Stay logged in. Pick an item. Look at the prices of the same item sold by other sellers. You'll see the item price and the shipping price. 90% of the time the total is the same as the Prime price which has "free" shipping. If it truly is free shipping then the Prime total price would be cheaper.
” Look at the prices of the same item sold by other sellers”
oh, i absolutely do that, especially to avoid sales tax on big ticket items, but it’s unusual for other sellers to beat amazon with total cost, including shipping. even if competitive, their “free” shipping is often 5-7 days, not two. And the other sad little trick some sellers use for popular items is to advertise cheaper prices, but not have the item in stock, continuously claiming it will be in stock in “a week”, but it never is.
not to mention, i’ve been ripped off upon occasion (mostly on used books) by such sellers. amazon refunds the money of course but it’s still a pain.
i’ve been prime since 2005 when it was first offered, have purchased tens of thousands of dollars worth of goods from amazon and save thousands on shipping and saved thousands over retail or other sites. not to mention their selection blows local retailers out of the water, and amazon customer service is unparalleled. I’ll actually pay a small amount more to purchase an item from amazon than from some no name website I’ve never heard of before, just for the assurance of amazon’s customer service.
i’ve shopped online now for nearly two decades and rarely miss a trick. i certainly buy from other reputable dealers when they can beat an amazon price, but find it foolish to pay extra pointlessly.