Amazon Prime Free Same-Day Delivery Lands In Two New Cities

In its continued pursuit of dominating across the map, eCommerce juggernaut Amazon has expanded free same-day delivery services for Prime members in five states.

Amazon announced Wednesday (Oct. 21) that it would be rolling out the service in Chicago and Orlando, as well as in new areas of the New York City, Northern New Jersey and Philadelphia areas. Greg Greeley, vice president of Amazon Prime, said that this brings millions more Amazon customers into the fold of express delivery options.

“We’re focused on making Prime better and better and every day members discover how Prime free same-day delivery can make their lives easier,” Greeley said in a statement.  “Members in Chicago and Orlando, as well as members in more than 750 cities and towns, can order by noon and receive their orders the very same day, for free.”

The announcement marks another period of growth for Amazon’s same-day delivery program, which launched in May 2015 in 14 cities across the country. While growth for growth’s sake could be behind same-day delivery in Chicago and beyond, The Chicago Tribune pointed out that Uber’s Rush delivery service also just launched in the Windy City this month. Rather than lose out on one of the country’s largest markets, it makes sense that Amazon would launch same-day delivery options in Chicago before it’s too late.

Amazon’s most recent expansion brings the number of metro markets eligible for same-day delivery through Prime up to 16. As Amazon continues to push its Flex program, which boasts delivery times under an hour through partnerships with on-demand workers, consumers across the country may soon spend more time researching their products than actually waiting for them to arrive after making their purchases.

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