Is Walmart Plus or Amazon Prime the best service for you?

Launched in September 2020, Walmart+ is a direct competitor to Amazon Prime. While Walmart wants to be the online shopping giant that Amazon has become, you can’t get to the same level without offering members the same level of perks. But how similar are the two services? Where does Walmart excel, and what else can Amazon bring to the table that Walmart can’t? With all of that in mind, here’s a side-by-side comparison of Walmart+ and Amazon Prime so you can see exactly which one is right for you.

Walmart+ vs. Amazon Prime: Compare costs

All other things being equal, cost is likely to be the biggest factor in deciding whether someone will choose one service or the other. This is the most basic comparison we need to make.

Walmart+ costs $98 per year. If you don’t want to invest in a full year of service, you can also get it by paying $12.95 per month. When you sign up for the first time, you can try it and all its benefits for free for 30 days.

Amazon Prime is $139 a year or $14.99 a month. That makes Walmart+ a lot cheaper for the average person, but Prime does have a few ways to discount the price. For example, students can try Prime for 6 months for free and then pay $59 to use the service. Those receiving government aid are also eligible for discounts. Like Walmart+, Prime offers a 30-day free trial.

Walmart+ vs. Amazon Prime: Delivery benefits

Amazon Prime now has a lot of benefits, but the main attraction initially was the novel concept of free two-day shipping on everything Amazon offered. This remains one of the best reasons to get this type of service, as it means removing shipping thresholds, hidden fees, etc. Delivery is much more complex now, so how do the two services compare?

Amazon Prime apparently offers free two-day shipping, but it also offers free one-day shipping on millions of items. You can also get free same-day or even free two-hour delivery with Prime Now in certain areas of the country. Other shipping benefits include free launch date delivery on certain pre-order items and free no-rush shipping, with Amazon rewarding you (usually in the form of Amazon credit) for choosing a slower shipping rate if you’re not in a hurry.

Amazon Prime also offers a grocery service, but it may be more limited depending on where you live.

The main benefit of Walmart+ will be unlimited free shipping. Similar to Prime, this includes free two-day shipping and free same-day shipping. However, Prime doesn’t require a minimum order value, and Walmart+ has a $35 threshold for grocery items. Free shipping will apply to everything Walmart sells in its stores, which is over 160,000 items. This also includes groceries, which can be a huge incentive for you if you live near Walmart and want to get grocery delivery.

Amazon Prime does offer a grocery service, but it may be more limited depending on where you live. About 2,000 cities have access to two-hour grocery delivery from Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods Market, and if you spend more than $35, you can get free delivery from Amazon Pantry.

Walmart+ vs. Amazon Prime: In-Store Benefits

It’s been a rough ride for Amazon, which doesn’t have many stores to go to. Given the ubiquity of Walmart stores, it makes sense that Walmart would want to take advantage of this.

One of the benefits of Walmart+ is its mobile scanning and mobile capabilities. This service essentially simplifies the in-store experience by allowing you to scan items at pickup using the Walmart app on your phone and pay online with Walmart Pay. The app makes going to the store quick, easy and touchless.

You can also save on gas with your Walmart+ subscription. Walmart has nearly 2,000 gas stations through Walmart, Murphy America, and Murphy Express. You can save 5 cents a gallon at any of these locations and get member prices at Sam’s Club Fuel Centers.

With Amazon Prime, you can save money at Whole Foods Market, which is owned by Amazon. If you’re a Prime member and use your Amazon Prime Rewards Visa card, this grocery store can give you 5% back. They also regularly offer Prime members exclusive deals on groceries and two-hour delivery in certain locations.

Amazon also has stores like the Amazon 4-star store and the Amazon Books store. As long as you’re a Prime member, you can expect to pay the same prices in-store as online at these locations.

Walmart+ vs. Amazon Prime: All entertainment options

If Walmart has the advantage of taking advantage of its in-store advantage, Amazon’s advantage comes from its extensive content library and streaming options. In fact, other than potential savings on in-store entertainment, Walmart+ has no real savings on entertainment. However, there are rumors that Walmart wants to develop its own entertainment service under the Walmart+ banner. Right now, we only have Walmart’s Camp, a free service for anyone with the Walmart app, which dabbles in digital entertainment.

With Amazon Prime, you have full access to Prime Video. This includes unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows, originals developed by Amazon like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and the ease of renting or owning movies or TV shows on Prime that aren’t automatically free. You can even download some for offline viewing. You can add to this service through Amazon Channels, giving you easy access to premium channels like HBO and Showtime for just $5 to $15 per month.

Walmart+ has no real savings in entertainment.

You can also stream music through Amazon Prime Music or Amazon Music Unlimited, the latter of which gives you access to more songs. If video games are your thing, Prime Gaming offers you a free channel subscription ($4.99 value) on Twitch.tv, another Amazon property, monthly free games, and regular releases of exclusive in-game content for all of your favorite games.

Amazon also has Prime Reading and Amazon First Reads, two ways to save on books. With Prime Reading, Prime members can borrow and read thousands of books, magazines and more for free. Read them anywhere, and even get some with audio commentary so you can switch between reading and listening. First Reads lets you pick one of a selection of books each month and read one for free. New Prime subscribers are also invited to start their free 30-day trial of Amazon’s audiobook service Audible and receive two free credits. Each credit can be used to purchase premium editions from a collection of over 500,000 audiobooks.

Walmart+ vs. Amazon Prime: Which one is right for you?

Amazon Prime has been around for 17 years, which means it’s no surprise that Prime will have more tools than the newer Walmart+ service. However, there are some advantages to being one of the biggest brick-and-mortar retailers of all time, and Walmart is sure to take advantage of that. Walmart+ has gotten off to a good start with the benefits it offers, which you can expect to see rapidly multiply over time. This is especially true the more successful the service is initially.

Of course, as you can see, Amazon Prime has a lot of services that Walmart can’t compete with. This is especially true in the entertainment world. Prime’s video and music streaming and reading benefits are second to none. If those things are really important to you, the extra cost of Prime might be worth the investment. But if you’re just looking for a way to deliver groceries at in-store prices, Walmart+ will likely be your go-to service. It’s all up to you, and it depends where you live, as Prime’s grocery delivery from Whole Foods Market does include in-store pricing and a 10% discount on all sales for Prime members.

The benefits of the big box

Walmart+

Walmart $98 a year

Spend less now

Walmart+ allows subscribers to order free groceries on demand. You can also get early access to a variety of special promotions and events, Black Friday deals and product launches.

main delivery

Amazon Prime

Amazon $139 per year

get all benefits

Amazon Prime members receive free express shipping on a variety of items, as well as free two-hour grocery delivery, and access to an extensive library of Prime Video streaming.