Canceling Your Amazon Prime Free Trial? This Step-By-Step Guide Will Show You How
As an experienced Amazon seller, I know Prime can be invaluable for frequent shoppers on Amazon. But a paid subscription isn‘t for everyone.
If you‘re on the fence after starting your free trial, this comprehensive guide will walk you through how to easily cancel your Amazon Prime membership before you ever get charged.
When Does The Free Trial End?
Before we dive into canceling, let‘s recap when you need to act by.
When you signup for Prime, you get 30 days of full benefits completely free. This trial gives you plenty of time to experience Prime and see if it‘s worth the cost for you.
Your 30 day countdown begins the second you sign up.
For example, if you started your trial on March 1st, it would end on March 30th.
On the 30th day at 11:59pm PST, the trial expires. At that point, Amazon will charge you for a full Prime membership unless you‘ve canceled prior.
Currently, the fee for a monthly Prime membership in the US is $12.99. Annual memberships cost $139 per year.
But as long as you cancel before day 30 of the trial, you pay absolutely nothing.
Now let‘s walk through how to cancel in just a few quick steps.
Step 1: Log Into Your Amazon Account
To cancel the trial membership, you first need to access your Amazon account:
On your computer, visit Amazon.com.
In the upper right corner, click the "Sign In" button.
Enter your email address and password to log into your account.
If you don‘t remember your password, use the "Forgot Password" link to reset and regain access.
Once logged in, you‘ll see your name in the top right with "Account & Lists" next to it.
Step 2: Navigate To Prime Membership Management
Now that you‘re logged into your Amazon account, you need to access the management portal for your Prime membership:
Hover over "Account & Lists" and a menu will appear.
Click on either "Prime membership" or "Your Prime membership".
This will bring you to the main page showing your membership details. Next you need to find the cancellation option.
Step 3: Locate The Cancel Button
On the Prime membership page, look on the left side and you‘ll see a link for "End trial and benefits":
Click this link to continue with canceling your free trial.
Step 4: Confirm Cancellation
After clicking "End trial and benefits", a pop-up window will appear:
It will ask if you want to cancel your free trial. Click "End my benefits" to proceed.
On the next page, Amazon will try one more time to get you to reconsider. But click the yellow "Continue to cancel" button to move forward:
We‘re so close! Just one more step and your cancellation will be complete.
Step 5: Cancel Membership
On the final cancellation page, scroll down until you see the "Cancel Membership" button:
Select this big yellow button to officially cancel your Amazon Prime free trial membership.
After clicking, you‘ll see confirmation on the screen that your Prime membership has been cancelled.
And that‘s it – you‘ve successfully cancelled before getting charged!
To recap, the steps are:
- Log into your Amazon account
- Go to Prime membership management
- Click "End trial and benefits"
- Confirm cancellation
- Finalize cancellation
The whole process only takes about a minute once logged into your account. Pretty quick and painless!
Now let‘s look at what happens after you cancel the free trial.
What To Expect After Cancelling Your Prime Free Trial
Canceling your Prime membership during the free trial period does a few key things:
Avoids charges – Most importantly, canceling prevents you from being charged the Prime membership fee. No worrying about returns or refunds later.
Maintains benefits – Even after canceling, you‘ll continue having full Prime access until 11:59pm PST on day 30. Cancel anytime but keep benefits for the full trial.
Changes status – Your account will update to reflect that your Prime membership is canceled. The expiration date will show when benefits end.
Allows sharing – If someone shares Prime with you (like a family member), you can still benefit from their paid membership.
Keeps account data – Your Amazon account, order history, shipping info, etc. are unaffected. You simply lose Prime perks.
So in summary, canceling ONLY stops the automatic renewal that would bill you a membership fee after the trial ends. That‘s it!
You face no downsides or penalties. And you retain all Prime benefits until the 30th day.
For savvy shoppers, this is a great way to take full advantage of the free trial without paying. Enjoy the perks, then cancel. đź‘Ť
Now let‘s dive into some frequently asked questions about canceling the Prime trial.
FAQs: Canceling Your Amazon Prime Free Trial Membership
Here are answers to some of the most common questions about ending a Prime free trial:
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| When can I cancel the free trial? | You can cancel any time during the 30 day period – whether day 1 or day 30. |
| Can I reactivate a cancelled trial? | Unfortunately no. Once canceled, a free trial cannot be reactivated. |
| Can I get a refund after cancelling? | No refunds are issued because no payment has been made yet. |
| What if I forget to cancel the trial? | You‘ll be charged the Prime fee but can request a full refund by contacting Amazon customer service. |
| Will my order history remain visible? | Yes, your account data like past orders will still be accessible. |
| Can I use Prime via sharing after cancelling my trial? | Yes, you can share a Household membership with another paid Prime member. |
| When do my Prime benefits end after cancelling? | Your benefits will remain active until 11:59pm PST on the 30th and final day of the trial period. |
| Can I start a new free trial later on? | Probably not, unless you use a different Amazon account. You typically only get one free Prime trial per lifetime. |
Have any other questions? Feel free to ask in the comments below!
Now let‘s look at why you may want to cancel in the first place…
Should You Cancel Your Amazon Prime Free Trial?
According to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, Amazon has over 150 million paid Prime members globally.
But Prime isn‘t for everyone. Here are a few reasons you may want to cancel before your trial ends:
You Don‘t Use Amazon Frequently
Occasional Amazon shoppers likely won‘t find enough value in Prime to justify the $139 annual fee. Prime makes the most sense for frequent Amazon purchasers.
You Don‘t Need Fast Shipping
The free expedited shipping is a major Prime benefit. But if you don‘t often require quick delivery, you can save by dropping Prime.
Someone Else Shares Prime With You
Belonging to a Household or getting student discounts from a family member? You may already get Prime benefits without personally paying.
Price Increase Incoming
Amazon increased the Prime membership fee in early 2022. If you‘re not willing to pay $139/year, cancelling is your best bet.
You Forgot About The Trial
Many folks forget their trial is ending and unintentionally get charged. Avoid this by reviewing your open Amazon trials and cancelling any you don‘t want.
You Just Wanted To Try Prime Video
If you were mainly interested in the Prime Video library for your free trial, opting out of the full Prime membership could be smart once you‘ve watched what you want.
Tight Budget
Prime is fantastic, but not feasible for every budget. The membership fee may not make sense if you need to carefully watch your spending.
As you can see, there are plenty of reasons you might want to cancel before getting charged for Prime.
Think through whether the benefits are worth over $100 annually for you. If not, be sure to cancel the trial before it ends.
Next, let‘s look at how often you can sign up for a Prime free trial.
How Frequently Can You Get a Prime Free Trial?
When you cancel an Amazon Prime free trial, can you sign up again later to get another free month?
Unfortunately, the answer is typically no.
Amazon only allows one free Prime trial per customer lifetime.
Once you cancel your first trial, you usually won‘t be eligible for a second no-matter how much time passes.
Of course, there are a few exceptions that may allow you to get a new trial down the road:
Signing up with a different Amazon account than your previous trial
Starting a trial on a new Household profile
Using a new payment method than before
But in most cases, you only get a single shot at testing Prime for 30 days free of charge.
To continue benefiting from Prime after cancelling that trial requires signing up for a paid membership.
So if you think you may want to try Prime again in the future, carefully consider before cancelling your first free trial.
For most customers, that will be your one chance to experience Prime without paying.
Tips to Avoid Accidental Charges After Cancelling
After you cancel Prime, you‘ll want to take a couple precautions to guarantee you don‘t get incorrectly charged later on:
Confirm cancellation – Double check your Amazon account shows Prime as canceled with an end date.
Mark your calendar – Make a note on your calendar for when the 30 day free trial period officially ends.
Remove payment methods – Delete any credit card or payment options attached to your Amazon account. This prevents accidental charges if your account gets hacked.
Following those simple steps will ensure your cancellation goes smoothly with no possibility of surprise fees down the road.
And remember you can always sign up to pay for Prime later on if you change your mind. Cancelling the trial just prevents automatic billing at the end of the free period.
Now let‘s quickly cover how to cancel a paid Prime membership if you already have one.
How To Cancel an Amazon Prime Paid Membership
If you‘re already an active Prime member who has been paying the membership fee, the cancellation process is essentially identical:
Login to your Amazon account
Go to Prime membership management
Click "End membership"
Confirm cancellation
Finalize cancelling
The only difference is the option will say "End membership" rather than "End trial and benefits".
But the steps to cancel are the same whether you‘re in a free trial or paid membership. Simple and straightforward.
When you cancel a paid Prime subscription, you‘ll continue having access until the end of your current billing period. Amazon will not renew or charge you again after that.
And that wraps up this comprehensive guide on cancelling your Amazon Prime free trial or paid membership!
Let‘s briefly recap the key takeaways:
Cancel anytime before Day 30 of the Prime free trial to avoid membership charges
Cancelling is fast & easy – just 5 steps within your Amazon account
You retain full Prime benefits until the end of the 30 day trial
After cancelling, double check your account reflects the updated membership status
Be aware you likely only get one shot at a free Prime trial per lifetime
Consider whether Prime benefits are worth over $100 annually for your needs
I hope this detailed walkthrough clearly explains how to cancel an Amazon Prime free trial or paid membership! Let me know if any questions come up.
