One Amazon Prime perk ends soon. Here’s what it means for you

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Angela Lang/CNET

Your Prime membership is more than just free two-day shipping on some items that may take weeks from other retailers. There’s also the bonus of Prime Video and Prime Music. But some perks that may save you time and money you might not know about. You may be able to make fewer trips to the pharmacy and malls, for example. 

Best of all, most of your Amazon Prime services are included in the membership cost. But later this month, one will incur a $10 fee (more below). For now, Prime members continue to enjoy grocery deliveries for free (with orders of $35) and even restock pantry items with Amazon Fresh. 

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We’ll break down the best Prime services that can help you make the most of your annual membership cost. And in more Amazon news, several new smart home devices were announced at the fall product launch this week, including the $1,000 robot that puts Alexa on wheels. This story was recently updated. 

Read more: Amazon Prime Video: The best movies to see this week

1. Free Whole Foods delivery (for now)

For now, Amazon offers two-hour delivery of groceries for free. After Oct. 25, you can expect an additional $10 charge for delivery. But if you don’t mind the drive and don’t want to spend the extra money, there are also one-hour pickup windows depending on your location — just remember to check in with the Amazon app to see if you need to enter the store.  

Some other Whole Food perks for Prime members are still sticking around. Blue tags indicate sales exclusive to Prime members, while yellow tags mean an extra 10% off of an item already on sale. This gets you discounts on weekly bestsellers, including produce, packaged goods and beauty products, but note that it excludes alcohol. 

You can still enter your email address, phone number or scan the QR code on your Whole Foods Market app at checkout during your next grocery haul to get exclusive Prime discounts on select products. The few cents saved on items may seem insignificant individually, but savings do add up at the end of the shopping trip. 

2. Free books and magazines 

Prime Reading is your own personal lending library that comes with a Prime membership. With a rotating selection of over 2,500 books and magazines, you can access Prime Reading with the Kindle app on your desktop or portable device or your Kindle e-reader. This Amazon service also lets you share titles with members of your household. Some books in Prime Reading come with Audible narrations so you can multitask while you listen. 

Prime Reading also includes First Reads, which gives members a sneak peek at books before they’re released to the general public. 

Kindle Unlimited is a $10-a-month subscription service separate from an Amazon Prime account. It gives you unlimited access to more than 1 million ebooks and up to three magazine subscriptions on a Kindle device or Kindle app. 

3. Amazon Pharmacy’s two-day delivery 

If you refill at least one prescription on a regular basis and you’re tired of going to the pharmacy, Amazon’s Pharmacy may be a more convenient choice. Plus, Prime members may get lower prices on medicine. Amazon will handle the hassle of transferring prescriptions, and 24/7 pharmaceutical assistance is available. The pharmacy works with most insurance plans, but it is available in 45 states right now.  

4. Prime Wardrobe and personalized styling help

Prime members can skip trips to the mall and order clothes for the next outing with Prime Wardrobe. Here’s how it works: Choose up to eight items — clothes, shoes or accessories. Keep them for up to seven days to see if you like them. Send back what you don’t like for free and only pay for what you keep. Amazon’s Prime Wardrobe is available for men, women, kids and babies. And if you’re looking for a new style or need help deciding, you can try the styling service for personalized help starting at $5 per month. If you’re not sure which clothing or shoes are eligible, look for the Prime Wardrobe icon. 

5. Discounts on preowned products

Amazon Renewed gives you access to products that may have been opened but unused by their original owners — or were refurbished. Amazon assures that these preowned items work and look like new, coming with the Amazon Renewed Guarantee. A variety of products and brands are available, even from premium names like Apple and Vitamix. 

6. Amazon Warehouse discounts

Amazon Warehouse resells millions of like-new or preowned items that have been returned by customers. Some of the products only had their boxes opened by original purchasers before they were sent back, unused, so they’re resold at a discount. While there’s no regular manufacturing warranty on these products, they are backed by Amazon’s 30-day return policy and 90-day renewed item return policy. 

To read more about how you can get the most out of Amazon Warehouse, check out our guide on shopping for the best Amazon Warehouse deals.

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7. Amazon Outlet’s overstocked items

Just like a brick-and-mortar outlet store, but without the gas money. The Amazon Outlet features overstocked items and other products at discounted prices. Like at an outlet, you can find premium brands, items under $10 and products ranging from home furniture and clothing to books and pet supplies. It’s a good place to stay within a budget while being the first owner, unlike some items in the Amazon Warehouse. 

Keep in mind that although the online shopping experience is convenient, just like an outlet, the best deals can take sifting to find. Luckily, you can do it from the couch. 

8. Limited-time Lightning Deals and discounts 

Amazon’s Lightning Deals are a promotion where a product or service is on sale for a short period of time or until it’s sold out. You can find them all throughout the site, but especially on Prime Day and in Today’s Deals. On Prime Day, Lightning Deals are only for Prime members. 

There is one lightning deal per customer until the promotion ends or all the deals are claimed by other shoppers. You can join a waitlist for a deal, but keep in mind that these discounts are extremely time-sensitive, so grab them fast. Unless refreshing the page over and over is your thing, these deals aren’t necessarily the tool to find something specific because of their fleeting nature and limited availability. 

9. 5GB of storage with Amazon Photos

Amazon’s online shoebox for photos and videos offers secure and unlimited full-resolution photo storage plus 5GB of video for Prime members. To use this feature, you can choose to manually or automatically upload media in the Amazon Photos app. You can personalize the displays on Amazon devices like Fire TV, Echo Show and Fire tablets as long as you have the app. There are also ways to create keepsakes using the pictures you upload, such as custom cards and prints. 

With the Family Vault perk, up to five family members can share in the same plan. If you want more beyond what Prime offers, there are paid plans available. If you choose to switch — which can be done anytime — there is a 100GB option for $2 per month and 1TB plan for $7 per month.

10. Gift cards when you trade in used devices

Amazon is boarding the train to sustainability station, and it’s something you can directly benefit from. With Amazon Trade-In, you can send back your used electronics in exchange for Amazon gift cards. Make sure to check on the eligibility of each product — some trade-in options are only available for a limited time.  

For more, here are our picks for the best Alexa devices and which e-reader is right for you.

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