Procrastinate away! Amazon stretches holiday shipping deadlines to last day possible
Dec 16, 2014, 2:02 PM | Updated: Dec 17, 2014, 6:31 am
Amazon.com has extended deadlines for Christmas shipping, making it possible to wait almost until the end to still get presents there on time. (AP file photo)
(AP file photo)
We’ve all heard the dire warnings about deadlines to get our Christmas presents shipped before it’s too late. But Amazon.com is making it possible this year to push it later than ever and still get your gifts there for the big day.
The Seattle-based company announced Tuesday regular customers can wait until Dec. 19 at 11:59 p.m. ET to order what it considers “qualifying items”, which are those labeled as “ships from and sold by Amazon.com,” or “Fulfilled by Amazon.com” — and have them delivered by Christmas Eve. As Geekwire first pointed out, that’s two days later than last year’s deadline for free shipping.
Amazon Prime members can wait even longer. The company has extended the deadline for those who’ve paid the $99 annual fee until Dec. 22 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
In some places you can really push it up to the last minute. Amazon says it’ll offer same-day delivery for packages ordered by 10 a.m. local time on Christmas Eve in 12 eligible cities including Seattle, Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Dallas, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.
You might not want to push your luck entirely, though. Last year, a late crush of orders and bad weather around the country overwhelmed UPS and FedEx, delaying delivery of packages until after Christmas.
Amazon has taken significant steps to handle the holidays. The company has hired 80,000 seasonal workers this year, a 14 percent increase from 2013. The company has also expanded its fulfillment centers to get products to customers quicker, with more than 100 worldwide.
Beyond Amazon, some other retailers will also offer last minute shipping that relies on UPS and FedEx. FedEx Express, FedEx Ground and FedEx Home Delivery all deliver on Wednesday, Dec. 24. And the company will even deliver on Christmas Day to selected locations.
UPS will deliver through Christmas Eve, but doesn’t offer Christmas Day deliveries.
The U.S. Postal Service says the deadline for First-Class and Priority mail is Dec. 20, and overnight delivery is available if you ship by Dec. 23.
If you’re looking to save a few bucks and don’t want to wait until the last minute, Thursday is “Free Shipping Day.” The annual promotion features over 1,000 merchants nationwide offering free shipping with a guarantee it’ll get there before Christmas.
