I’m a total Amazon addict, but a friend just showed me research that shows Amazon Prime does not always have the lowest price. And even when they do, it is not a significant discount. The comparative price research on Amazon Prime found that the average discount was only 1.9%. Crud! That means I may be over paying, when you consider the yearly cost of Amazon Prime (now $99/year).

A new tool shows how much you save on Amazon – or not

I knew Amazon wasn’t always the price leader, but my price comparisons have previously showed Amazon the overall price leader when you compared several items. Now I’m going to start using this tool – PriceJump.

My friends at Savings.com (which sponsored our very first Frugal Festival) and Valpak, which conducted the research, monitored prices using the PriceJump tool before, during and after Amazon Prime Day and found 9% of our sampled items were cheaper elsewhere on Prime Day, and another 11% of our sampled items were the same price elsewhere on Prime Day.

For example, a PlayStation bundle was $500 on July 1^st, then the price shot up to $578 on the 8^th and stayed there through Prime Day, before dropping down to $560 on the 16^th.

Here’s a closer look at what they found: a Savings.com blogger dug deep into the numbers and it ain’t pretty. (Savings.com also stands to gain a lot if people shop through their site instead of through Amazon. For every purchase you make using a Savings.com coupon, the website earns a small commission.)

With the PriceJump tool, you’re guaranteed the lowest prices out there by actually doing a retail price comparison on products you want to buy – it’s as easy as a copy and paste to the tool bar for quick results before you buy.

I also like CamelCamelCamel.com to compare how the price for a specific item on Amazon has dropped or risen in the past 12 months. It’s super easy to tell if the current price is a good price.

Our previous Amazon price comparisons

• Is Amazon Pantry worth the cost?
• Who has better prices: CVS Ship and Save or Amazon Subscribe and Save?
• 16 secrets to saving money at Amazon.com.

Knowing this, how do you feel about shopping on Amazon?