Thinking about signing up for Amazon Prime or wondering if your membership is still worth it in 2025? With so many streaming platforms, shopping subscriptions, and rising monthly fees, it’s important to know exactly what you’re getting. Amazon Prime still includes fast shipping and Prime Video, but it also offers gas discounts, exclusive deals, free games, and other perks that many people overlook.
Here’s what’s included with an Amazon Prime subscription in 2025, along with the latest updates to pricing, benefits, and new features you may have missed.
What Is Amazon Prime?
Amazon Prime is a paid membership program that gives subscribers access to exclusive benefits across shopping, streaming, and more. Available in many countries, Prime offers fast and free delivery on millions of items, access to Prime Video and Prime Gaming, special discounts, early access to sales, and additional perks like photo storage and pharmacy savings.
With over 200 million members worldwide, Amazon Prime continues to expand its offerings in 2025, including faster delivery in rural areas, gas discounts in the U.S., and more streaming content than ever before.
How Much is an Amazon Prime Membership in 2025?
With all the benefits, Amazon Prime pricing is more than reasonable. There are several plans to choose from:
| Plan | Monthly Cost | Annual Cost | Who It’s For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prime Standard | $14.99 | $139 | Anyone who wants the benefits of Amazon Prime |
| Prime Student | $7.49 | $69 | Students or young adults between 18-24 |
| Prime Access | $6.99 | N/A | Qualifying government assistance recipients |
- Prime Monthly – $14.44/month
- Prime Annual – $139/year
- Prime Access – $6.99/month (for those on EBT or other eligible government assistance programs)
- Prime Student – $7.49/month (with Amazon Music Unlimited for just $0.99/month)
No matter which plan you choose, you’re eligible for at least a 30-day free trial. Often, you can score one or two free trials per year. However, a full month is a generous trial.
Additionally, you can share your Prime membership with one other adult and up to four children or teens thanks to Amazon Household. The membership fee is the same as Prime Standard.
What is Included With Your Amazon Prime Membership?
Below are the top features of a Prime membership, regardless of which tier you choose.
1. Free Two-Day Shipping (And Sooner)
Items specifically as Prime eligible can arrive in two days. These items are sold by Amazon or a third party but are shipped by Amazon. In 2025, most Prime-eligible items still qualify for free two-day shipping, with many offering one-day or even same-day delivery, depending on your ZIP code.
- Same-day delivery is now available in over 90 U.S. metro areas, including many rural towns Amazon expanded to in late 2024. Availability varies based on location and order time.
- Amazon Pharmacy prescriptions are also eligible for fast, free shipping with Prime.
If you’re not in a rush, you can choose No-Rush Shipping at checkout. It typically takes 2–3 extra days, and you’ll often receive $1 to $3 in digital credit to use on Kindle books, Prime Video rentals, or digital music. In our testing, No-Rush orders usually arrive just one day later than standard.
2. Prime Day and Prime Early Access Deals
Amazon Prime members get exclusive access to extra deals during Prime Day. Here’s what members can expect during the 2025 Amazon Prime Day (July 8-11):
- Exclusive Discounts: Only Prime members can access the majority of Prime Day deals, including major discounts on Amazon devices, electronics, home goods, and more.
- Early Access: Members can shop Lightning Deals and curated sales before non-members, often hours in advance.
- Invite-Only Deals: In 2025, Amazon expanded its Invite-Only Deals program, where members can request access to high-demand items with limited stock.
- Cash Back Offers: Young adult and student Prime members can earn up to 10% back on eligible Prime Day purchases.
3. Unlimited Streaming with Prime Video
Amazon Prime members get full access to Amazon Prime Video. This benefit alone is why many people choose to subscribe.
Popular Prime Video titles include The Big Sick, Jack Ryan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and newer hits like Reacher, The Summer I Turned Pretty, and Daisy Jones & The Six. New releases debut monthly, and members also get access to exclusive sports content, like NFL Thursday Night Football and Premier League games in select regions.
Want more? You can add premium channels like STARZ, Showtime, AMC+, and Max to your Prime Video lineup (for an extra monthly fee), making it easy to manage your streaming from one place.
3. Over 100 Million Songs with Prime Music
If you love music, Amazon Prime rewards your passion by offering Amazon Music, a Spotify alternative that provides access to a catalog of 100 million ad-free songs. However, Prime members get ad-free access to millions of tracks without paying extra, while Spotify requires a separate Premium subscription for a comparable experience. You’ll also find top podcasts and personalized stations, available on most devices, including phones, tablets, smart speakers, and Fire TVs.
If you want higher quality and more control, Prime members can upgrade to Amazon Music Unlimited at a discounted rate. This unlocks:
- HD and Ultra HD audio
- Spatial Audio support
- Unlimited skips
- On-demand playback
Note: Some features, including Music Unlimited discounts, are currently only available to Prime members in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
4. Free Ebook Access with Prime Reading
Prime Reading is a stripped-down version of Kindle Unlimited. Members get a rotating selection of over 1000 books, comics, audiobooks, magazines, Kindle Singles, and more every month. They’re available for you to read for free, similar to a library. Each month, Amazon offers Prime members a couple of free Kindle edition books from a small selection: Amazon First Reads. At the time of writing, there are nine Early Access books in varying genres, and the selection changes each month. While you get to keep these books for free, you can get exclusive discounts on others.
6. Free PC Games with Prime Gaming
With Prime Gaming, you get a free Twitch.tv channel every month. Plus, it unlocks access to free video games and exclusive in-game loot. The games are yours to keep, not just while you’re a member. You’ll have to link your game account to Amazon. There is one drawback, though: if you’re sharing your membership, only one person per household can claim an offer. Of course, you can always choose to just play a game together.
7. Unlimited Photo Storage
An often overlooked benefit of Amazon Prime is unlimited photo storage. After Google Photos eliminated unlimited storage, many users started looking for alternative photo services. As long as you’re a Prime member, you get full-resolution photo storage and up to 5GB of video storage. If you need more storage space for videos, you can bump this up at any time. Plans start at $19.99/year for 100GB, with options for up to 30TB for a whopping $1,799/year also available.
8. Free Membership to Grubhub+
Prime members also get a free membership to Grubhub+, a popular food ordering and delivery platform based in Chicago. With this membership, you won’t have to pay a dime for grocery delivery services and will also have access to exclusive savings. For instance, currently, there’s an active promotion that awards you a $10 Amazon gift card on Prime Day with a $25+ Grubhub order.
9. Savings at Whole Foods
If you shop at Whole Foods Market and are in one of the eligible areas, you can get a two-hour delivery. What’s more, If you have an Amazon Prime Rewards credit card, which you can get even without a Prime membership, you will jump from 3% to 5% cash back on all Amazon purchases. You’ll also get 5% cash back at Whole Foods.
10. Try Before You Buy
If you hate the thought of ordering clothing and shoes online, since you can’t try them on, and struggle with varying sizes from brand to brand, Amazon Prime lets you try before you buy. Amazon ships eligible clothing, shoes and accessories to your home for free. You will have seven days to try up to six items and send back (for free) what you don’t want. You’re only charged for the items you decide to keep. You can send everything back if you don’t like any of it or none of it fits. Limited time deals are included as part of the offer.
These are the top benefits of an Amazon Prime subscription, but be sure to check out the full list.
Is Amazon Prime Worth It in 2025?
That depends on how much you’ll use the benefits. If you regularly shop on Amazon, stream content, listen to music, or take advantage of seasonal deals like Prime Day, the subscription can quickly pay for itself.
Here’s a quick breakdown:
Worth it if you…
- Shop on Amazon more than once a month
- Watch Prime Video shows and movies
- Use Prime Gaming or Prime Reading
- Want faster shipping, pharmacy delivery, or grocery options
- Enjoy access to exclusive deals, trials, and cashback offers
May not be worth it if you…
- Rarely shop online
- Prefer other streaming platforms
- Already pay for competing services (like Spotify Premium or Netflix)
- Live in areas without same-day or 1-day shipping coverage
Tip: If you’re unsure, start with a 30-day free trial and explore as many perks as you can: stream a movie, get a package, try No-Rush shipping, and check your local delivery eligibility.
If you want to remain in the world of Amazon and find out more about the services included with Amazon Prime, learn how to turn off the audio description on Amazon Prime Video. If you’re looking to buy a new Amazon Fire TV Stick, find the best option for you.
