Most people think of Amazon Prime as an overpriced way to get free shipping, but there are so many hidden Amazon features and perks that get overlooked. Case in point: Prime Student, an incredible value for college students.

College is tough. You have to juggle your coursework, your hobbies, and your social life—all with very little money to spare. Amazon understands, which is why it provides several ways for students to save time, money, and energy.

If you're a college student, then you'll want to keep reading. Here are all the benefits you get with Prime Student and how you can take advantage of it now for maximum savings.

1. Six-Month Free Trial

The normal trial length for Amazon Prime is one month. By signing up with valid student identification to Prime Student, you get a free trial of six months.

Note that while Prime Student does provide access to many Prime features, it doesn't grant access to all Prime features (notably the ability to share your membership with family). For the rest of this article, we'll focus on student-relevant features that are available during the Prime Student extended free trial.

2. Full Prime Membership for 50% Off

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Image Credit: Amazon

Once your Prime Student trial ends, Amazon gives you a great discount on Prime itself: renew at a price of $7.49/month or $69/year for four years or until you graduate (whichever is sooner). Compared to the normal price of $139 per year, you're getting the full benefits of Prime for half off.

3. Free Speedy Shipping

Perhaps the biggest benefit of Prime Student is the beloved one-day shipping, with same-day and two-hour grocery delivery available in some locations.

The average cost of shipping on Amazon is between $5 and $10 per cart—way more if you're ordering heavy items like televisions or furniture. Even if you assume a low shipping rate of $5 per cart, the savings are enormous over the course of a year.

Think about how useful this can be. You're a student. Let's say you want to throw a party for a friend next week. Instead of walking out of campus and across town to buy supplies, you can get it done on Amazon in 10 minutes and have it arrive in just two days. No shipping costs!

4. Exclusive Deals

Amazon partners with other retailers to give you exclusive Prime benefits. You can get discounts at Whole Foods, save money on medication, get a seven-day Prime Wardrobe tryout for free, and access to thousands of coupons. All of which will be handy as a student!

Plus, there's an ever-changing selection of Prime member deals on Amazon products relevant to college students: laptops and tablets, mattresses, data drives, office software, entertainment gadgets, beauty and personal care, backpacks, apparel, and so much more. The deals are fantastic, with some items slashed up to 50% off.

5. Textbook Rentals

As a college student, overpriced textbooks will eat up your budget in no time. That's why many recommend that you rent instead of buy whenever possible. Fortunately, Amazon has an entire section dedicated to Textbook Rentals.

amazon textbook rental

With Prime Student, textbook rentals are shipped in two days for free, and you may get a discount up to 90% off for certain textbooks. The category coverage is comprehensive and ranges across Business to Humanities, Computer Science to Law, Journalism to Medicine.

You can also rent digital Kindle textbooks. A Kindle device isn't necessary as long as you use the Kindle app for Android or iOS, but reading on a Kindle is preferable to a smartphone or tablet.

6. Discounted Access to Amazon Music Unlimited

Amazon Music Unlimited is Amazon's music streaming service that lets you stream over 90 million songs in high quality. It's ad-free, supports offline listening with unlimited skipping, and also hosts podcasts.

Normally, a subscription to Amazon Music Unlimited costs $9.99/month. As an Amazon Prime Student member, you can get it all for $0.99/month. That's incredible value for access to so much music.

7. Free Ebooks, Magazines, and Comics

Prime Reading grants unlimited access to thousands of ebooks (many of which come with Audible Narration), magazines, and comics at no additional charge. It's an all-you-can-eat buffet of fiction and nonfiction. The only downside? They're only available in Kindle format, which means you need a Kindle device or the Kindle app.

8. Unlimited Photo Storage

While regular Amazon users get 5GB of cloud storage for photos, videos, and files, Prime members get unlimited storage for photos plus 5GB for videos and files through Amazon Photos. As a college student, you're going to take numerous photos, right? Don't underestimate free storage!

9. Unlimited Streaming of Movies and TV Shows

Entertainment can be a huge drain on a student's budget. Why pay over $13 for two hours at the cinema when you can stream thousands of movies and TV shows for free? With Prime Video, you can watch anywhere you can take your laptop, and you can even watch in your pajamas.

For many, Prime Video itself is worth the price of Prime. There are plenty of great benefits to shout about Prime Video. Plus, as a student, you get discounted access to Prime Video channels like Shudder and Epix.

10. Prime Gaming

Speaking of entertainment, if you like playing video games, then Prime Student offers even more value in the form of Prime Gaming.

Prime Gaming grants a bunch of premium features for the game-streaming site Twitch, along with a rotating collection of free games. In addition to ad-free viewing and exclusive chat emojis on Twitch, you also get free redeemable perks for various video games (such as loot boxes for Overwatch).

With Prime Student, you also get one free Twitch channel subscription that lasts the duration of the free trial. If you renew with a full Prime account, you get one free month-long Twitch channel subscription every 30 days.

You Should Definitely Sign Up for Prime Student

At this point, to forgo Prime Student is to leave money on the table. If you order on Amazon even two or three times in a year, the savings on shipping will pay for itself at the student rate. Prime Video can save you money on streaming costs. The discounts can save you even more. It's undoubtedly worth it.