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Wal-Mart Takes On Amazon Prime With Free 2-Day Shipping – Metro US

Wal-Mart Takes On Amazon Prime With Free 2-Day Shipping

One of the biggest motivations forshopping online is freeshipping. Almost 9in 10 consumers say free shipping would induce them to shop more online, according to a 2016 Future of Retail studyby marketing firm Walker Sands.

Stores have been taking notice. Expensive shipping may become a thing of the past, thanks to subscription services such as Amazon Prime, in whichmembers pay an annual fee to secure free shipping on all their eligible purchases.

Now, Wal-Mart is taking aim at Amazon’s loyal following with a program that offers free two-day shipping.

What does Wal-Mart offer?

At Walmart.com, free two-day shippingis available on eligible orders of $35 and abovewithout having to pay a membership fee. Look for items with the green “2-Day Shipping” logo. Wal-Mart says millions of productsqualify. The program is available in the contiguous United States.

For items that do not qualify, customers can getfree three-to-five day shipping on orders of more than$35. For more information about shipping options, visit the online help page. Marketplace and freight orders count toward the order threshold, but shipping costs and times vary.

In 2016, Wal-Mart launched a pilot programcalledShippingPass, a membership program that customers signed up for to receive unlimited two-day shipping for$49 per year.

The retail giant, which has canceled the program, says all active ShippingPass members will receive a full refund for their subscription.

How does it compare to Amazon Prime?

Wal-Mart’s biggest competitor in the shipping space is Amazon Prime, which is well-established and costs$99 per year or $10.99 per month.

Prime offers members multiple shipping options, including free two-day shipping nationwide on more than 50 million items, free same-day delivery by 9 p.m. on more than 1million items in select areas, and free two-hour delivery on someproducts in select metro areas via its Prime Now option. (Note that you’ll need to order at least $35 worth of eligible items to getfree same-day shipping and have to meet a minimum order threshold for free two-hour delivery.)

Prime offers more thanfast shipping. Members also receive access to movie streaming, photo storage, Prime Music streaming and 30-minute early access to time-sensitive sales called Lightning Deals.

» MORE: The benefits and cost of Amazon Prime

Things to watch out for

Before signing up for Amazon Prime, keep in mind that:

– Not all items are eligible. Not every purchase you make will qualify for free, fast shipping. Consider the types of items you regularly buy.
– Your subscription will renew automatically. If you take no action, yoursubscription will renew automatically after a year. You’ll need to sign in to your account to opt out of the renewal ifyou wish to cancel.
– You should figure outif you’d get your money’s worth. Determine the value of thissubscription in your life. Consider the number ofpurchases you’ll makein a year. Wouldyou accumulate enough in shipping costs to more than offset the membership fee?

What it means for you

For loyal Wal-Mart shoppers,free two-day shipping with no membership fee is a welcome change.

But for those who want a comprehensive online shopping experience — including options for free same-day and two-hour delivery in some metro areas — Amazon Prime remainsa good choice, especially with features such as streaming music and movies.

One more thing to consider: You also can get free shipping from Amazon without a Prime membership. Orders of $49 or more of eligible items or $25 or more of eligible books qualify for free shipping. Delivery will occur five to eight business days after all the items are available to ship.

Courtney Jespersen is a staff writer at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: courtney@nerdwallet.com. Twitter:@courtneynerd.

Updated Feb. 10, 2017.

The article Wal-Mart Takes On Amazon Prime With Free 2-Day Shipping originally appeared on NerdWallet.