Amazon customers who don’t subscribe to Amazon Prime will have to buy more if they want free shipping.
The minimum threshold for free shipping on Amazon for non-Prime customers increased to $35 in some markets, as earlier spotted by CNBC. Previously, shoppers had to spend only $25 to quality for free shipping.
“We continually evaluate our offerings and make adjustments based on those assessments,” an Amazon spokesperson said Tuesday via email. “We’re currently testing a $35 minimum for non-Prime customers to qualify for free shipping. Prime members continue to enjoy free delivery on over 300 million items, with tens of millions of items available for free Same or One-Day Delivery.”
Amazon Prime currently costs $15 a month or $139 annually. The company said in 2021 that it has more than 200 million Prime subscribers.
This isn’t the first time Amazon has changed its minimum. Back in 2013, the retail giant made a similar jump from the long-time $25 minimum for free shipping to $35. Then raised it again in 2016 to $49. In 2017, Amazon went back to the $25 minimum after other retailers began offering free shipping.
The increase in free shipping comes before Amazon’s second Prime Day sale of the year. The deals event will happen sometime in October with expected discounts happening all across the site.
