How Much Does Amazon Prime Subscription Cost?

Updated on June 24, 2026 | Written by Alec Pow
This article was researched using 6 sources. See our methodology and corrections policy.

Amazon Prime costs $14.99 per month or $139 per year in the United States. Paying yearly is the cheaper route if you keep the membership all year, because 12 monthly payments add up to $179.88. That means the annual plan saves $40.88 before taxes.

Prime Video can also be bought by itself for $8.99 per month, but that is not the same as a full Prime membership. Prime Video now includes ads unless you add Prime Video Ultra, which costs $4.99 per month in the U.S. Prime Access costs $6.99 per month for eligible customers, and Prime for Young Adults costs $7.49 per month after a 6-month trial.

So the real answer depends on which Amazon plan you mean. Standard Prime is still the familiar shopping, shipping, streaming, reading, music, photo, and deals bundle. Prime Video is just streaming. Prime Business is a separate business product. And several perks people assume are included, such as Kindle Unlimited and Amazon Music Unlimited, are actually separate paid subscriptions.

How Much Does Amazon Prime Subscription Cost?

Jump to sections

The standard U.S. Amazon Prime membership is $14.99 (at $30 per hour, earning that amount would take about 30 minutes, before taxes) per month or $139 per year. Amazon’s own customer service page lists the current Prime membership fee at $14.99 monthly or $139 annually, with Prime Video available separately for $8.99 monthly.

Here is the clean price math:

The annual plan is the better deal if you know you will keep Prime for at least 10 months. If you only use it for Prime Day, holiday shopping, or a few heavy-order months, monthly billing may be cheaper.

Monthly or yearly

Monthly Prime looks cheaper at checkout, but it costs more over a full year.

• Monthly plan: $14.99 (about 30 minutes at $30 per hour) × 12 = $179.88/year
• Annual plan: $139/year
• Yearly savings: $40.88

That means the annual plan is effectively about $11.58 per month. If you know you will use Prime all year, annual billing is the easy choice. If you are testing Prime, moving, traveling, or only shopping during a short window, monthly billing can still make sense.

A practical rule: if you keep Prime for 9 months at $14.99, you pay $134.91. One more month pushes you past the annual plan.

Prime Video is not the simple no-ads answer

Prime Video is included with a standard Prime membership, but Prime Video movies and shows include ads unless you pay for the ad-free upgrade. The old article treated Prime Video-only as if it were the no-ads option. That is no longer the right framing.

Amazon says Prime Video’s ad-free subscription is now Prime Video Ultra in the U.S. and costs $4.99 per month. The Ultra plan also adds higher streaming allowances, including up to five concurrent streams, up to 100 downloads, and exclusive access to 4K/UHD streaming where available.

The cleaner breakdown:

For someone who only watches Prime Video and never shops at Amazon, the standalone $8.99 plan can be enough. For someone who also uses shipping, Prime Day, Prime Reading, Amazon Photos, or Amazon Music Prime, the full Prime membership is usually the more complete comparison.

The cheaper Prime plans

Amazon has two major discounted consumer plans that deserve real space in the article.

Prime Access

Prime Access costs $6.99 per month for eligible customers. Amazon says it offers a 50% Prime membership discount for eligible EBT and government-assistance recipients.

This is not a smaller version of Prime. It gives eligible customers access to the full Prime membership at the discounted monthly rate. The catch is eligibility. The customer has to verify participation in a qualifying program or meet the income-verification path Amazon accepts.

Prime for Young Adults

Prime for Young Adults is the updated framing for the old student-style discount. Amazon’s signup page says eligible students and 18-to-24-year-olds get a 6-month trial, then renew at $7.49 per month.

This plan is one of the strongest Prime deals if you qualify. It is half the monthly cost of regular Prime after the trial, and it can include the same core Prime benefits.

What about seniors and military members?

Do not list a standing senior or military Prime discount unless Amazon is running a specific verified promotion. The safer statement is that some seniors may qualify for Prime Access if they meet the assistance or income-verification requirements, but Amazon does not need to have a separate age-only senior plan for that to be true.

What the Prime fee buys

Prime is not just a shipping subscription anymore, but shipping is still the benefit most people feel first. Amazon’s benefit page says Prime members receive delivery, shopping, streaming, reading, and other benefits.

The core bundle usually includes:

• Fast, free delivery on eligible items.
• Prime Video, with ads unless Ultra is added.
• Prime Music, which is different from Amazon Music Unlimited.
• Prime Reading, a rotating library of ebooks, magazines, comics, and more.
• Amazon Photos, including unlimited full-resolution photo storage for Prime members.
• Prime Gaming, with rotating games, in-game content, and Twitch-related perks.
• Prime Day and member deals, including access to Amazon’s biggest deal events.
• Try Before You Buy for eligible fashion items, when available.

Some benefits vary by location, item eligibility, account status, and the part of Amazon you are using. Treat Prime as a bundle, not as a promise that every order will arrive tomorrow or every Amazon service is free.

The shipping math

Prime saves the most money for people who place small or frequent Amazon orders. Without Prime, Amazon still offers free delivery on many eligible orders, but shoppers have to meet a minimum threshold.

Amazon explains that non-Prime customers can get free delivery by spending at least $35 per eligible Amazon order. Delivery can also take longer than Prime shipping.

That creates the real break-even question:

• If you often place small orders under $35, Prime can prevent add-on purchases you did not actually need.
• If you usually buy in larger planned orders, the free-shipping threshold may cover a lot of your needs without Prime.
• If you need same-day or one-day eligible delivery often, Prime may be worth more than the shipping dollar amount alone.

Prime members in many U.S. areas can also get free same-day delivery on eligible items when the order meets a local minimum. Amazon reported that free Same-Day Delivery is available for Prime members who spend $25 or more at checkout in most U.S. areas, with minimums varying by location.

What still costs extra

This is where many Prime articles get soft. Prime includes a lot, but it does not include everything with an Amazon logo.

Common extra costs include:

• Prime Video Ultra: $4.99/month extra for the ad-free Prime Video upgrade.
• Prime Video Channels: HBO, Starz, MGM+, Paramount+, and other channel subscriptions cost extra.
• Amazon Music Unlimited: separate from Amazon Music Prime. Amazon’s music FAQ says Prime members can join Amazon Music Unlimited for $11.99/month or $119/year.
• Kindle Unlimited: separate from Prime Reading. Amazon says Kindle Unlimited costs $11.99 per month plus taxes in the U.S.
• Audible Premium Plus: not included with Prime, although Prime members sometimes see special Audible trials or offers.
• Grocery delivery fees or minimums: can vary by area, store, and order size.
• One-time purchases and rentals: Prime Video rentals and purchases are not included just because you have Prime.

You might also like our articles about the cost of an HBO Max subscription, Kindle Unlimited, or Constant Contact.

Now household-based

Amazon no longer supports the old Prime Invitee setup. The Prime sharing page says Prime benefit sharing through the Invitee program ended on October 1, 2025, and Amazon Family replaced it.

That matters because old advice about sharing Prime with someone outside your home is no longer reliable. Prime sharing is now much more tied to a household setup, not a loose split-the-bill arrangement between friends or relatives in different homes.

For cost purposes, this changes the savings math. A household may still reduce the effective cost by sharing eligible benefits, but the article should not suggest that Prime can be casually shared with several people outside the home.

Prime Business is not a $10.99 add-on

The old article listed Amazon Business Prime at $10.99/month. That should be removed.

Current U.S. Prime Business pricing is built around yearly business tiers. Amazon Business lists Duo as free for sole proprietors with a Prime membership, Essentials at $179/year, Small at $499/year, Medium at $1,299/year, and Enterprise for larger organizations.

Unless the reader is buying for a business, Business Prime should not be mixed into the main consumer Prime answer.

Prime Day

Prime Day is one of the easiest reasons to justify a short Prime membership. Amazon says Prime Day 2026 runs from June 23 through June 26 and features millions of exclusive deals for Prime members.

That does not mean every Prime Day purchase is a bargain. It means Prime can be worth buying for one month if you already planned a large purchase and can confirm the price is genuinely lower.

A healthy way to use Prime Day:

• Make a list before the sale starts.
• Check price history where possible.
• Compare against Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Costco, and brand websites.
• Cancel monthly Prime after the shopping window if you do not need it.
• Do not buy random items just to “get value” from the membership.

Prime is only a savings tool if it changes the price of things you were already going to buy.

Real cost examples

Example 1: Year-round Amazon shopper

A household orders from Amazon two or three times a month, watches Prime Video sometimes, uses Prime Day, and stores photos.

• Monthly plan for 12 months: $179.88
• Annual plan: $139
• Better choice: annual Prime, unless the household plans to cancel for several months.

The yearly plan wins because the membership is being used across shopping, streaming, and storage.

Example 2: Streaming-only user

A person does not shop much on Amazon and only wants Prime Video.

• Full Prime monthly: $14.99/month
• Prime Video standalone: $8.99/month
• Prime Video standalone plus Ultra: $13.98/month

The streaming-only choice is cheaper than full Prime if shipping and shopping perks do not matter. But the gap becomes small once Ultra is added.

Example 3: Young adult who qualifies

A 21-year-old qualifies for Prime for Young Adults.

• Trial period: $0 for 6 months
• After trial: $7.49/month
• Compared with standard monthly Prime: saves $7.50/month

This is a strong deal if the user remembers the renewal date and still wants Prime after the trial.

Example 4: Low-income household that qualifies for Prime Access

An eligible customer uses Prime Access.

• Prime Access: $6.99/month
• Standard Prime monthly: $14.99/month
• Monthly savings: $8
• Yearly savings compared with monthly Prime: $96

Prime Access can make the membership easier to justify if the household already shops at Amazon.

Example 5: Person who only needs Prime for holiday shopping

A shopper needs fast shipping in November and December, then does not use Amazon much.

• Two months of monthly Prime: $29.98
• Annual Prime: $139
• Better choice: monthly, then cancel before renewal.

This is why the cheapest plan is not always the annual plan. The right answer depends on behavior.

When Prime is worth the $139

Prime is usually worth it when you use at least two or three parts of the bundle. Shipping alone can justify it for frequent small orders, but the stronger case is shipping plus video, Prime Day, photo storage, Prime Reading, or grocery and same-day delivery where available.

It is probably worth it if:

• You order from Amazon several times a month.
• You often need small orders below the $35 free-shipping threshold.
• You use Prime Video and do not pay for too many overlapping streaming services.
• You shop Prime Day or holiday deals with a planned list.
• You use Amazon Photos, Prime Reading, Prime Gaming, or Music Prime.
• You qualify for Prime Access or Prime for Young Adults.

It may not be worth it if:

• You order from Amazon only a few times a year.
• You usually hit the free-shipping threshold without Prime.
• You only want streaming and Prime Video standalone is enough.
• You rarely watch Prime Video because you already pay for several other services.
• You keep Prime out of habit but do not use the benefits.

How to stop overpaying for Prime

The easiest mistake is leaving Prime on autopilot when your usage changed.

Ways to keep the cost under control:

• Use annual billing only if you keep Prime most of the year. Otherwise monthly can be cheaper.
• Check whether you qualify for Prime Access or Prime for Young Adults. Those discounts are too large to ignore.
• Pause or cancel during slow months. Prime is not a contract.
• Use the $35 non-Prime free-shipping threshold strategically. If you can wait and bundle orders, you may not need Prime year-round.
• Do not pay twice for reading or music. Prime Reading and Amazon Music Prime are included, but Kindle Unlimited and Amazon Music Unlimited cost extra.
• Compare Prime Video standalone against full Prime. If you only watch video, full Prime may be unnecessary.
• Use Amazon Family only where it fits the rules. Do not build savings math around old Invitee sharing.
• Use Prime Visa rewards only if you pay the card in full. Amazon says eligible Prime cardmembers can earn 5% back at Amazon and Whole Foods Market, but interest can erase the value quickly.

Amazon’s Prime terms also matter if you forget to cancel. Amazon says customers who cancel within 3 business days of signing up or converting from a free trial to a paid membership can receive a full membership-fee refund. After that, refund treatment depends on the account and benefit use, so cancel before renewal if you already know you do not want another billing period.

Prices and plan details in this article reflect U.S. public Amazon pricing and related Amazon pages available in June 2026. Amazon can change fees, trial terms, included perks, sharing rules, and add-on prices. Confirm current pricing in your Amazon account before subscribing, renewing, or canceling.