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💰 The Deal Guy Newsletter - Issue #30

💰 The Deal Guy Newsletter - Issue #30

Plus, Holiday Shipping Deadlines & New Amazon Prime Perks!

Matt Granite
December 16, 2024

There’s still plenty of time to find that perfect gift, celebrate yourself with some savings or simply browse the surplus of bargains available as stores clammer for your cash and attention.

This week we’ll also examine shipping cut-off times and some new (and surprising perks) tied to your Amazon Prime Membership.

What’s included this week:

📦 Important Holiday Shipping Deadlines
🛍️ New Amazon Prime Perks You SHOULD Know!
📰 In the News
🏷️ Top 5 Deals of the Week
🛒 TOP 5 ONLINE-ONLY COSTCO DEALS!
💻 TOP 5 ONLINE-ONLY SAM’S CLUB DEALS!

📦 Important Holiday Shipping Deadlines

If you have a delivery that you want to ensure for the holidays, these are some helpful deadlines to consider from each major carrier.

USPS Ground Service (2-5 business days): Dec. 18.
First-Class Mail service (1–5 business days): Dec. 18.
Priority Mail Service (1-3 business days): Dec. 19.
Priority Mail Express service (1-2 day delivery): Dec. 21

FedEx Home Delivery (4-Day Shipping): Wednesday, Dec. 18
FedEx Ground (3-Day Shipping): Thursday, Dec. 19
FedEx Home Delivery (1-Day Shipping): Monday, Dec. 23
FedEx Overnight: Monday, Dec. 23
FedEx Same Day: Tuesday, Dec. 24

3-Day Select: Dec. 19
2nd Day Air: Dec. 20
Next Day Air: Dec. 23
UPS Critical: December 24 (dependent upon region and extremely pricey)

And for anyone looking for delivery from local stores in your area, here is what you need to know:

Amazon: If your hometown or the area you’re delivering to currently has a same-day shipping option for Amazon, this service will continue on Christmas Eve. While no official cut-off is specified, I would recommend getting an order placed by 10am.

Target: The retailer just announced it shoppers can have gifts delivered on Christmas Eve with same-day delivery for orders placed by 3 p.m online. Drive Up and Order Pickup orders placed by 6 p.m. will also be available the same day

Walmart: For deliveries from Walmart.com, most orders have a cut off time of December 23rd. If you’re looking for last-minute delivery of something that’s in-store, you must order express delivery through the app/website by 4pm.

For other retailers like Home Depot, CVS, Walgreens and Apple you are able to use apps like Doordash, UberEats and Postmates to get gifts delivered as late as 8pm in most cities (this will depend on each stores holiday hours)

🛍️ New Amazon Prime Perks You SHOULD Know!

(THIS IS NOT SPONSORED)

There were many new Prime Benefits added in 2024. Here is a quick summary of all the ones you might care about:

✅ You Can Now Buy and Customize A Car On Amazon: You can buy new Hyundai vehicles directly through Amazon, including customization, financing, and even scheduling the pickup of your new car from participating local dealers, click here to learn more and see if the program is available in your area.

✅ New Gas Perks: Prime members can now save $0.10 per gallon at over 7,000 U.S. gas stations, with EV charging discounts coming in 2025. Activate this perk by clicking here.

✅ 10% OFF Flights/Hotels: Amazon has partnered with StudentUniverse to offer Prime members an additional 10% off already discounted flights and hotels.

You also get 10% of any hotel booking back in the form of an Amazon gift card. The only requirement is that you must be ages 18-24 and have a Prime young adult membership. You can find out more here.

✅ Amazon One Medical: Amazon One Medical offers a convenient way to access virtual healthcare for over 30 common conditions like allergies, acne, and sinus infections.

For a flat fee (ranging from $30 to $70), you can connect with licensed clinicians through secure messaging or video call with no appointments or insurance required.

✅ Amazon Access: This program offers discounts and benefits to customers on government assistance, such as SNAP EBT.

It includes reduced-cost Prime memberships, easy payment options, and curated resources to help budget-conscious shoppers save more.

Did you know about all of these? Reply to this email and let me know if you’d like me to do this updated list for other membership programs.

📰 IN THE NEWS

Every week in this section of the newsletter, I share some of the most interesting and helpful money-related articles I’ve read over the past week. I hope you find these as valuable as I did!

💵 “Winners and losers of Black Friday 2024” - READ HERE.

💵 “How holiday spending was different for the huge days in 2024” - READ HERE.

💵 “How to better avoid debt during the holiday shopping season ” - READ HERE.