Amazon Prime Retention Rates Remain Very High

We hear many ads for services that remind consumers to drop recurring fee subscriptions and memberships. These may succeed in encouraging consumers to cancel rarely-watched streaming video services or unused gym memberships, but Amazon Prime membership seems immune to the pressure. 

We’ve seen growth in US Amazon Prime membership flatten in the past year. That appears to be more of a story of saturation and satisfaction, instead of significant churn with resignations and high customer-acquisition-cost replacements. 

CIRP analyzes Amazon Prime conversion and retention rates each quarter. Conversion rate is the percentage of Amazon Prime members that start a paid membership after a 30-day free trial. Retention rate is the percentage of Amazon Prime members that renew their membership each year.

The Amazon Prime conversion rate has remained steady, with approximately 70% of free trial members becoming paid members. Amazon Prime retention rates have moved slightly higher from their already extraordinary levels. (Chart 1).