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Love to shop online, but hate having to stuff your cart with things you don’t even want just to score free shipping? Then ShopRunner may just be the membership service you need. This exclusive program offers free two-day shipping, free returns and members-only discounts at hundreds of popular retailers.
What Is ShopRunner?
Essentially, ShopRunner is a lot like Amazon Prime — but the program affords its members free expedited shipping at hundreds of stores for one annual membership fee. In fact, your ShopRunner membership gives you access to six million products spanning 25,000 brands.
Most of the program’s participating stores eliminate free-shipping minimum requirements altogether when you use your ShopRunner membership at checkout, although some do require a minimum purchase of $25 to get your order shipped free.
As a ShopRunner member, you’ll also enjoy exclusive promo codes and discounts to enhance your savings — and if you’re ever dissatisfied with a purchase, just ship it back to the store free of charge. You can also add up to four members of your household to your ShopRunner account for no additional fees, so the whole family can enjoy the program’s perks.
How Does ShopRunner Work?
Members can use the ShopRunner service three different ways. For starters, you can either shop via ShopRunner.com or download the program’s free mobile app for the iPhone and iPad. Alternatively, you can visit ShopRunner’s partner stores directly to shop via a specific retailer’s website instead. Just log on to your account with any of these methods (anytime you see the ShopRunner logo on a retailer’s product page, you can click on it to sign in.) If you sign in at ShopRunner.com, then you’re automatically signed in at all participating ShopRunner stores.
Several retailers also offer ShopRunner’s “Express Checkout,” which allows you to buy what you want with a single click of a button on the shopping cart page. You’ll save time by not having to enter your payment information, and your items will be delivered to the shipping address associated with your account.
How Much Does ShopRunner Cost?
A ShopRunner membership will run you $79 per year — unless you sign up for a free trial, that is. Lots of you savvy Slickdealers have taken advantage of the program’s frequent free-trial promotions (and many of you have apparently enjoyed free memberships for years now.) Slickdealer texasfan67 boasts, “I’ve never had to pay for this. There’s always a free trial, and you can still keep the benefits after it expires. I’m on year three of an expired trial.” (Wow!)
ShopRunner recently offered free one-year trials to PayPal members, as well as Redbox Play Pass members, and the the program is currently advertising a free 30-day trial membership on its main site.
You can also bypass the annual fee if you have an American Express card. ShopRunner extends complimentary memberships to American Express cardholders — and you don’t even have to use your Amex card to make your ShopRunner purchases. Just use your card to sign up, and you can use any form of payment going forward.
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5 Stores with Awesome ShopRunner Perks
If you’re still on the fence about trying a ShopRunner membership, these incentives may change your mind:
1. Newegg
Newegg’s “Premier” membership includes free three-day shipping, but it will cost you $49.99 a year. With ShopRunner, on the other hand, you’ll get free two-day shipping on a wide range of Newegg products, plus you’ll enjoy that same perk at hundreds of other retailers, too.
2. 1-800-FLOWERS
So this one’s a pretty big deal. 1-800-FLOWERS includes a whole family of stores (1-800-BASKETS, Cheryl’s Cookies, Stock Yards, The Popcorn Factory, Harry & David, Fannie May, Wolferman’s and Fruit Bouquets), and ShopRunner perks extend to all of them except Stock Yards. The site normally charges $14.99 for shipping, but you’ll get your flowers, food baskets and edible arrangements shipped free of charge (with no minimum purchase required) when you use your ShopRunner membership.
3. Eddie Bauer
Eddie Bauer typically requires a $25 minimum purchase to score free shipping through ShopRunner, but Slickdealer KrebThePenguin had luck getting his order shipped for free even though it fell below that purchase amount. (Try signing in and out of your account to recreate this magic.) Regardless, Eddie Bauer usually charges a $7.99 minimum standard shipping fee and $17.99 for tw0-day shipping, so you’ll save money on your purchase right off the bat.
4. Bloomingdale’s
Bloomies’ customers usually have to spend $150 or more to get their designer duds shipped for free, and the standard delivery charge on orders below that threshold is at least $6 — but not with ShopRunner. You can order a single AQUA camisole and call it a day (if you have that kind of willpower.)
5. eBags
eBags is the number one online bag retailer in the country, and the site offers free ground shipping on orders of $49 or more. But if you want your order shipped fast, you’ll have to pay $5.95 plus $12.95 for each additional expedited item. Unless you use ShopRunner, that is — in which case, you can buy as many purses as your heart desires without spending extra on shipping fees.
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Curious if your favorite stores participate in the ShopRunner program? Check out the complete list here.
Do you use ShopRunner for your online shopping, or are you tempted to give it a try? Keep the conversation going in the comments!
Images courtesy of ShopRunner.