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• Don't assume Amazon's cheapest
  Take 20 secs to check elsewhere

  The Amazon* business model is that it’s a one-stop shop. Yet, however tempting it is to do all your shopping in one easy sweep, you can often undercut it.
  
  In the same amount of time as it takes to search Amazon, you can use shopbots (shopping robots) that whiz to scores of internet retailers to find the cheapest price. MSE's Megashopbot.com tool auto-searches the best of these for each category.
  
  The same rule applies if you're buying Amazon Marketplace gear, where external sellers supply new and second hand stuff. Always check if it's cheaper on eBay* or similar sites. See the Ebay Buying Secrets guide for more on this.

• Find Amazon's secret bargain basement

  

  Amazon often offers 90% and better reductions, yet it directs people to other areas, sending them to higher profit margin products instead.
  
  There's a geeky way to manipulate Amazon's web links to display all heavily-reduced bargains. All you need do is fiddle with Amazon web addresses (URLs) to bring up lists of knock-down prices (see how to build your own links).
  
  The problem is these are a faff to make yourself. So we've built the Amazon Hidden Discount Finder tool that creates your own bespoke super-specific sub-department pages in seconds, where you choose the discount and if you want free deliery.
  
  Top tips for using the Amazon Hidden Discount tool
  
  The Amazon Hidden Discount Finder tool swiftly builds super-specific pages of Amazons hidden 75%+ OFF deals. When searching for treasure, don't just look at the first page of bargains, try a few. And don't assume just because its discounted it's a good buy.

  Do be aware that, as tip 4 below explains, not all items have free delivery, so just do the search and then tick the tool's ‘free supersaver delivery’ box. Only items with free delivery will show, and Marketplace sellers where delivery isn't free will be excluded from the search.
  
  

  Do remember just because something is listed as a huge discount doesn't actually make it a bargain (or worth buying).

  Before you try the tool, here are some popular web addresses we made earlier:

  Popular Hidden Amazon Discount Pages

Find out how to build these links yourself

• Monitor the perfect moment to buy

  Amazon varies the goods' prices, and when they're cheap, they sell out quickly. A free site lets you enter your desired price, and emails when Amazon hits it.

  Simply tell Zeezaw the max price you want to pay for Amazon items, and you receive e-mails when the price drops to that amount or lower. To do it:

  • Step 1. Create an Amazon wishlist.

    To get a wishlist, just go shopping on Amazon*. When you fancy something, click the ‘add to wishlist’ button on the left-hand side. Not too arduous a task!

    

  • Step 2. Sign up for Zeezaw.

    Now just sign up for a Zeezaw account and tell it the email address you use for Amazon. Add a target price for everything and wait for the email alerts.

  • Step 3. Check comparison sites.

    When you get an alert, it's still worth checking the price on a shopping comparison site, because where Amazon prices go, others tend to follow. MSE's Megashopbot.com tool auto-searches the top comparison sites for each category.

  Zeezaw also lets you track other folks’ wishlists. Ask your pals what email address they use for Amazon, and it ferrets out their list – a great way to work out the prezzies they want for Xmas.

  The site doesn't collect any of your details or passwords, it just works through your Amazon Wishlist, which anyone who knows your email address can view.

• Not everything has free delivery

  These days Amazon* offers free delivery as standard. The free 'super saver' option usually takes 3-5 days, but not all goods qualify. Some items do have a delivery charge, especially goods sold by Amazon marketplace sellers, rather than Amazon itself.

  Always check at the top of the page that it states ‘Your order qualifies for free delivery’. If it doesn’t, you'll pay.

• Beware you don't 'pay more by default'

  While Amazon lists free delivery on some products, you have to select the ‘super saver’ delivery box at the check out. If not, the default delivery option is expensive 1-2 days first-class.

• 

  Get next-day delivery free too

  Every so often, Amazon* offers customers a free 30-day trial of its 'Prime' service, in the hope that they'll keep paying for it once the trial's over. The service gets you free 1-day delivery, rather than its normal 3-5 day delivery. The beauty is you can sign up, order, then just cancel the trial before Amazon charges you.

  This is especially useful if you time the trial to co-incide with Xmas shopping. If you’re planning to get your granny/dad/partner/long-lost auntie’s Christmas presents on Amazon, take the trial in Dec to get parcels delivered speedily. See the Free Amazon Prime Trial Instructions

  Go to Amazon and click the "Amazon Prime" link on the screen's left hand side. If it says "Sign up today for your free trial of Amazon Prime", then sign up for it and shop as you usually would. You'll automatically get the free 1-day delivery, provided you've ordered products sold by Amazon.co.uk itself, not its marketplace sellers.

  If you have already taken a Prime trial, it's unlikely you'll be offered it again on your account.

  How to cancel

  As the trial will run its course even after you've said you're not paying, cancel as soon as you've signed up. Forget to cancel, and it'll take £48 from your acount. Yikes!

  

  To cancel payment, go into 'Your Account' using the link at the top right of the page, and scroll down to the link that says 'Manage Your Amazon Prime Membership'. Click it, then in the Membership Information panel on the next page, click 'Don't upgrade automatically'.

  Now it should tell say the trial will NOT upgrade automatically, so you can enjoy the remainder, safe in the knowledge it's free. Though do still check your bank statement on the day the cash would leave, because mistakes happen. Just don't use the delivery as an excuse to buy more!

  Is it worth paying for Prime?

  Amazon Prime is not worth your dough once the trial runs out, unless you're a mega shopper. The site’s all-inclusive free super saver delivery package will save you money. Since you get free 3-5 day super saver delivery anyway, you'd need to buy a heck of a lot of gear and need it all the next day to justify the £49 annual price tag. Better to be organised and order early.

• Get a free Amazon £15 voucher

  Accepted new Amazon credit card customers can bag a free £15 gift voucher when spending £25 on it. Apply, buy something on the card you would have normally purchased within 60 days of opening the account, and you'll get 1500 Amazon Points. These can be redeemed on a £15 voucher to spend on anything at Amazon, except some Marketplace sellers' wares.

  Always pay off in full, or the 16.9% APR interest will dwarf the gain. See Credit Card Freebies for a full guide to this, the affect on your credit score and more freebies.

• Earn Amazon vouchers with online surveys

  If you're willing to give your views on topics like the Labour Party, lingerie or the latest moisturiser, you could earn Amazon and other gift vouchers by doing online surveys. All you have to do is put the hours in filling in surveys online. Dedicated survey do-ers earn £200ish a year from home.

  Several survey sites pay you in Amazon vouchers, including Valued Option, Lightspeed and MyTNS. There's a full step-by-step guide to the top paying online survey & market research companies in the Earn from Survey Sites guide.



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• Students, save 5%

  Students are about the only lucky chaps who can get a voucher code for an instant discount. You need a current National Union of Students Extra (NUS Extra) card to get 5% off. Just register on the NUS website, for a personal promotional code to paste into the gift voucher code box, every time you order on Amazon.

  Yet the discount works on the following departments only: books, music, DVDs, shoes & accessories, sports & leisure equipment and jewellery & watches. Codes are valid until 31 August 2010, up to a max cumulative spend of £1500 including the discount.

• Be an Amazon Associate and earn free cash

  If you’ve a blog or website, set up a free account with Amazon Associates, a scheme where you earn Amazon vouchers for linking to the site.

  Just follow the steps to add links and banners to your website. When someone clicks on Amazon from your site and makes a transaction, it’s recorded and you’re paid 5% commission, which you get in the form of an Amazon discount.

  Amazon only pays out once your commission totals £25. Do note that any products bought by yourself will not count towards your commission; anything ordered fir delivery to your home address or paid for on a credit card registered to your home address is excluded. There’s nothing to stop your pals to clicking through though.

• Use a cashback credit card

  You can earn up to 5% every time you spend by using a cashback credit card, although always ensure you pay it off in full to avoid interest charges. For the current top payers, see the full Best Cashback Cards guide.

  There’s no conflict between using a cashback cards and clicking through from charities or Nectar (see below). This is because when you spend money, it's the cashback site, not the retailer giving some of it back, whomever it’s spent with.
  
  Got an MBNA credit card?
  
  Those with an MBNA card can get a 7% discount when they buy Amazon online gift vouchers* worth £100 or more from MBNA Lifestyle.

  So if you bought £100, the vouchers would cost £93, though they're delivered by Royal Mail and you must also pay £4.50 for special delivery. This eats up the gain, but you must pay for special delivery, otherwise arrival's not guaranteed. So if the vouchers get lost, it's your problem.

• Earn charity funds or Nectar points

  

  It’s possible to give charities a boost at no extra cost to you. Simply click through to Amazon from a charity’s special link, log-in and click on the product you want.

  When you grab something, it’s recorded and the charity is paid cash. The charity gets around 5% of your purchase – no small beer, especially as it costs you nothing. Click through to Amazon from there BEFORE you put anything in your basket, otherwise the charities won't get the money.

  Charities that do this include: VSO, RNIB, Epilepsy Action, Bumblebee Trust and National Literacy Trust.

  If you work for a legit registered UK charity, add it to the Amazon Charity Clicks thread, so MoneySavers can help their favourite causes.

  Earn Nectar points

  Alternatively, set up a free account with Nectar, log-in and click on Amazon. When you buy something, it’s recorded and you’re paid 1 Nectar Point point for every £1 spent. Do click through from Nectar before you plonk stuff in the basket, to ensure you get points.

  If you spent £500 at Amazon, you’d have 500 Nectar points, which the Reward Checker values at a paltry £3 or £2.50 if spent in Sainsbury. Better than a jab in the eye, but considering a £500 purchase would net a charity a £25 donation, that option could be more worthwhile.
  
  If you're wondering whether it's possible to use Cashback Sites with Amazon, the answer is usually no, none of them currently list it.

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