Amazon Prime in Singapore: everything a subscription gets you
Amazon may have started off as an online bookstore, but it has grown to become one of the largest tech companies in the world. Amongst everything Amazon does globally, by far its biggest (and most well known) consumer-facing business is its online shopping site. And a huge part of that is the company's Amazon Prime subscription service.
While Amazon made its presence felt in Singapore in July 2017, it was via the Amazon Prime Now app. It wasn't until 2019 that the retail giant launched its Amazon.sg online marketplace, bringing a whole load of new products for savvy Singaporean shoppers. Along with it came the Amazon Prime subscription service that, like its counterpart in other more established markets, gave members a range of benefits for a flat monthly fee of just SG$2.99 .
That small fee opens up a whole world of perks for Prime members, all of which are Amazon-specific. So, what’s included? In a nutshell, if you sign up for Amazon Prime in Singapore, you’ll get:
- Free, one-day delivery on all domestic Prime eligible products
- Free two-hour delivery on several eligible orders of SG$60 or more
- Free standard delivery on all international purchases (i.e. those shipped and sold by Amazon US)
- Access to Prime Video and Prime Gaming (formally called Twitch)
- Early access to discounts and deals
- Big savings on Amazon Prime Day
What is Amazon Prime?
To put it simply, Amazon Prime is an all-in-one subscription service that offers members a range of benefits for a monthly (or annual) fee.
Its main appeal is that it offers Prime members fast and free delivery on many purchases, plus access to the company’s Prime Video streaming services that offers a vast library of movies and TV shows.
Prime members also get exclusive early access to select deals and offers – called Lightning Deals that are available for a short duration – and get to participate in a members-only annual sale called Prime Day (more on this later).
In other countries, a Prime subscription also includes free access to Amazon's Prime Reading service, a certain amount of storage for videos and photos, and access to Amazon's music streaming service called Prime Music.
However, countries with these added benefits also pay more... much, much more. For example, Amazon Prime in the US includes free shipping on millions of items, same-day delivery (even two-hour delivery in some cases) and access to its video and music streaming services, unlimited ebooks and audiobooks, and unlimited photo storage. However, to get all the goods and services Amazon promises in its Prime package across the Pacific, American customers pay US$12.99 a month (US$119 a year).
How much does the Prime service cost in Singapore?
Singapore has one of the cheapest Prime membership costs of any market Amazon operates in. For just SG$2.99/month, it's good value for anyone making several purchases on the online marketplace, particularly if it includes getting your groceries and household essentials delivered to your door on a regular basis.
As is customary with all of Amazon’s subscription services, there’s a 30-day free trial on offer. If you aren’t happy with the Prime service, you’ll need to manually cancel your membership before the 30-day trial ends or you will be charged the full monthly fee the following month.
What do Singaporean Prime members get?
Amazon has brought the promise of free delivery for its Singaporean Prime members – importantly that applies to both domestic and international purchases, albeit those marked with the 'Prime' logo depicted as a tick mark beside the pricing information of a product.
Prime eligible products can be anything that's sold and shipped directly by Amazon Singapore, Amazon US (in the international store section of the site) or a third-party vendor. So, if you buy something that's Prime eligible, you won't be charged for delivery, no matter how little or how much your final order costs.
Note that if the "Prime eligible" label is not visible, speedy and/or free delivery is not an option even if you are a Prime member.
Prime members also get exclusive early access to Lightning Deals (Amazon’s limited-time deals that vanish within hours of going live), typically seeing them live on site about 30 minutes before anyone else can.
Alongside those shopping benefits, there’s a couple of complementary digital-media subscriptions that are included for free with Prime:
Amazon Prime Video | Free
Access to Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service comes as part of the package. If you’re a Prime Member you can watch some excellent TV shows like American Gods and The Man in the High Castle, or enjoy blockbuster movies or settle down for some classic cinema.
Prime Gaming | Free
It was previously called Twitch but has now been rebranded to Prime Gaming, bringing it in line with the other Amazon services. There's no change to platform itself – it's still a video site dedicated to watching and live-streaming games and still offers members free game content, savings on games, and free games each month. For gamers, having a dedicated platform that doesn't cost extra is a great boon.
It is also important to note that, unlike other markets, in Singapore you cannot sign up for the aforementioned services as a standalone. For example, you cannot sign up for just Prime Video. If you do, it will still cost you SG$2.99 per month and get you all the Prime perks there are.
How to cancel your Amazon Prime membership
If your Amazon subscription has past its prime (pun intended), whether it be during your 30-day free trial or later, you can cancel at any time.
Cancelling Amazon Prime free trial
If you're still within the 30-day free trial, hover over the 'Your Account' button in the top right corner of your browser, and select 'Your Prime Membership' from the dropdown menu. Then click on 'Cancel Free Trial' or 'Do Not Continue' on the left-hand side of your browser window.
Our suggestion would be to go with 'Do Not Continue' as you’ll be able to keep using Amazon Prime until the end of your free trial period, after which your membership will end. The payment card that you provided details for when starting you trial won’t be charged in this case.
Cancelling a paid Amazon Prime membership
In the case of a paid membership, head to 'Your Prime Membership' as described above and, this time, click 'End Membership' on the left hand side of the page. If you haven’t used your Amazon Prime benefits like free delivery or Prime Video (this might be the case if you accidentally let your free trial overrun), then you will be eligible for a full refund.
Even if you’ve used some of Amazon Prime’s features, but not all, you may still be eligible for a partial refund based on your use.
Can you keep Prime Video?
In Singapore, you can't turn your existing Prime subscription to just a Prime Video one. It's part of the full package and, if you cancel your Prime account, you lose access to Prime Video as well.
What is Amazon Prime Day
The simple answer is that it's Amazon's take on Black Friday, held each year to celebrate the company's anniversary. It has typically been a 24-hour shopping spree exclusively for Prime members, but the duration of Prime Day has been increasing and the last two Prime Days lasted 48 hours.
Each Prime Day sale sees thousands of products discounted, bringing a lot of savings for Prime members across several categories.
Prime Day 2020 was a unique event – not only was much later in the year than expected (held in October as opposed to July), it was also kicked off on a Tuesday instead of the traditional start day of Monday. Amazon Prime Day 2021 brought back a little normalcy, although it was held earlier in the year in June. We wait with bated breath to see what the next Prime Day will bring.
In the meantime, Amazon Singapore continues to offer its daily deals online.
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