How to set up Amazon Subscribe & Save and what's actually worth subscribing to

Nowadays, almost every website features a "subscribe-and-save" option. You can save a solid percentage upfront, but realistically, how many products do you go through on a regular cycle? More likely, you'll set the subscription to save initially, forget to cancel it for months, and end up with seven packages of a product you were only iffy about to begin with—speaking from personal experience, by the way.

Because Amazon is a marketplace, its Subscribe & Save feature is inherently more useful: you can save on the products you use most from multiple brands. From the flossers you use multiple times a day to the coffee pods that are a non-negotiable part of your morning routine, you can subscribe and save up to 15% while reducing separate delivery costs.

Here's how to get started.

How does Amazon's Subscribe & Save feature work?

Amazon's Subscribe & Save feature lets you save 5% on more than 100,000 items with recurring deliveries. You can customize the quantity and delivery frequency, ranging from every two weeks to every four months. Shipping is always free for Subscribe & Save orders for Prime members, and on orders over $35 shipped by Amazon for non-Prime members.

But there's an even smarter way to save more. If you have five eligible subscription items delivered to the same address on the same day, you can save 15%. This doesn't apply to your first subscription order, but it can apply to later deliveries once you align your delivery dates.

How to align your deliveries

1. Navigate to your Amazon Subscribe & Save page.
2. Select the Settings tab.
3. View your weekly or monthly deliveries and review delivery day options.
4. Use the calendar tool to select a new delivery date.
5. Confirm changes for upcoming deliveries.
6. Review each subscription to make sure they all line up on a single delivery date each month.

Smartest categories to subscribe and save

Household staples

No matter how much toilet paper, laundry detergent, or dish soap you pick up at the grocery store, it always seems to run out right when you need it most. Household items are a consistent, predictable expense, and one where you can save big by subscribing.

Coffee

Any day that starts without coffee is a bad one, so running out of beans or pods means making the trip to get an overpriced and underwhelming cup elsewhere. By subscribing, you can save up to 15% and keep your cup from running dry.

Pet food

With the occasional extra kibble, most pet parents feed their fur babies a set amount each day based on their age and weight. So the number of days it takes to get through a standard bag of dog, cat, or bird food is usually consistent. By subscribing, you ensure you always have food for your cats and dogs on time.

Vitamins

Vitamins are packaged according to the daily dose, usually in 30-, 60-, or 90-day increments. Even with a few forgotten days or spilled pills, you'll be going through them at a relatively-steady rate. Plus, for supplements, consistency is key to see improvements, so subscribing can be extremely helpful.

Categories where subscribing doesn't make sense

When you use subscribe-and-save tools the right way, you can save hundreds per year. But in a few instances, subscribing backfires and could cost you more in the long run.

• Beauty products: Products like foundation, moisturizer, and lipstick have a shorter shelf life, aren't always finished consistently, and frequently go on sale. Shades of foundation and concealer can also vary depending on the season.

• Electronics: Items with a longer shelf life and a higher price tag might not be the smartest to invest in on a subscription basis. Plus, this is a category where items frequently go on sale during Prime Day or Big Deal Days.

• Bulk beverages and snacks: Oftentimes member warehouses like Costco or BJ's have better savings on snacks or drinks.

• First-timers: Items you're trying for the first time, even if you think you might love them

How to pause, skip, or cancel Amazon Subscribe & Save

To avoid ending up with a stockpile of unused products, Amazon lets you skip, pause, or cancel subscriptions easily.

How to skip a single delivery:

1. You can find all your Subscribe & Save items in one dashboard
2. Hover your cursor over the subscription item you want to change and select Skip
3. Confirm Skip Until Next Delivery

You can also skip your entire next order if you'll be out of town or are stocked up on everything:

1. Go to Manage Your Deliveries
2. Select Skip All
3. Confirm the items you wish to skip until next delivery

If you stop needing an item or your preferences change, you can cancel item subscriptions:

1. Navigate to your Subscribe & Save homepage
2. Click the blue "Your Subscriptions" link, which will take you to a set of images of your current subscriptions
3. Click on the image of the item you would like to cancel, and subscription details will come up
4. An option on the bottom right will say "cancel subscription"
5. Confirm the cancellation by pressing the yellow "Cancel my subscription" button

Subscribe & Save works best when you treat it like a tool, not a set-it-and-forget-it default: Pick items you go through regularly, and revisit your subscriptions every so often to make sure they still make sense. Done right, it's an easy way to shave real money off your recurring essentials without the clutter of unused products piling up.