Image via Flickr/ Jason Brackins

There was a time when all Americans could enjoy delivery of fresh milk, eggs and butter to their doorsteps every morning. Those days have long past, but Amazon plans to bring them back. The online shopping site that offers more than 100,000 items from almost every shopping category is expanding its grocery delivery service beyond Seattle.

The online retailer has been testing grocery delivery, AmazonFresh, in Seattle for the past five years. The service delivers food such as fruit, eggs and meat to customers who order online, using Amazon’s own fleet of trucks. After the successful test, the company is now expanding he grocery service to Los Angeles as early as this week and to San Francisco later this year. And although Amazon already sells certain non-perishable food items nationwide, the new service will offer fresh items items to select ZIP codes. Unlike other grocery delivery services that use the United States Postal Service and other courier services, the items will also be delivered with Amazon’s own trucks. If successful, Amazon may expand its grocery delivery to 20 additional cities around the world.

Although convenience has become a major draw in today’s society, savvy consumers also strongly consider price. And according to The Simple Dollar, Amazon groceries tend to be slightly more expensive than those found on store shelves. But Amazon offers various ways for consumer’s to cut down their bills, including the Amazon rewards Visa that offers $30 off the first purchase and 3 percent back on Amazon charges. Amazon also offers a “Subscribe and Save” program for automatic delivery of certain everyday items, such as laundry detergent and diapers. Customers who sign up for automatic shipments can save as much as 15 to 20 percent on those items. Customers can also watch for Amazon Grocery coupons, which sometimes offer discounts, such as $10 off a purchase of $49 or more.

Customers must also consider Amazon’s delivery fee, which runs between $8 and $10 in Seattle, although orders exceeding $100 are often free. The company also offer a frequent-buyer program, Big Radish, which offers free delivery on orders exceeding $50 if the customer orders several weeks in a row. Not necessarily a fee you’d want to pay for miscellaneous single purchases, like a gallon of milk or a bag of chips, but certainly worth the cost for hard-to-find items like gourmet pies that might only be found across town.

Samantha Lile

Samantha Lile is a 2002 Missouri State University graduate of journalism and mass media. She has served as a reporter and editor for various newspapers throughout her journalism career. She made the leap into writing full-time after working for a major financial institution since 2000.

Because of her banking background, Samantha is knowledgeable in finance reporting, but is also strong in commentaries, personal profiles, youth studies, horticulture, history and entertainment-related works.

Samantha lives in Ozark, Mo. with her husband of nine years, four dogs and two cats.

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