While this article covers some of the reasons to stop ordering from Amazon, I feel a confession is in order. The subject only came up because I’m working on this issue myself. My Amazon shopping has become so habitual that I recently decided to dedicate the month of January to making no Amazon purchases.
By the time February rolls around, I’ll be ready to debrief, but in the meantime, here are three signs that it may be time for you to take a break with me.
1. It’s become a habit
I thoroughly enjoy saving money. I don’t mean saving as in, “Look! This sweater is normally $180, and I got it for $90!” I mean, regularly depositing money into our savings and investment accounts. It gives me the same dopamine rush spending once gave me.
However, 2020 introduced me to more than a new virus. My husband worked in another state, and I only saw him every two or three weeks. It was just me and our two dogs rattling around the old house, and I was introduced to the habit of ordering anything I needed online.
Even when lockdowns were lifted, I decided I didn’t want to go anywhere that would require me to change out of pajama bottoms and into “hard pants.” Instead of only buying things I needed online, I began purchasing stuff I wanted. I’d sit alone in the evening, scroll through the Amazon website, and order all the things I didn’t believe I could live without, like new pajamas and a fun new eyeliner. Soon, I had boxes coming to the house every day and looked forward to hearing the dogs bark loud enough to tell me that an Amazon delivery person was on the porch.
If you’ve gotten into the habit of scrolling for the things you want and need, we may be in the same boat and it may be time for you to also back away from Amazon.
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2. You lose track of how much you spend
As someone who’s never enjoyed shopping, Amazon is an easy way to get the toothpaste, lightbulbs, and puppy treats on my shopping list without leaving the house. There’s a serious problem, though. Most purchases are so small that I forget how quickly they add up.
If you ever look through your bank or credit card statement and are shocked by how many purchases you made through Amazon that month, you know what I mean. Pushing the “Place Your Order” button feels like knocking one more task off the to-do list with little risk to your finances.
May I suggest a sobering activity? Pull up a bank or credit card statement from last month and quickly add up how much you spent on Amazon. Only you can determine how much is “too much,” but if you’re worried that you’re wasting money or busting your budget every month, it may be time to stop.
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3. You sometimes feel bad
I can’t speak for anyone else, but I’ve begun to feel wrong about the money spent on Amazon. Here’s why: Amazon’s annual revenue hit $575 billion last year, and over the past five years, the company has enjoyed a cumulative annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20%. To put that into perspective, Walmart’s growth over the same period was 5%.
Between early 2023 and early 2024, it’s estimated that Amazon owner Jeff Bezos earned just under $8 million per hour — that’s $8 million per hour around the clock. According to Inc., Bezos was worth around $107 billion in early 2023. By the time 2024 rolled around, he was worth a cool $177 billion. That’s billion, with a “b.”
Do you know who’s not earning $8 million an hour? The lady with the shop down the street trying to make a go of a small boutique and the guy who recently opened a quaint home decor store not far away from the boutique. I should have known my conscience would eventually overtake my desire to stay home in jammies. However, now that it has, I have to do something about it.
If ordering what you need from the online behemoth makes you feel bad, it’s okay to stop long enough to figure out why. If you spend more than you should, buy stuff you can easily live without, or suspect you’d feel better supporting local small businesses, it may be time to alter your shopping habits.
If you rarely order from Amazon, taking a break doesn’t apply. However, if Amazon shopping sometimes feels like a bad habit, why not do something about it? For me, this means not placing new Amazon orders for at least 31 days. I’ll let you know if I survive.
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