Amazon is increasing Prime membership fees by $20 per year, but the actual cost of membership is not being paid by users.

Prime started as a way to avoid shipping fees on Amazon packages, but now it offers music, TV and movie streaming, games, Kindle books, photo storage, and more. Giving up Prime is a big deal, depending on how much of these services you use. And yet, with regular news reports about Amazon’s abusive labor practices, anti-union tactics, and a general sentiment that one company shouldn’t control the entire retail industry, many of us are thinking we should ditch it. Is now the time?

“I thought about leaving Amazon for a long time because I disagreed with the ethics of many of their business practices. I ultimately let our Amazon Prime membership lapse in the fall of 2020 and have not regretted it. My kids have a favorite show that they used to watch on Amazon Prime that they now watch on another content provider. When we shop online, we now more often buy directly from brands or choose alternative retailers that can compete with Amazon,” Jen Panaro, author of several guides to leaving Amazon, told Lifewire via email.

Amazon’s shopping service is simply amazing, and during the pandemic, when many local stores were closed during various lockdowns, it became the default store for many people. The friction from thinking you need something to having it delivered to your door is almost zero. And with Prime, you can get next-day or same-day delivery at no extra cost. That makes Amazon a habit that’s hard to break.