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Amazon Review

Worth it

Should I use Amazon?

Looking for something? - amazon.de

· 2 days ago

Buy for fast delivery and huge selection in everyday shopping. Skip it if privacy, ethics, or transparent pricing drive your choice.

Confidence

Medium. Based on 30+ public sources. Snippets contain no numeric product ratings, so no review score appears here.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

Prime membership

Not confirmed in sources; price has increased over time

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed

Best for

  • Fast-delivery everyday shopping
  • Deal and price trackers
  • Wide-category one-stop buyers
  • Marketplace sellers

Not for

  • Ethically motivated shoppers; boycott campaigns and alternative lists exist for a reason
  • Privacy-first buyers; three documented breaches touch customer and employee data
  • Sellers who need transparent fees; FTC alleges secret ad surcharges
  • Buyers who vet products through reviews; fake reviews are a documented problem

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

FTC alleges sellers face secret ad surcharges; those costs pass to shoppers.

medium

Prime membership price rises repeatedly; check the current rate before subscribing.

medium

Fake reviews complicate product vetting; learn spotting tactics before big purchases.

medium

Warehouse and third-party 'used' items arrive mixed with new-order complaints; check condition labels.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Customer service runs 24/7 by phone, chat, and email.
  • Sells both new and used items across categories.
  • Account security features include fingerprint sign-in.
  • Price tracker services help shoppers time purchases.

Cons

  • Fake reviews are a documented problem shoppers must dodge.
  • A 2024 breach exposed 2.8M employee contacts.
  • FTC and states sued Amazon over secret ad surcharges.
  • Prime membership prices increased over the years.
  • Buyers report getting used items when ordering new.

Sources & method

- 9 sources - Mature security program with reporting, but multiple past breaches touch customer and employee data.

official x1review x4security x2news x2
  • MoveIt vendor breach exposes employee data, Amazon confirms a third-party breach affecting 2.8M+ employee contacts in November 2024.
  • Kindle user data dumped in 2016, A hacker claims a breach of an Amazon server with data on nearly 84,000 Kindle users.
  • Pre-Black Friday breach reports, 2018, Reports describe a significant data breach shortly before Black Friday 2018.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 2/5

    Rating

  • Not confirmed in sources; price has increased over time

    Starting price

  • 9

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 2/5. Prime prices rose; FTC alleges hidden ad surcharges.
  • Ease of use: 4/5. Guess: familiar search and checkout for most shoppers.
  • Feature depth: 5/5. Guess: enormous catalog across nearly every category.
  • Support quality: 4/5. 24/7 contact via phone, chat, and email.
  • Security posture: 2/5. Repeated breaches exposed customer and employee data.
  • 49,802 Trustpilot reviews Customer service reviews on Trustpilot
  • 2.8M+ 2024 data breach Employee contacts exposed via MoveIt hack
  • 84,000 2016 data breach Kindle user records dumped by a hacker
  • Aug 2026 FTC lawsuit FTC and states sue over secret ad surcharges

Pricing

Prime membership

Not confirmed in sources; price has increased over time

  • Paid membership
  • Prices rose repeatedly over the years

Security

Mature security program with reporting, but multiple past breaches touch customer and employee data.

  • MoveIt vendor breach exposes employee dataAmazon confirms a third-party breach affecting 2.8M+ employee contacts in November 2024.⁴
  • Kindle user data dumped in 2016A hacker claims a breach of an Amazon server with data on nearly 84,000 Kindle users.⁵
  • Pre-Black Friday breach reports, 2018Reports describe a significant data breach shortly before Black Friday 2018.

What users say

Shopper sentiment is mixed: many praise convenience, while Reddit threads flag used-item mix-ups and review problems.

Alternatives

Compare Amazon with each alternative.

  • eBay

    Peer marketplace with used goods and different sellers.

    Amazon vs eBay

  • Walmart

    Big-box online shopping alternative with store pickup.

  • Local and specialty shops

    Curated list of smaller, ethics-focused shopping alternatives.

Full analysis

Based on 30+ public sources. Snippets contain no numeric product ratings, so no review score appears here.

Retail giant: fast delivery and huge selection, but breach history, fake reviews, and rising Prime prices.

Methodology

Based on 30+ public sources. Snippets contain no numeric product ratings, so no review score appears here.

Read how a report is made.

Sources

  1. Read Customer Service Reviews of www.amazon.comtrustpilot.com
    review
  2. How to Spot Fake Reviews on Amazonwired.com
    review
  3. FTC, States Sue Amazon Over Secret Ad Surcharge Schemeftc.gov
    news
  4. Amazon confirms employee data stolen after third-party MoveIt breachtechradar.com
    security
  5. Hacker claims breach of Amazon server, 84,000 Kindle userscsoonline.com
    security
  6. Why did Amazon increase the price of its Amazon Primefinance.yahoo.com
    news
  7. How to contact Amazon Customer Service 24/7aboutamazon.com
    official
  8. Ethical alternatives to Amazonethicalconsumer.org
    review
  9. Am I the only one keep getting used items?reddit.com
    review

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