Sharing your Amazon Prime free transport perk simply bought more durable

One among Amazon Prime’s most handy advantages is its quick and free transport. By means of the legacy Amazon Invitee program, customers may share that profit with one other grownup exterior their family. Nonetheless, sadly, that will not be accessible for much longer.

Amazon has announced the shutdown of its Prime Invitee program, changing it with Amazon Household. The Prime Invitee program beforehand allowed customers to share their Prime subscription, together with quick and free transport, with one different grownup of their family, even when they lived at a distinct tackle. Whereas Amazon halted permitting new customers into the Prime Invitee program a number of years in the past, it nonetheless allowed customers who have been grandfathered into this system to proceed utilizing it (by way of The Verge).

You probably have Prime advantages by way of the Prime Invitee program, you may lose entry to them on October 1, 2025. For those who dwell in a distinct family than the one who initially invited you, with the intention to get Prime advantages again, you may want to enroll in your personal Prime subscription. For those who do dwell in the identical family, although, Amazon Household could be of assist.

Amazon Household is not as beneficiant as its Invitee Program

Sharing exterior your main residence is coming to an finish

On its up to date customer service page about sharing Prime advantages, Amazon states that “Amazon Household is changing the Prime Invitee Program.” Not like the Prime Invitee program, which allowed you to share your Prime advantages with one other grownup in your family who did not have the identical main tackle as you, Amazon Household solely helps you to share it with one different grownup in your family with the identical tackle, as much as 4 teenagers (in the event that they have been added earlier than April 7, 2025), and as much as 4 youngster profiles. Amazon Household is not a brand new program, having been initially launched in 2015.

As for what Amazon considers the identical family, it states it because the “tackle you take into account to be your own home and the place you spend nearly all of your time.” The advantages you possibly can share by way of Amazon Household embrace quick and free transport, Prime Video (with advertisements), Prime Studying, audiobooks, eBooks, video games, and extra.

The sundown of the Prime Invitee program comes simply after Reuters recently reported that sign-ups for Prime subscriptions fell quick in comparison with final yr throughout Amazon’s current Prime Day gross sales occasion. With Prime sign-ups reportedly down, ending the Prime Invitee program could also be a manner Amazon is making an attempt to develop its subscriber base.

Amazon is making an attempt to encourage customers who’re being faraway from the Prime Invitee program to enroll in their very own Prime membership by providing a particular promotion of a one-year Prime subscription for $15. After the yr ends, nevertheless, the value will return to Amazon Prime’s common month-to-month charge of $15 per thirty days.

This entire scenario jogs my memory quite a lot of what Netflix and different streaming companies have finished by ending password sharing to spice up subscriber numbers. Whether or not this may all work out for Amazon stays to be seen, however primarily based on how persons are feeling on Reddit, it could be arduous to persuade those that have been utilizing the Prime Invitee program for over a decade to enroll in Prime. One Redditor wrote: “Been sharing for 15 years. With the elevated price and this petty cash seize we’re finished.” Many different customers on Reddit are sharing the identical sentiment.

I personally consider Amazon is lacking the mark with this determination. I do know fairly a couple of individuals who share their Prime subscription with others exterior their family, and never with the ability to try this anymore explanation for the Invitee program closing might be actually disappointing. Many have relations residing throughout the nation, so if you wish to share Prime with somebody in a distinct state, you possibly can’t even try this with Amazon Household. Hopefully, Amazon updates Amazon Household to incorporate a member of the family exterior the family, however with Prime sign-ups apparently down, I am not optimistic.