Amazon Prime vs. eBay Plus

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between Amazon Prime and eBay Plus? Well, wonder no more! In this article, we’ll dive deep into each program and compare their features side by side to see which one might be a better fit for your needs.

About Amazon Prime

Amazon Prime is a plan that gives you access to thousands of products at discounted prices, including books, music, movies and much more. In addition, Amazon Prime also provides other exclusive members-only benefits like free delivery and access to Amazon Prime Video.

How much does it cost?

As the name would suggest, Amazon Prime is a paid subscription available to Amazon. In Australia, it costs $6.99/month, which is about half the price of Netflix in Australia ($10.99/month), and it's even cheaper if you opt for an annual subscription.

It's also cheaper than Disney+ ($8.99/month), BINGE ($10/month), Apple Music ($11.99/month), Spotify Premium ($11.99/month), and YouTube Music ($11.99/month).

Considering these services only offer streaming content, Amazon Prime represents very good value for money.

What you get

• Free domestic delivery - Amazon Prime subscribers get free two-day delivery on millions of items. This means that you can shop as much as you want without the worry of being charged for shipping. It's particularly useful when shopping for cheap items where shipping might have cost more than the product itself.
• Free international delivery - You also get free delivery on international products when you spend more than $49 on Prime eligible products. This is really useful if you buy things on a regular basis from sellers on the Amazon Marketplace, many of whom are based overseas.
• Price reductions - With prices adjusted every day on millions of products, buying at Amazon is often cheaper than going bargain hunting elsewhere. But with Amazon Prime, you get even lower prices.
• Early access to special deals - Amazon often run special deals for Amazon Prime subscribers on everything from toys to music to kitchen items.
• Amazon Prime Video - Amazon Prime members have access to their free streaming service, Prime Video, which has thousands of movies and TV shows. More recently Amazon have added some live sports coverage and are releasing their own movies and series exclusive to Prime Video. Admittedly there is a significant overlap with Netflix, but, in my humble opinion, Prime Video is worth the subscription fee on its own.
• Amazon Music - Prime members can stream more than 2 million songs on any device.

What is available on Amazon Prime Video?

Apart from free deliery, the most interesting benefit of Amazon Prime is what you can watch with Prime Video.

If you're familiar with Netflix — and everyone is by now — then you'll be at home with Prime Video. It's very similar. So similar that you might want to think about whether you really need to keep paying for Netflix if you have Amazon Prime.

In Australia, you can watch popular shows like The Grand Tour (the former Top Gear UK show), Sneaky Pete, Lost in Space, Good Omens, Bosch and many more. Amazon Prime Video also comes with access to a huge video library with titles from major film studios and Amazon exclusives (which are being released more often and are available nowhere else).

The children's library is very good with lots of popular titles including Paw Patrol, Peppa Pig,  Paddington, and many more. Amazon have a lot of exclusive kids content as well, and I can personally attest to it being generally good quality (and a nice change from the usual stuff). However, it does not have any of the Marvel shows, which are now on Disney+.

It is true that there are other ways to access some of the content on Amazon Prime Video (i.e. on Netflix). And it is also true that I've spent more than my fair share of time browsing instead of watching. But if you have Amazon Prime Video, you could seriously consider closing your Netflix subscription and saving some money, and still have plenty to watch.

Signing up

To sign up, you will need to visit Amazon and click on "Start your free trial" under the Amazon Prime banner. This will take you to a screen that explains what you get and how much the subscription service costs. You can choose a monthly or annual plan. Simply enter your information and agree with the terms and conditions, then hit "Start your free trial".

You can cancel your subscription at any time from your account settings.

About eBay Plus

eBay Plus is a subscription service that provides benefits like free delivery and access to exclusive discounts and deals that would not be available elsewhere on eBay.

How much does it cost?

An eBay Plus subscription costs $5.99/month in Australia. It is on par with Amazon Prime and significantly lower than the cost of a Netflix subscription. Kogan First, a package of benefits for Kogan that is very similar to eBay Plus, is also priced at $5.99/month.

What you get

• Free delivery - eBay Plus subscribers get free standard delivery on millions of items for no additional cost.
• Free express delivery in metro postcodes - Get even faster delivery if you live in one of the available postcodes.
• Free returns - Bought something you don't like? If it was an eBay Plus item, you can send it back for free. Useful when you're using eBay to buy clothing and footwear.
• $5 voucher every month - Only available when you subscribe for a year. Vouchers can only be applied when you spend $50 or more on eBay Plus items.
• Access to exclusive deals - eBay Plus members can get the best deals on eBay across fashion, beauty, wellness, tech, and more.
• 5% off at Coles and free delivery - Order from Coles on eBay and you'll get 5% discount, plus free delivery when you spend $49 or more. Great for household items.

Amazon Prime vs. eBay Plus

Let's compare the two based on what you get for your money. Here's a nice clear table to compare the two.

So which is best? Amazon Prime or eBay Plus?

Best value: Amazon Prime

While eBay Plus is cheaper than Amazon Plus, it does not come with any streaming content. On the other hand, for one dollar more, Amazon Prime has thousands of movies and enough kid-friendly series to last a lifetime on repeat.

Best for delivery: eBay Plus

This one is very close since Amazon and eBay offer practically the same thing, but I think eBay Plus has it by a whisker. Here's why.

Amazon Prime gives you free delivery on millions of products and so does eBay Plus, although with Amazon you get free delivery on products sold by internation Prime sellers.

eBay Plus has free standard delivery on all eBay Plus items, but it also has free express delivery in metro postcodes. Returns are also free for eBay Plus subscribers, which is available on Amazon, but not across the board. However, eBay Plus also offers free delivery on products on sale from Coles, which will come in handy for a lot of people.

Best for deals: Draw

There's not much between the two here and it's very hard to objectively measure who is best since prices are fluctuate on a frequent basis. Everybody knows that Amazon and eBay are very good at selling things at rock-bottom prices.

Best for streaming: Amazon Prime

There's really no comparison between the two since eBay don't have any video, audio, or reading content at all.

Best overall

If you are a regular shopper on Amazon, then signing up for Amazon Prime is a no-brainer. It just makes sense. The fact that you might be able to eliminate another subscription — Netflix, BINGE, Disney+, etc. — is an added bonus.

The same goes for eBay Plus, which makes a lot of sense if you order frequently (as many of you do on Kickback).

However, if you aren't interested in streaming content, then it really comes down to where you do most of your shopping.