Reviews Tech
- You can get free stuff on Amazon in a variety of ways, even if you don't subscribe to Amazon Prime.
- It's possible to get free products in exchange for writing honest Amazon reviews.
- Third-party websites and Facebook groups can also connect you with free and highly discounted Amazon products.
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You probably don't need much encouragement to shop at Amazon, but the promise of free stuff certainly doesn't hurt. In fact, there are a lot of ways to collect freebies from the world's largest retailer, both from Amazon directly and from its countless merchants.
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1. Qualify for the Amazon Vine Program
If you've never heard of Amazon Vine, don't worry — most people haven't. But if you like to write product reviews on Amazon, you should be aware of Vine, which awards free products to members in exchange for honest and accurate reviews.
Amazon describes Vine as a program in which trusted reviewers are invited to write reviews of new and pre-release products to help other customers make informed decisions. Amazon supplies Vine members with free products and doesn't influence — or allow Amazon sellers to influence — the reviews.
Amazon Vine is by invitation only; you can't even apply for consideration. But Amazon keeps an eye on prolific reviewers, and sometimes reaches out to offer them an opportunity to join the Vine program.
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2. Participate in the Early Reviewer Program
Amazon maintains an Early Reviewer Program designed to seed relatively new products with reviews so other customers can make a more informed purchase decision.
Unlike Vine, in which select customers are invited to join a program and are then sent products to review, the Early Reviewer Program asks people who have already bought a participating product to write a review about it.
The program is designed to help generate honest and unbiased reviews for products that have few or no reviews. Amazon selects customers who have recently purchased the product at random, filtering out anyone who has previously published reviews that Amazon deems abusive or dishonest. Moreover, potentially biased customers such as sellers and their friends and family are ineligible.
Early Reviewers are rewarded with gift cards (usually bearing a small value, such as $1-$3) after the review is published. Like the Vine program, you can't apply to participate — Amazon will reach out to you if it wants to offer you the opportunity.
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3. Join Facebook groups
You can learn a lot about free (and highly discounted deals) outside of Amazon. There are several active Facebook groups, for example — some public, while others are private and require approval to join — that post a steady stream of stories about free and cheap products as well as other money-saving shopping tips.
These Facebook groups are a mixed bag, so tread carefully. Facebook considers them a source of fake reviews, and it's likely that many sellers who post here are not entirely reputable. If you want to explore, though, here are some Facebook groups focusing on Amazon deals:
- Glitches, Freebies, Codes, and Amazing Deals Online
- Real Time Deals
- Kickass Deals
- Amazon Deals & Free Giveaway
- Personal Shopper 4 Deals, Giveaways, and Codes
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4. Become a professional reviewer
If you're a prolific reviewer, or enjoy sharing your opinions about products with the world, you can take the route of many other social media influencers and become a pro reviewer, sharing your opinion on platforms like YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok.
There are already many reputable, informative reviewers online, and as your reputation (and follower count) rises, sellers may offer you free products in exchange for reviews on social media.
This route is by no means guaranteed; you'll need a strong social media presence, the time to invest in your channel, and the patience to work for free until you start to get the attention of sellers. As an added bonus, you can earn a small commission on any products bought through your social media channel using Amazon's affiliate sales program.
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5. Find products that are free to anyone
In addition to the various review and giveaway programs, there's a more conventional route to getting free stuff on Amazon: The retailer's own freebies, given away to everyone as a way to encourage you to become a loyal customer.
- Kindle books. Amazon makes thousands of Kindle books available for free to everyone. If you're an Amazon Prime member, you can download one free Kindle book per month in the Amazon First Reads program. But even if you're not a Prime member, just go to the Kindle store, search for "free," and then use the genre browsing tools on the left side of the page to sort for free books you might like.
- Free Audible audiobooks. While Audible is a subscription program that costs $15 per month, you can sign up for a 30-day trial that gives you access to everything for free, along with a credit for a title you can keep forever, even after the trial is over.
- Free music. If you're a Prime subscriber, you get access to Amazon Prime Music, which includes 2 million tracks. But even if you're not a Prime member, you can download and listen to thousands of free songs at Amazon Music.
- Free cloud storage. Every Amazon customer gets 5GB of free cloud storage via Amazon Drive, where you can keep photos, videos, and any other sort of file.
- Amazon Prime free trial. Amazon Prime isn't inexpensive — it's currently $119 per year, with somewhat discounted versions for students and other groups. But if you haven't had a subscription in over a year, you can get 30 days for free. That includes all the Prime benefits, including free shipping and access to Prime Reading, Music, Video, Amazon Photos, and more.
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6. Try third-party review sites
Like Facebook groups that connect Amazon customers with freebies and deals (discussed earlier in this article), there are a handful of third-party websites dedicated to helping you find free Amazon products.
Most rely on the same general principle — sending you products in exchange for writing Amazon reviews. And just like the Facebook groups, we recommend trying these with caution, as some Amazon sellers may unscrupulously want to trade products for exclusively positive reviews. But if you want to explore this world, here are some popular options:
- AmZDiscover connects Amazon sellers and customers who regularly review products. If you're interested in becoming a reviewer, you can apply by filling out a form. Then, if you're selected, expect to receive products in exchange for writing reviews.
- Cashbackbase offers both highly discounted and free products. Unlike other sites, there's no requirement to review the products acquired through Cashbackbase.
- Tomoson is a clearinghouse for social media influencers. After registering with Tomoson, Amazon sellers can choose to send you free products for review and promotion. You'll need a relatively strong social media presence to successfully get products through Tomoson.
Freelance Writer
Dave Johnson is a technology journalist who writes about consumer tech and how the industry is transforming the speculative world of science fiction into modern-day real life. Dave grew up in New Jersey before entering the Air Force to operate satellites, teach space operations, and do space launch planning. He then spent eight years as a content lead on the Windows team at Microsoft. As a photographer, Dave has photographed wolves in their natural environment; he's also a scuba instructor and co-host of several podcasts. Dave is the author of more than two dozen books and has contributed to many sites and publications including CNET, Forbes, PC World, How To Geek, and Insider.
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