Discussions

Curious as to whether eBrandoners use amazon.ca and/or amazon.com. I am currently ordering a part that I need for a home theatre screen. Listed on amazon.ca for $127.65 with free shipping versus amazon.com for $20.75 and $5.95 shipping. How can there possibly be such a huge discrepancy?

shop on amazon.ca but never happened to me with such a big different with amazon.com it is usually the same price and more with shipping to pay.  

With Amazon I have noticed that sometimes on cheaper pricing they are used items.

Amazon.com/.ca often are 3rd parties selling stuff. Some are fulfilled via Amazon, some are shipped from the person/shop. So they charge whatever they want. The seller can also add a big cost for shipping (charge per item and/or weight), duty meaning that the final cost can be much higher. Add to that the exchange rate. Also could be a knock off (found that one out the hard way). I often shop .com, shipping to my door, and with the exception of the one knock off I've been content with my purchases. Always good to shop around!

I've only ordered a couple things from amazon as I find the prices are often too high. I never have good luck with finding deals on that site!

I shop frequently on Amazon. Yes you do have to watch the prices and who is selling. My experience has been great. Usually the sites with .ca are sites that ship to Canada and the ones with .com only ship to United States (without paying additional fees). Sears has a .com site and also a .ca site. Many of the items on .com sites are not available in Canada, or for exorbitant prices. As an example, I order Hills Bros. Sugar Free French Vanilla Cappuccino from Amazon.COM for 3.62 per can. Amazon.CA sells the same product for 40.97. YES. That is not a typo! I order in quantity and have shipped to Border Services, who charge $6 a package delivered. It only takes me 15 minutes to drive there. Even with the exchange, this is a savings.  
 
Edited by Lani Batke, 2015-12-22 18:51:38

Amazon is great, you just have to know how to use it properly. Look for things that say "Ships from Amazon.ca" I shop on Amazon monthly from house hold items to gifts for birthdays/Christmas etc. It ships right to my door, free shipping on orders over $25 and I wait maybe a week MAX for my orders. Like I said, you have to know how to use it..

The customs and duty fees if applicable have been paid on Amazon.ca  
Amazon.com does not include these and they can add up incredibly fast  
never buying from .com again for this reason....it is staggering

The few times I've shopped Amazon (if I can't find locally), I sign into both the Canadian site and the US site and put same items in each cart.. It will tally everything up including shipping, etc. before you press the final OK to confirm the total. That way I can see the differences and the end totals. Sometimes it's staggering how different they are.

sometimes the dot com has good stuff. The CDN dollar stinks right now though. But much of it is independent sellers, and you should check their feedback and item reviews first. For larger items, I get them sent for free to Border Services and go pick them up. Shipping is free much of the time on Amazon and eBay if you send to a USA address...and there are no custom fees. Message me if you want more info on this mail service just south of here.