Amazon USA Raises Free Shipping Minimum to $49, Will Canada Follow?

Yesterday Amazon quietly bumped its free shipping minimum to $49, up from $35. However, for book purchases, the minimum remains $25. The move appears to funnel users to pay $99 USD for a Prime membership, which includes free two-day shipping and other benefits.

Currently, Amazon Canada customers can get free shipping with a $25 minimum purchase on eligible orders. Will Canada be affected by these minimum shipping increases in the U.S.?

According to Amazon public relations, reached by email, they confirmed the changes were only related to the U.S., and “beyond that,” could not “comment on our future road map.”

Just last week Amazon.ca added the Kindle Voyage to its line up, after debuting only in the U.S. in 2014. Canada typically gets Amazon products after the U.S., so one may ponder whether shipping increases would follow suit.

Online rival Walmart.ca bumped its minimum free shipping threshold to $50 last year (there was no minimum at one point), so Amazon could easily ‘match’ them if they wanted. Most likely the minimum will remain at $25 for a while as Amazon.ca continues to establish itself here. The company’s iOS makes it one of the easiest ways to shop online from an iPhone or iPad.