the registry and 60 days before your baby’s arrival date.
• Free baby box. Valued up to $35, Amazon gives you a welcome box for your newborn once you (or gifters) spend $10 on items from your baby registry. Once your registry is eligible, click the “claim now” button on the left side of your baby registry screen.

#8. Save 20% on Wedding Registry Items

If you create a wedding registry on Amazon, you can save 20% (or 10% without Prime) on any un-purchased gifts on your list. This discount is good for a one-time order of up to $1,500 (or $1,000 for non-Prime customers).

The registry completion discount will be sent to your email within seven days of your event. You then have up to 90 days after the wedding to use your discount.

It’s worth noting that this offer is only good for items sold by Amazon and does not apply to products offered by third-party sellers.

#9. Shop With Free Amazon Gift Cards

Paying with a free gift card is the best way to pay! Here are several easy ways to earn free Amazon gift cards.

• Fetchand Ibotta: Both of these free apps allow you to scan your receipts from major retailers and earn cash-back or gift cards. They’re among the easiest ways to save money on the things you’re already buying.
• Swagbucks: There are many ways to earn through Swagbucks, including surveys, online games, internet searches, and shopping online. Use your points for Amazon gift cards, or to get cash via PayPal. Also, keep an eye out for “sales” on gift cards, where you can get a better exchange rate for your points.
• Survey Junkie: This highly-rated market research company will pay you to take online surveys, and you can redeem your points for Amazon gift cards.

#10. Use a Cash-Back Credit Card

Using a cash-back credit card can be a fantastic way to squeeze more value out of your Amazon purchases. The optimal card for Amazon is the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card, which offers a whopping 5% cash-back on all Amazon and Whole Foods orders.

If you do use a cash-back credit card, be sure to pay off the full balance each month. The cash-back you earn will pale in comparison to the interest you pay on a credit card balance.

#11. Get Amazon Prime Membership for Less

Amazon Student offers Prime memberships at a discount for college students with a valid .edu email address, and those with Medicaid or SNAP EBT cards also qualify for reduced fees (just $5.99 monthly). This price is good for up to 48 months, and you must recertify every year.

#12. Avoid Buying Junk With Fakespot

Without the benefit of being able to touch and feel products, it can be difficult to separate the great deals from the cheap junk on Amazon.

Fakespotis a website and browser extension to help you spot counterfeit products sold under seemingly legitimate Amazon listings.

The app also analyzes product reviews on Amazon and other sites, so you can get a sense for whether that five-star rating comes from actual customers.

#13. Try Before You Buy With Prime Wardrobe

A big drawback of shopping for clothes online is the cost and hassle of returning items that don’t fit. Often, people end up wasting money on return shipping, or keep items they might not actually wear simply because of the cost and hassle of sending them back.

Prime Wardrobe, which is free for Prime members, helps you avoid that by letting you try on items before you actually pay for them.

After you place a Prime Wardrobe order, you have seven days to decide if you want to keep one, none, or all of the items you chose.

Best of all, shipping is free both ways.

#14. Get Free Products to Review

You may be able to get free products by scoring an invite to Amazon Vine, a program that gives top reviewers free products in exchange for their honest online reviews.

Those selected to participate in Vine are usually active reviewers who consistently have their reviews rated “helpful” by other customers.

If your goal is to join the program, start reviewing everything you purchase on the site — from bell peppers to ball pumps — and make sure you’re providing commentary that helps other people better understand whether they should purchase the product.

If you’re interested in reviewing products in general, check out our list of the best product testing websites.

Editor’s note: The Chinese e-commerce platform Temu also offers many opportunities to get free products for review. Check out our Temu review to learn more about how it works.

While Amazon almost always has lower prices than its competitors, a little patience can score you tremendous savings. The company offers deep discounts on a wide swath of its catalog on two key shopping holidays: Amazon Prime Day (held in July to celebrate the company’s birthday) and Black Friday/Cyber Monday (the lead-in to the Christmas shopping season).

Prime Day savings average 8-15%, depending on the item category — but they can be much higher on specific items. Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals are similar, but they’re offered on an even wider selection of products.

Obviously, not every purchase can be deferred. But if it’s May and you’re thinking about buying a new TV or laptop, waiting a couple of months can potentially save you hundreds of dollars.

Bonus: Shop on Woot

Woot is an Amazon-owned closeout platform that offers deep discounts and flash sales, primarily on overstocked items. The deals on Woot change regularly, but the savings can be immense if the site happens to have what you’re looking for.

As an Amazon Prime member, you’ll get free shipping on Woot orders, though they can take longer to arrive than the one-day or two-day delivery you’re used to when ordering directly from Amazon.

Strategies That No Longer Work

Below is a list of strategies for saving money on Amazon that no longer work. RIP to these well-loved programs and tactics.

• Amazon Assistant: Amazon once had its own browser extension that offered many of the same features as Capital One Shopping, but it was discontinued in 2023.
• Discount search code: This used to be a brilliant hack for finding deep discounts on products. You would search for a particular product (say, water filters), and then add “&pct-off=30-70” to the end of the search result URL. Doing so would bring up a list of all water filters that were 30-70% off their retail price.
• Capital One Shopping’s price protection: The price protection feature checks for price drops afteryou purchase an item, and requests a refund when the price goes down. This feature actually works great at other eligible retailers, but Amazon discontinued its price protection policy.
• Amazon Bargain Deals: This was a section for deals that cost just $15 or less (including shipping, but it was shut down in 2022. Some categories — such as fashion — still have a bargain deals subcategory.
• Amazon Interest-Free Installments: Amazon has partnered with Affirm to offer installment options, with rates usually between 10-30%. As a result, Amazon’s interest-free payment plans — which allowed you to split your purchase into five equal payments at no charge — have been discontinued.
• Amazon Move Discount:Amazon used to offer a 10% discount on purchases up to $200 before, during, and after your move to a new location. While they honor previously issued coupons, they have discontinued this program. However, the offer is occasionally renewed, so if you plan to move, check to see if they have restarted the promotion.
• Amazon Prime Pantry Multi-Item Discount: Prime Pantry was a bonus feature available to Prime members that cost an additional $4.99 per month. It allowed customers to save 5% when purchasing five pantry items, 10% on 10 items, and 15% on 15 items. Unfortunately, the program (and the discount) were discontinued in 2021.

Frequently Asked Questions About Saving Money on Amazon

How to Saveon Amazon: Final Thoughts

With a little know-how, you can get serious discounts on Amazon’s already great prices.

While some of these savings methods are mutually exclusive — you can’t double-dip and earn cash-back from Rakuten and Honey at the same, for example— many of them can stack.

For instance, you can scan for lower prices with Capital One Shopping, clip an Amazon coupon, subscribe and save, get cash-back through Fluz, and use a gift card or a cash-back credit card.

And while doing so certainly takes a little bit of extra effort, consistently combining these methods can have a huge impact on your overall spending.

As we’ve written elsewhere on the site, initiative is one of the keys to frugal living. It takes time and commitment to utilize these strategies, but they can free up funds to apply to other areas of your budget, like your emergency fund or some other high-priority financial goal.

That, in turn, can give you more freedom to live the life you want — whether that means spending more time with your family, taking more vacations, starting your own business or anything else.

My advice is to think about saving money on Amazon — or elsewhere, for that matter — as part of that framework; as not just something you do passively, but as a part of a strategic effort to improve your overall financial situation so that you can get more of what you want.

*Capital One Shopping compensates us when you sign up for the service using the links we provided.