Quick Summary
Amazon is getting rid of one of its subscription benefits from 31 January.
The company is calling time on the "Try Before You Buy" perk originally launched in 2018.
Amazon Prime has been around for quite some time now and offers a decent number of perks for its yearly subscription cost. That includes free and fast delivery, but you also get access to special prices during sales periods like Black Friday, as well as subscriber-specific shopping events like Prime Big Day Deals.
Amazon Prime Video, Prime Gaming and ebook lending via Prime Reading are others that have also proved very useful, too.
However, there are a couple of extra benefits that you may not even know about, and sadly one of those is also about to disappear. The Independent has reported that Amazon is calling time on its "Try Before You Buy" perk that allows shoppers to try on clothing, shoes and accessories at home before being charged.
What is Prime Try Before You Buy and when does it end?
Under the perk, you can buy up to six items and have seven days to try them on before being charged. It works in a similar way to services like Stitch Fix used to, where you decided what you wanted to keep before you paid anything.
Of course, you can also opt to use services like Klarna's Pay Later if you want to shop elsewhere. As long as you send items you don't want back before the returns deadline, your Klarna bill will only reflect what you have chosen to keep.
Still, Amazon has offered the "Try Before You Buy" benefit since 2018, initially trialled as Prime Wardrobe in 2017. The decision is said to be down to customers making better use of size recommendations and features like virtual try on.
An Amazon spokesperson said in a statement: “Given the combination of Try Before You Buy only scaling to a limited number of items and customers increasingly using our new AI-powered features like virtual try-on, personalised size recommendations, review highlights, and improved size charts to make sure they find the right fit, we’re phasing out the Try Before You Buy option."
Sign up to the T3 newsletter for smarter living straight to your inbox
Get all the latest news, reviews, deals and buying guides on gorgeous tech, home and active products from the T3 experts
The last date to qualify for the perk is 31 January, 2025. Any apparel purchased after that date will qualify for free returns, but you will need to pay upfront as you do with other items on the online store.
Britta is a freelance technology journalist who has been writing about tech for over a decade. She's covered all consumer tech from phones, tablets and wearables to smart home and beauty tech, with everything in between. She has a fashion journalism degree from London College of Fashion and previously did a long stint as deputy editor of Pocket-lint, but you’ll now find her byline on several titles including GQ, the Express, the Mirror, TechRadar, Stuff and iMore. You'll never find her without her Apple Watch on, aiming to complete her rings so she can justify the extra bar of chocolate and she loves a good iPhone trick.
-
I tested every new Kindle in 2024 – this is the one I'd buy, and why
These e-readers all make a case for themselves
By Max Freeman-Mills Published
-
Amazon Kindle (2024) review: an affordable wonder
The standard Kindle is still a winner
By Max Freeman-Mills Published
-
Forget Black Friday, all Amazon Prime members getting one of the best sci-fi games of all time for free
18 free games are coming for Amazon Prime subscribers in December
By Rik Henderson Published
-
The best 5-star device I've reviewed this year just got a surprise Black Friday deal
The newest Kindle Paperwhite is a must-have
By Max Freeman-Mills Published
-
Amazon upgrades its Fire TV lineup and soundbar – offers big introductory discounts
New Amazon Fire TV 4-Series, Omni and Soundbar Plus announced
By Rik Henderson Published
-
Kindle Scribe getting a major upgrade to bring it up to Scribe 2 standards
The Scribe 2 skills will also benefit the original Kindle Scribe
By Chris Hall Published
-
When will the Amazon Black Friday sale start?
Amazon will slash the prices of 1,000s of products for more than a week – here's when it kicks off
By Rik Henderson Last updated
-
I tested the Kindle Colorsoft and 2024 Paperwhite side-by-side – here's the one I'd buy and why
These two new Kindles are both impressive, but which is best?
By Max Freeman-Mills Published