Amazon
Other than anticipating what products will be on sale during Prime Day, the most obvious way you can get ready for Amazon's annual sale is to make sure you have a Prime membership, because you'll only be able to shop the sale and that day's Lightning Deals if you're a Prime member.
If you don't want to commit to a full membership now, you can use the Amazon Prime free 30-day trial to gain access to the sale and then cancel it after Prime Day is over. A membership will grant you the opportunity to save big on Amazon devices, electronics, back-to-school supplies, and hundreds of thousands of other products.
Amazon did recently bump the cost of a Prime membership to $119 a year, but it's still completely worth it (and to put it into perspective, JPMorgan estimated the true value of a membership is actually $785).
Fast and convenient shipping policies, free video and music streaming, and access to Prime Day just skim the surface of all the perks of a Prime membership, and if you're not convinced now, you can sign up for a 30-day trial to experience all the benefits for yourself. It's completely free, so you can shop Prime Day and try out other features of Prime without the commitment.
Amazon also offers discounted memberships for the following groups. If either of these apply to you, start your membership or trial now so you can access Prime Day:
- $5.99/month for qualifying customers in select U.S. government assistance programs such as holders of the EBT card. Confirm your eligibility and start your Prime membership here.
- 6-month trial and $6.49/month afterwards for students. Confirm your eligibility and start your free 6-month trial here.
Want to stay updated on everything Prime Day 2019? Bookmark this page and our master guide to the best deals of Prime Day.
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Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Insider Picks team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.