“Free” two-day shipping is starting to look like less of an incredible deal: During a call with investors, Amazon announced it is raising the price of a Prime membership to $119 annually. The cost of a student membership will increase $10, to $59 per year. The changes will go into effect on May 11 for new members, and on June 16 for existing members.
Last week, Jeff Bezos revealed that Amazon Prime has over 100 million members: This means the price hike could mean as much as an extra $2 billion dollars for the company every year.
This is the second big price hike Amazon has introduced since launching Prime in 2005, at $79 per year. The upcoming $20 jump corresponds with the increase that occurred in 2014, when the cost rose to $99 per year. This January, Amazon raised the price of a monthly Prime membership from $10.99 to $12.99. The annual membership is still a more appealing option than the monthly, which would add up to $155.88 a year. Still, if Amazon continues increasing its annual membership by 20% every few years, this gap could be closing.
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As you might expect, members are less than thrilled:
I only got prime for the free 2day shipping, but nothing comes in only 2 days. Cant justify the cost increase. I'm out.
— SBoen (@Crzyk9ldy17) April 27, 2018
I love some Amazon Prime but this is the 2nd price increase in 4 years. It’s gone up a total of $40. It was $79 in 2014, raised to $99 that year Now it will be $119. I use it a lot so I guess the free shipping is worth it & Amazon video but I won’t pay much more than $119 a yr. https://t.co/zAeMgwKcU9
— Heather?? (@Furrville2) April 26, 2018
The company has attributed continuing increases to the cost of new services provided to Prime members, which have far surpassed the original two-day shipping deal. Among the over 25 benefits listed on Amazon’s “About Prime” page are unlimited streaming of Prime Video, which includes Amazon originals, and Prime Music. That’s not to mention access to Prime Day, which has become the Black Friday of the summertime.
Still, it's sad to see Prime's membership fee go above $100. The additional $20 per year is money you could have put towards a new inflatable T-Rex costume or a second emoji gumball machine.
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