Amazon the retail giant in an apparent attempt to push away competition from Walmart, just lowered the minimum required for free two-day US shipping.
Without notice, Amazon has lowered the minimum required for free two-day US shipping from $49 to $35, That price only applies to shoppers who have not signed up for Prime, and the minimum for free shipping on books remains $25.
A spokeswoman for the company confirmed it “recently” lowered the minimum price for free shipping, but decline to specify when the change took place or why it made the move.
Walmart, on the other hand, ended its similar membership program just last month while at the same time lowered its website’s minimum for free shipping to $35. It also sped up those deliveries to two days.
It’s all an effort to flirt with online shoppers who have yet to join Prime. An estimated 44 percent of US households subscribe to Prime, making them far more likely to shop regularly with Amazon.
Amazon raised the minimum amount for free shipping a year ago to $49 from $35. It upped the price to $35 from $25 in 2013.
