11 Amazon Prime perks you're likely not using—but should be

After getting the boot from my parents' Prime account, I opened my own, and I've been an Amazon Prime member for the last three years.

My biggest reason for being a Prime member is access to Prime Video streaming, although the free two-day delivery and exclusive sales are great benefits. Still, at $139 a year, on top of all the other subscriptions I'm juggling, I sometimes wonder if it's worth it.

Do you ask yourself the same question? Here are 11 benefits of a Prime membership that make it seem like a much better deal.

1. Release-Date Delivery for new books, movies, comics, and limited editions

With your Amazon Prime membership, you can get the latest books, movies, comics, and limited-edition items delivered to your door on the day they're released. No more waiting around for the book you've been dying to read to show up.

I recently used this perk on We Love You, Bunny by Mona Awad, the long-awaited sequel to Bunny, and it was such a treat to have it show up on my doorstep the day it came out!

2. A free Kindle book every month with Amazon First Reads

If you're a reader, don't skip out on Amazon First Reads. As a Prime member, you can get a free Kindle book off the editors' picks every month.

You might be thinking, "Well, I don't own a Kindle, so what's the point?" And I get it, because that's what I thought when I first heard about this deal. But you can access Kindle books from the free Kindle app with no physical Kindle required—use your phone or an iPad. This is such a fun perk, as the list of editors' picks changes monthly, giving you the chance to pick up a book you might not have come across otherwise.

3. Unlimited full-resolution photo storage with Amazon Photos

I'm constantly getting the "storage is full" notification on my phone. I've never been someone who backs up my photos (though I probably should). But another lesser-known benefit of Prime is unlimited full-resolution photo storage.

I've been taking advantage of this perk by offloading photos from my phone to Amazon Photos, and it's freed up so much space on my phone.

4. Buy with Prime on third-party sites

Your Prime membership extends past the Amazon site. Did you realize that you can shop with Prime on select third-party sites, including bareMinerals, HEYDUDE, Truff, and more?

Just look for the "Buy with Prime" badge on third-party sites, and you can purchase eligible items using the payment and shipping info already saved to your Amazon account. This feature makes checking out on third-party sites as easy as checking out on Amazon, which takes about two clicks.

Select products are also available for delivery through Amazon's fulfillment network, meaning two-day delivery outside the Amazon site.

5. Prime Reading: a free alternative to Kindle Unlimited

Prime Reading is yet another free perk you get with your membership, and one I was thrilled to learn about. This program differs from Kindle Unlimited in that it's already included in your annual subscription, meaning there's no separate charge.

Prime Reading gives you access to a rotating library of more than 1,000 books, comics, and magazines. As with a library, you can borrow up to 10 items at a time. Plus, if you're a fan of audiobooks, some titles come with Audible narration.

6. Share Prime with Amazon Family

Amazon Family lets you share your Prime benefits with one other adult, up to four teens, and up to four children living at the same address, meaning you can split the account across your entire household. This perk shines because everyone on the account can share digital purchases like movies on Prime Video or Kindle books—no need to buy twice. It also gives everyone access to special sales like Prime Day and Lightning Deals.

7. Whole Foods discounts & Prime member sales

I'm a frequent Whole Foods shopper, so this perk was a huge win for me. With your Prime membership, you get an extra 10% off sale items, exclusive weekly deals just for Prime members, and recurring offers every Tuesday and Friday.

Beyond those deals—if you get your groceries delivered on occasion, which I have been known to do—Prime members get free delivery on orders over $25. If you're shopping in-store, you can access these perks by opening the Amazon app and scanning your in-store code, which also lets you pay with your saved Amazon payment method—yet another added convenience.

8. Free access to Amazon Music

Amazon Music is included in your Prime account at no extra charge, letting you listen to 100 million songs, top podcasts, and curated radio stations to fit whatever vibe you're feeling in the moment.

The only caveat is that free access is mostly limited to shuffle play, so you can't just pick and play any song—except for those on all-access playlists. If you want more flexibility in your listening, Amazon Music Unlimited gives you full control over your song selection for an additional $11.99 a month.

9. Free Grubhub+ membership with $0 delivery fees

Free Grubhub+ membership is one of my favorite perks of being a Prime member.

Ordering delivery usually means spending twice what you'd pay for the same dish at the restaurant itself, but Grubhub+ eases those fees, making a night of delivery feel like less of a guilt trip. Prime members get free delivery on orders over $12—and let's face it, if you're ordering food, it's usually more than that—plus lower service fees.

And if you do decide to venture outside the house and pick up your food yourself, you get 5% back in Grubhub credit toward a future order.

10. RxPass: $5 a month for prescriptions & free two-day delivery

RxPass is a service from Amazon that gives you access to more than 60 generic medications for $5 a month, covering common health issues including high blood pressure, diabetes, and anxiety.

Amazon delivers those medications free in two days, and same-day in some areas. The $5 flat rate covers everything on the list no matter how many prescriptions you fill, so if you pay for several individually, that can mean serious savings. According to Amazon's site, RxPass users save 30% on monthly out-of-pocket medication costs.

11. Free gaming with Luna

One more service that comes with your Prime account is Luna (formerly known as Prime Gaming). This benefit gives you access to free PC games every month, exclusive in-game loot, and perks on Twitch. The library of games rotates monthly, but once you've downloaded a game, it's yours forever. The in-game loot includes fun bonuses like free character skins, weapons, and boosts.

On Twitch, you get one free Tier 1 subscription to any Partner or Affiliate channel, which means ad-free viewing, custom emotes, and access to sub-only chats and rooms.

At the end of the day, $139 a year isn't nothing, but it gets you a whole lot. If you've been a casual Prime member, using your Amazon account for free two-day shipping and exclusive deals, you're leaving a lot on the table. Between Amazon's offers on gaming, food delivery, groceries, music, prescriptions, and more, you can squeeze real value out of every dollar.

Take it from me: Once you incorporate Prime perks into your daily life, it's hard to go back.