Lazy Man and Money

Scoring with Amazon’s Subscribe and Save

by 12 Comments

I’ve mentioned it before, I’m a huge fan of True Citrus, specifically True Orange. When I wrote that article, their public relations person offered to send me a sample of their new product True Grapefruit.

True Grapefruit mixed with the awesome Sodasteam, creates healthy, zero-calorie, Fresca-like drink. (Buy the way, neither SodaStream or True Citrus is sponsoring this post, though I am a SodaStream shareholder.)

The devilish plan at True Citrus to get me addicted worked. I went to their True Lemon Store site to buy some more True Grapefruit. The best value is buying in bulk, but purchasing 500 packets was $33. That lasts a long time, but of course I wanted to see if I could do better.

I went to Ebay and saw that I could save a few bucks off that price.

However, Amazon that had the best deal, selling 500 packets at a little more than $26. For some strange reason True Citrus is selling it on Amazon $7 cheaper than its own store.

Then came the big savings… it was Subscribe and Save item. I could save 20% and get it for only $20.82. That’s more than $12 off. My price per packet went from 6.6 cents to 4.2 cents.

That 20% is made possible by having 5 Subscribe and Save items. I find that Amazon’s prices are already pretty low, but getting another 20% is a very good deal. I felt like I had to share this with readers who may not have jumped on the bandwagon.

I’m always looking for good Subscribe and Save items to keep my list per month above 5 to get the 20% discount. Here are some items that are part of my Subscribe and Save.

  • Sparkle Paper Towels – This “#1 Best Seller” at Amazon has 510 reviews and a 4 star rating. I like that they are “select-a-size” which makes them last longer (at least with how I use them). With the 20% off they are $20.79, less than a buck a roll. I currently subscribe to them every 4 months. This past month was my first delivery, so I don’t know how much I will use.
  • Quilted Northern Ultra 48 Rolls – (It’s currently unavailable, but keep an eye on it.) Yep, it’s another “#1 Best Seller.” I’ll be straight-up with you… this is a lot of toilet paper. Getting this once every 6 months is still a little too much. However, the price of $19.15 with the 20% off is very good.
  • KIND Dark Chocolate Nuts & Sea Salt Bars – My wife and I were looking for something more natural and fewer chemicals and I think we found it. There are many flavors, but I say you go dark chocolate and sea salt or go home. At $13.43 for 12 bars it is hard to beat at a little more than a buck a bar. This is a monthly staple for us. Did I mention that it is another “#1 Best Seller?” Yes, I just did.
  • Pampers Sensitive Wipes – With nearly 900 reviews at almost 5 stars, I don’t need to say much else about this. At $8.78, this is a great value. It’s a monthly staple as well.
  • Maxell AA Batteries – And you thought Maxell only made cassette and VHS tapes (whatever those things are). Well they also have the # (you guessed it) Seller in batteries on Amazon. Kids toys need a lot of batteries, but I find the 48 is a little much for a six month subscription. Nonetheless, we’ll ride it through a couple of cycles.
  • Country Save Laundry Detergent – When 146 of 192 people give something 5 stars, I take notice. This detergent is highly recommended for our cloth diapers. We haven’t gotten our first shipment yet, but at 640 loads, I don’t think I’ll stay subscribed to this for long. The Subscribe and Save price is more than $15 less, so it’s a no-brainer to add it to a shipment.
  • Scotch Tear-by-Hand Packing Tape – This is perhaps the greatest invention ever. I don’t know how non-tear-by-hand packing tape is still on the market. I realize this is a lot of tape, but we decluttering our house through Ebay, so we will use it. Like the laundry detergent above, this is something that can be set up for once every six months… and then you’ll probably want to choose to skip a delivery.

Even if these aren’t the kinds of things you are looking for you can save with Subscribe and Save using these tips:

  • Pad Your Order if Necessary – Sometimes I have a little difficulty getting 5 Subscribe and Save to save the 20%. However, if you look at Amazon’s cheapest Subscribe and Save items, there are some that are around $3.00 It’s worth it to pad your order with one of these products to get to 5 items to get the 20% off. This is especially true if you getting a great Butt Rub, because you can save $70 on it. Pay $3 to save $70… yes please!
  • Subscribe and Quit – I do love the aforementioned Butt Rub. I never thought I’d say this, but there is a limit to how much I can take. After the product is delivered with the cheap price, you aren’t obligated to stay subscribed and get it again. Get your Butt Rub, save your $70, and quit.

Let me know what you buy with Amazon Subscribe and Save in the comments.