An Amazon employee delivers a package on Cyber Monday in New York, USA, on Monday, November 27, 2023.
Stephanie Keith | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Amazon is giving Prime members a free subscription to Grubhub in its latest move to beef up the perks of its $139-a-year loyalty program.
Amazon previously offered Prime members a one-year subscription to Grubhub, along with free delivery on orders over $12. The deal announced Thursday makes the food delivery service a permanent part of Amazon’s membership program. As part of the move, people who aren’t Prime members can also order from Grubhub directly through Amazon’s website or mobile app.
Amazon has steadily beefed up its Prime perks in recent years to attract and retain members, but it faces growing competition from loyalty programs from Walmart Inc. and Target Inc. The company added discounted One Medical memberships to the program, in addition to existing perks like fast shipping and video streaming.
Amazon secured the right to acquire a 2% stake in Grubhub, the U.S. subsidiary of Just Eat Takeaway.com Inc., in July 2022. Just Eat said Amazon could increase its stake in Grubhub to 15% if it meets certain performance thresholds, such as an increase in new customer numbers.
Amazon once operated a food-delivery service that competed with companies like Grubhub, Uber Eats, and DoorDash. The company launched Amazon Restaurants in 2015, allowing Prime members to order meals from local restaurants that would be delivered by Amazon drivers.
The company closed Amazon Restaurants after four years to focus on grocery delivery, and is expanding the selection of non-perishable and grocery items it sells on its site. Amazon also offers online ordering from Whole Foods and Fresh supermarkets.
