While Amazon just recently dropped its free shipping minimum from $35 to $25, Target has made the baffling decision to go in the opposite direction, raising its minimum required purchase for free shipping to $35.
The company told CNBC it increased its free shipping threshold on Sunday, joining Walmart at the $35 level.
“Target regularly reviews and adjusts our online shipping policies and practices to better serve guests and enhance our business” the retailer said in a statement. The change won’t affect Target REDcard credit or debit cardholders, who will continue to get free shipping with no minimum purchase requirement.
The retailer first offered free shipping for a minimum of $50, but then dropped that threshold to $25 in Feb. 2015. At the time, it was cheaper than Walmart or Amazon.
This move is a bit confusing, as Target has been trying desperately to play catch-up to Amazon: Just yesterday, the company announced it would be testing next-day deliveries for pantry and household items.
It would seem counterintuitive, then, to require shoppers to spend more money to get the same free shipping they could get elsewhere with a lower minimum purchase threshold. However, Target says that just “a small percentage of Target.com purchases are less than $35, so the majority of orders will continue to ship for free.”
by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist