Easy Amazon Fresh & Whole Foods Grocery Shopping Hacks

Important Note: When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Content, pricing, offers and availability are subject to change at any time - more info.

If you have been using Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods for grocery shopping, you’ve probably found them to be convenient and reliable. Nevertheless, knowing more about these stores and how to use them can only help. Here are the best grocery shopping hacks for Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods.

Advertisement

The 14 best Amazon Fresh + Whole Foods grocery shopping hacks are below. Read on to see the full list.

Key Takeaways

  • For the best savings on Amazon’s grocery shopping services, Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods, you should become an Amazon Prime member, as you can realize 20 percent and 10 percent savings, respectively. You can also get exclusive offers as a Prime member.
  • Amazon Prime will also give you free delivery on Amazon Fresh purchases.
  • While Amazon Fresh gives affordable prices on a wide selection of national brands and private labels, Whole Foods is generally overpriced. You will have to apply various hacks to achieve reasonable savings. However, this store is a good option if you are looking for competitively-priced organic food since the Amazon takeover resulted in slashed prices.
  • The 365 house brand offered by Whole Foods generally results in your paying more reasonable prices, and many of the items in this range are available through Amazon Fresh too.
  • Using Alexa makes adding items to your grocery list and ordering from Amazon Fresh much quicker and more convenient. You can also use Alexa in-store at selected points to find what you are looking for.
  • You can find sales at Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods that substantially bring down costs. Subscribing to the weekly email newsletter as part of your Amazon Prime membership keeps you informed of any special deals.
  • While Amazon Fresh does not offer traditional coupon deals, you can use digital coupons from Amazon itself. Whole Foods allows you to apply manufacturer’s coupons.
  • Traditional good shopping practices such as buying in bulk can help you save as much as 10 percent on items such as drinks, while Whole Foods’ policy of letting you buy the quantity you need and no more saves the waste of food and money.

Hacks To Improve Your Amazon Grocery Shopping

Amazon Fresh is an excellent option for affordable and convenient grocery shopping, while Whole Foods offers superb value for high-quality organic items. However, you can save money or make your shopping experience more convenient when shopping at these stores.

The following hacks will save you time and money while grocery shopping with Amazon and generally make your life easier. While some of these hacks will take a little effort and may require you to change your habits, they are well worth it for the savings and convenience.

1. Use Alexa To Make Your Shopping Easier

Although using Alexa will not directly save you money, it will save you time, and time is money. You can speak to Alexa during the week to add items to your grocery list for your Fresh cart. When you’re ready to order your items, head to the Amazon app and click “Shop your list” to move everything to the Amazon Fresh shopping cart.

Advertisement

You can even reorder recurring purchases such as milk and bread. As you continue using the service, Alexa will learn your preferences and get smarter about choosing the items you want.

You can also take advantage of Alexa service points at various places in Amazon Fresh stores to help you quickly find the produce you are looking for.

2. Get The Whole Foods Market App

If you are shopping at a Whole Foods store, use Apple App Store or Google Play to get the Whole Foods Market app. You will need this for use with an Amazon Prime account and to get information about local stores, current sales, and access to digital coupons.

Log into your Amazon Prime account via the Whole Foods Market app to get a bar code that you can use repeatedly for 10 percent off. Within the app, check for weekly deals for Prime members, or look for the blue or yellow signs in-store that display these savings.

3. Get An Amazon Prime Membership To Realize Massive Savings

It is worthwhile signing up to be an Amazon Prime member, as you will get a 10 percent discount on all prices at Whole Foods in selected states. You get a 20 percent discount on many items at Amazon Fresh. In addition, you get benefits such as other exclusive in-store discounts.

You must log in to the Whole Foods Market app with your Amazon Prime account and apply the reusable bar code at checkout. To get the Amazon Fresh benefits, you must scan the “In-Store Code” using the Amazon app or a credit card linked to your Amazon Prime account.

Advertisement

If you pay with an Amazon Prime Rewards Visa card, you will receive 5 percent back on purchases at Whole Foods. Unfortunately, you no longer get free delivery when shopping at Whole Foods and will instead pay a $10 delivery fee. Amazon Prime membership costs around $13 a month or $120 a year.

4. Shop The Frequent Sales At Amazon Grocery Stores

Look out for national sales that last from a week to a month and local one-day flash sales. Often these stack on top of each other for significant savings. You could keep track of these sales using your local store’s sales flyer, but we recommend being an Amazon Prime member and using their weekly email newsletter to stay abreast of deals.

5. Find The Days That Give You Special Deals

Your local Whole Foods or Amazon Fresh store may offer special deals on particular days of the week that make them better for shopping for foods such as pizza or another takeout, for example. As these deals vary by location, find out the schedule for your store from Amazon.com or your local store manager.

6. Use Manufacturer’s Coupons When Amazon Grocery Shopping

Brand-name goods allow you to apply manufacturer’s coupons at Whole Foods. You can get substantial savings in combination with the 10 percent discount offered to Amazon Prime members.

When buying from Amazon Fresh online, look for any available digital coupons – if there are any, a checkbox will appear below the price tag. Select the coupons to get the savings. Alternatively, browse the “Deals and Coupons” tab to see current offers.

7. Buy The Quantities You Need To Save Money

You can save money and reduce wasted food by buying the exact portion of food you need at Whole Foods. Politely inquire of a store manager whether you can get the precise amount you require for a particular recipe, such as half a cabbage or a custom amount of cheese.

If you’re unsure about something and don’t want to purchase a lemon, ask for free samples of goods you want to try before you buy. Whole Foods offers some great sampling privileges.

Advertisement

On the subject of samples, Whole Foods regularly offers tasters of products, and if you are looking to try something new at no cost, these are worth keeping an eye out for.

8. Buy Bulk To Save On Your Amazon Grocery Purchases

When buying goods at Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods, buy them in bulk for discounted prices. For example, if you purchase a case of soda rather than individual cans, you can save up to 10 percent. Cases of wine can also net you significant savings; a case may be as few as 6 bottles.

If you are buying meat, look for value packs that allow you to get large quantities at discounted prices and freeze the amount you cannot use immediately.

9. Choose The 365 House Brand At Whole Foods

Whole Foods’ house brand, 365 Everyday Value, offers quality comparable to national brands or even superior. They are guaranteed not to contain artificial flavors, colors, sweeteners, preservatives, or any hydrogenated fats. However, you will pay 12 to 20 percent less if you opt for this brand.

Many of the 365 items and other Whole Foods house brands are available through Amazon Fresh, too. Thus, if you are looking for quality natural products, you can get them all while shopping through Amazon Fresh. Ensure that you look out for limited edition products that offer once-off food experiences at affordable prices.

10. Try Amazon Lockers For Your Online Purchases

If you have purchased something from Amazon.com and don’t want to be housebound while you wait for your package to be delivered safely, you can have it dropped off at an Amazon locker instead. And now that these are available at Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods stores, you can combine your Amazon pickup (and returns) with your grocery shopping.

11. Enjoy The Expertise Of Fishmongers And Butchers

Although this hack won’t save you any money at checkout, it will save you time and possibly even point you to the best deal. The fishmongers and butchers at your local Whole Foods will debone, devein, clean, cut, and season your meat or fish for no charge.

They will even cook your meat or fish in stores at select locations for a small fee. And as the experts, they can give you advice on the best deals and the proper cut to use for a particular purpose.

12. Brighten Your Kid’s Shopping Experience With Snacks

If you are grocery shopping with your kids, you probably know it isn’t their most enjoyable experience. But if you are shopping at Whole Foods, you can cheer them up with a healthy snack like animal crackers or fruit leather. Go to customer service and see if you can possibly get a “Kid’s Club Coupon,” which you can redeem for a free snack if you qualify and/or if the store participates in that program.

Advertisement

13. If You Can, Shop In The Morning

If you are shopping at a physical Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods store, you’ve probably experienced how chaotic it is in the late afternoon or early evening when everyone is doing their grocery shopping. Plus, items have sat on the shelves all day and aren’t at their freshest.

Try shopping in the morning for a more relaxed shopping experience and fresher produce. Even on Saturdays and Sundays, you’ll generally deal with fewer crowds.

14. Try Shopping On Wednesdays At Whole Foods

You want fresh produce while it is still fresh, which means shopping when the goods come into the store. Because Whole Foods refreshes its deals on Wednesday mornings, shopping early on this day will result in your getting the first pick on produce.

Do You Tip Amazon Fresh + Whole Foods Delivery?

Although it is optional to tip grocery delivery drivers, many make most of their income from the tips you leave. To ensure that your drivers receive a livable income, you should consider tipping around 10 to 20 percent of your order, depending on the size of your order.

Does Amazon Prime Give Free Whole Foods Delivery?

Although Amazon Prime membership used to mean that you would get free delivery on Whole Foods orders, this is no longer the case. Citing increased costs and stating that they are unwilling to raise prices, Amazon now charges a $10 delivery fee to Whole Foods customers. However, they only reveal this fee at the checkout, a strategy known as drip pricing.

Is Amazon Fresh Only For Prime Members?

Amazon Fresh stores are open for everyone to shop. However, you must have an Amazon Prime membership to take advantage of free delivery (on orders over $35) and the 20 percent discount on selected everyday favorites and essential items.

Index

Related Articles

Please help keep this site alive, it takes a lot of work for one person and it’s getting much less rewarding to keep running this because of how the internet is changing. Any help is appreciated, thank you.
-John ‘Samples’ Clark.

Ko-fi donationsPlease Support Me on Ko-fi

Recent Articles

Keep Browsing

View Money Saving Blog View Free Stuff View Discounts View Sweepstakes
Amazon Promo Codes Free Apple Apps Best Deals Today Free Udemy Courses Free Android Apps Sweepstakes List Free Magazines Kindle Deals Walmart Deals Free Stickers Class Action List Printable Mazes