By now you have probably heard that Amazon.com in the USA ships FREE to Singapore and India!! Being somewhat of an online shopoholic naturally I was excited! I just had to try it out for myself.
With so many things on Amazon I was at a loss for what to buy. Did I really need any more stuff? Hell yeah I needed stuff!! Besides, even if I didn’t need it now the mere fact that I had access to all the American products that you don’t get in Singapore shipped for free was enough to brighten my day.
Restrictions on Free Shipping: Just because there is free shipping doesn’t mean that its carte blanche to go crazy. Before I started shopping online at Amazon there were a few things I had to consider to get the free shipping –
1. The order had to be over US$125,
2. Weigh less than 20 pounds, and
3. Be eligible for AmazonGlobal Saver Shipping
How To Shop for AmazonGlobal Eligible Items: This is what you need to do –
(1) First put in the item you want in the search box. For example “kids straw bottle”.
(2) A list of items relating to “kid’s straw bottle” will come up.
(3) On the left sidebar click on the “AmazonGlobal Eligible”.
(4) A new list will appear showing all the kids straw bottles that can ship internationally (and potentially for free),
(5) Pick the item you like and put it in your cart.
Problems Checking Out: Filling the cart is easy, but the difficult part was when I checked out. Certain items may be eligible for AmazonGlobal Saver Shipping but for some reason don’t qualify to be FREE. I ran into this problem a few times.
- Try to find the item that is causing the problem.
- Remove items from your cart (one at a time) and put them as save for later.
- You might be over the 20 pound free shipping allotment
- You might have an “add-on” item in the cart
- Call or email Amazon and ask them to figure out the problem. Note: My friend told me that she called Amazon directly and they were able to reverse the shipping charges after she explained to them that she had all AmazonGlobal items in her cart. It’s worth a try.
What did I buy?: We just returned from a family vacation in California and I honestly didn’t need anything (but that still didn’t stop me from buying things).Finally after an hour or two of browsing online I ended up buying kid’s shoes, dishwashing tablets, men’s boxers, markers, kid’s washable ink pads, and a bunch of educational workbooks & flashcards. I purchased nothing for myself. Although my “save for later” cart includes a bunch of fun kitchen items and some kid’s toys.
When were my items delivered? Amazon gives an approximate delivery time of 9-14 business days. My items arrived in two separate shipments. All the items, expect the shoes, arrived in one shipment approximately 1 week after I placed my order. The shoes arrived separately 2 weeks after I placed my order.
Shopping Tips: Here are some useful tips that I learnt from my own shopping experience –
- Don’t buy things that you are uncertain about. Unless the item is defective, you will need to pay the cost for return shipping back to the USA!
- Some things to shop for are kids items, shoes, clothes, books, toys, kitchen items, baking utensils, gym clothes
- Most of the food items don’t ship globally
- If you are buying a lot of items, do two separate shipments of $125 each.
- Dont spend over SG$400, otherwise you might end up paying GST in Singapore and a delivery fee to the Singapore Customs Department (this happened to me a few months back – I ended up paying an extra SG$50 in customs charges).
- If you have a hard time spending US$125, ask your friends if they need anything and/or buy your everyday household items from Amazon (most items are still cheaper than Sing).
- Don’t buy items that plug in, unless it is dual voltage. The US voltage and plug is different than what we use in Singapore
SuperMommy’s Opinion of Amazon Free Shipping: Even though a lot of items don’t ship for free, I like to look at it from a glass is half full perspective – FREE. Yes, at least I can get some of my American products in Singapore without having to pay a ridiculous amount for shipping.
Was it easy? Relatively. I thought of it as a shopping challenge.
Was it cheap? Cheaper than flying to the US and/or buying it in Sing.
Will AmazonGlobal Free Shipping cause people to shop less in Singapore? No. I think most people want their items right away and aren’t willing to wait 2 weeks to save a little bit of money.
Would I Free Global Ship Again? YES!!! I was just adding things to my cart before I started writing this post. I absolutely hate searching for things in Singapore. Usually the things I want are out of stock and take forever to make their way back on the shelf. Not to mention I have very limited free time and as much as I love a good scavenger hunt, most stores don’t open until 10-11 in the morning.
In conclusion, I would like to Thank Amazon for making my life a little bit happier (and for saving me a ton of money in shipping charges).
Good luck and Happy Shopping.
HI, it was an amazing article. Thanks. Can you tell me about the Custom tax Charges? Do We have to pay separately? or Amazon will pay it for us?
Hi! I have never paid tax on my Amazon order because I make sure to spend less than US$200 each time I place an order. According to the Singapore laws, you will be taxed if your order is over SG$400 (Amazon does not absorb these charges). Usually if I want to place a big order I split it up into two separate orders – this way you will not have to pay customs/duty for Singapore. Thus, to answer your question – you do not have to pay US tax, nor Singapore tax if your order is less than SG$400. Hope that helps. 🙂
Hi, did you use a forwarder? If yes, which one did you use and if use a forwarder, will the shipping fee still be free if purchases is above $125? If no, how to consolidate items from different sellers to ship all together?
If you are using a forwarding company like V-Post, then you don’t need the $125 amount because you will still be shipping the items to the US. In the US, many eligible Amazon items ship for free if you have over $25 in the cart. But you will still have to pay for the V-Post or other companies forwarding charges. I highly recommend collecting US$125 worth of eligible things and having it ship directly to Singapore. If you don’t have enough items, ask your friends if they need anything so you can top up your cart. Hope that helps. Good luck. 🙂
Hi, I want to ask, if amazon ships directly who sends it in the last mile? Is it amazon? Do I have to pay for that last part to my house?
Hi! Amazon ships it directly to your door. It usually comes via UPS or Aramex and you will need to have someone sign for the package at your home. The package will clear customs before it arrives to you. There are no additional charges besides what you pay online (if you need to pay duty, Amazon will collect it when you place the order). We order packages from Amazon at least 1-2 times a month and have never had a problem. Happy Shopping. 🙂