Amazon offering $9.99-a-month grocery delivery subscription for Prime members

By Ciara Linnane

Amazon has in the past offered free Whole Foods grocery delivery for orders greater than $100

Amazon.com Inc. said Tuesday it is introducing a $9.99-a-month grocery delivery subscription service for Prime members and a lower-cost $4.99-a-month service for customers using electronic benefits transfer, or EBT.

The subscription fee covers unlimited delivery from the Amazon-owned Whole Foods grocery chain, as long as the order exceeds $35. In the past, Amazon (AMZN) has offered free delivery on orders that exceeded $100.

The subscription includes one-hour delivery windows at no extra cost, unlimited 30-minute pickup on orders of any size, priority access to recurring reservations for a weekly grocery order, and unlimited delivery on $35-plus orders from local grocery and specialty retailers including Cardenas Markets, Save Mart, Bartell Drugs, Rite Aid, Pet Food Express and Mission Wine & Spirits, the company said in a statement.

The service was piloted in Columbus, Ohio; Denver; and Sacramento, Calif., in late 2023. The company is now rolling it out in more than 3,500 municipalities across the U.S.

Customers can opt for a free 30-day trial to see how the service works for them.

"Our goal is to build a best-in-class grocery shopping experience - whether shopping in-store or online - where Amazon is the first choice for selection, value and convenience," said Tony Hoggett, senior vice president of worldwide grocery stores at Amazon, in a company statement.

Amazon acquired Whole Foods for $13.7 billion in 2017.

From the archives (September 2018): Price of a Whole Foods basket of groceries has barely budged since Amazon took over

Market Pulse (June 2017): Amazon's Jeff Bezos is $2.8 billion richer after Whole Foods buyout deal

Amazon has nearly 100,000 grocery items available via Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods Market, and local and specialty retailers.

The stock was last up 0.6% and has gained 17% to date in 2024, while the S&P 500 has gained 6%.

-Ciara Linnane

This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

04-23-24 1218ET

Copyright (c) 2024 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.