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- Amazon is experiencing major stock outages on essential products and delaying the delivery of nonessential items. You may have to wait up to a month on any products you need right now.
- We found 30+ online stores that offer fast and free (or very affordable) shipping and generally have a better stock of products. Some may also offer curbside pickup in case you need your order more urgently.
- The list is divided into categories like tech, household essentials, and pet supplies, so you can quickly find the best Amazon alternative for your needs.
Amazon, once the go-to destination for nearly everything you could ever need, may no longer be the ideal place to shop online.
The mega-retailer has been hit with a combination of struggles because of the coronavirus. As brick-and-mortar stores nationwide closed in March and people started preparing for life at home, shoppers turned to Amazon more than ever and bought up household essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer. This, in turn, caused significant stock outages and price gouging by third-party sellers on all types of products.
Amazon has also pushed back delivery times of "nonessential" items. Products you could normally receive within a few days now come with an expected delivery date three to four weeks out and the explanation: "We're temporarily prioritizing the delivery of some items in order to serve our customers in need and ensure the safety of our associates. As a result, some delivery times are longer than usual."
To help you buy everything you need right now - whether it's cleaning products, pet food, or cooking tools - we've compiled a list of online retailers that may be faster and more reliable than Amazon.
These stores offer fast and free (or very affordable) shipping, generally have a better stock of products, and are ready to step up in place of Amazon. Better yet, some also offer curbside pickup. In case you need something the same day, you can drive up to the store and receive your order safely and quickly, without ever stepping foot inside the store.
For this roundup, we focused on retailers that ship nationwide, but we also encourage you to support local businesses by checking their websites and social media pages for their shipping policies at this time. Depending on its product availability and shipping speed, a local shop may be a better option for what you need.
We've divided the list into categories and included important information such as order minimums, shipping policies, and potential delays.