Walmart’s $120 Bundle Takes Direct Aim at Amazon Prime
The combined subscription undercuts Amazon Prime by $19 annually as grocery and gas inflation squeezes household budgets.
Amazon Prime just got a direct price target on its back. Walmart announced Tuesday it is bundling its Walmart+ and Sam’s Club Plus memberships into a single annual package for $120, undercutting Amazon’s $139-a-year subscription by nearly 14%.
The math is aggressive. Purchasing the two programs separately costs roughly $218 annually — $98 for a standard Walmart+ plan and $120 for Sam’s Club Plus. The new bundle collapses that figure to the equivalent of $10 a month. There is no monthly payment option and no free trial. Shoppers pay upfront or not at all.
This is a calculated strike at the e-commerce subscription model Amazon built over two decades. For years, Walmart treated its digital membership and warehouse club operations as separate revenue streams. Combining them signals a strategic pivot toward locking households into a single retail ecosystem rather than chasing piecemeal sign-ups.
Existing members face a tiered upgrade path designed to prevent churn. Current Walmart+ subscribers can add Sam’s Club Plus for an extra $22 a year. Those already paying for Sam’s Club can upgrade to the Plus tier for $60 and receive Walmart+ automatically. Current Sam’s Club Plus members simply activate the Walmart+ benefit at no additional charge, according to the retailer.
U.S. field associates at both Walmart and Sam’s Club will also receive access to the combined memberships as part of their employee benefits.
The timing tracks with internal momentum. During Walmart’s second-quarter fiscal 2027 earnings call on Aug. 20, executive John Furner said membership fee revenue climbed 17% to an all-time high. He noted that Walmart+ membership grew by double digits during the quarter, while Sam’s Club expanded its base across the U.S., China and Mexico.
“Marketplace, fulfillment services, membership, advertising and other commerce solutions are strengthening our business, and they are improving the economics of the company,” Furner told investors.
That economic improvement matters because consumer spending power is shrinking. Inflation climbed 3.7% in September from a year earlier, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ consumer price index. Gasoline prices surged more than 34% over the past year. Grocery prices rose 1.8%.
Walmart has been positioning itself against those pressures elsewhere. The retailer recently expanded its Thanksgiving meal offerings to keep costs under $10 per person. It also doubled down on pledges against AI-powered personalized pricing and expanded drone delivery to two major U.S. cities.
The bundled perks attempt to match the lifestyle utility Amazon Prime built around video streaming and fast shipping. Members get free delivery from both Walmart and Sam’s Club, member-only pricing, gas discounts and 2% Sam’s Cash on eligible purchases. Instead of Amazon’s Prime Video library, the Walmart package offers a choice between Peacock and Paramount+.
Shares of Walmart (WMT) traded at $118.70, down 0.09%, following the announcement.
LSEG head of consumer research Jharonne Marti discussed the broader implications of the move and consumer sentiment on Fox Business’ “Making Money.”
