Amazon to Singapore Buying & Shipping Guide

Submitted by  Teoh Yi Chie on  April 10, 2009 - 1:20 pm

(May 2014 update: Shipping charges are checked to be up to date.)

This guide is written for Singaporeans or those living in Singapore.

It should help you decide whether to buy from Amazon. I have bought items from all Amazon branches except from China, Italy and Spain branches.

For buying digital content like mp3, ebooks, etc, read Guide on buying Amazon Digital Content Outside of US.

1. Introduction

Why buy from Amazon?

1. Even after including shipping cost, some items are still cheaper than local prices. This is particularly true for books and video discs from Amazon US.

2. Their variety is huge.

3. Their customer service is excellent. They have great return and refund policies. You'll have to pay for return shipping charges though.

4. There is no GST if your package (including shipping cost) is under SGD$400. If you want to get SGD$600 worth of stuff, you should split them up into two orders, each under $400.

When is it not suitable to buy from Amazon?

1. If you need the item urgently. Shipping time varies. Shipment may get delayed at customs, post offices, etc.

2. They usually don't ship electronics to Singapore. Visit Amazon Global page to see products that ship globally.

To buy electronics, you can use services like vPost, Comgateway or Borderlinx (Citibank card users only) who act as third party forwarder to ship your items to Singapore. Amazon.com surface shipping is free for certain dollar amount so you just have to pay for the forwarder's shipping charges. I once paid $25 to vPost to ship a software package, the size of 3 CD cases, which is very expensive. For Comgateway, it's US$23 to ship a Kindle and case.

3. Generally, the more expensive the item is in Singapore, the more you'll save from Amazon. When price differences are small, it's not worth the effort and you should support local retailers instead.

2. The different Amazon branches

Let's talk specifically about each Amazon branch. The shipping charges listed below are all meant for shipments to Singapore.

(box) is a per shipment charge, (item) is per item. There can be many items in one box shipment.

Sometimes Amazon might ship items in separate shipments (at their cost). It happens when your items come from different fulfillment centres.

Also listed are the sales tax, which is only applicable to their local residence. You can deduct the sales tax from the listed price. For example, for a $100 Euro book from Amazon Germany (sales tax of 7%), you'll only need to pay $93 Euro. Shipping charges still remain the same.

Amazon.com (source)

Shipping charges and delivery times:

  • AmazonGlobal Saver 17-31 days (only to Singapore and India)
    Free for purchases above US$125 in value, typically for items such as books, discs, and selected items
  • Standard Shipping 17-31 days
    Books - US4.99 (box) - US4.99 (item)
    Disc - US4.99 (box) - US3.99 (item)
  • Expedited Shipping 12-19 days
    Books - US13.99 (box) - US5.99 (item)
    Disc - US13.99 (box) - US3.99 (item)
  • Priority Shipping 3-7 days
    Books - US29.99 (box) - US5.99 (item)
    Disc - US29.99 (box) - US3.99 (item)

I've had rare occasions where boxes take two months to arrive.

Generally, the more expensive a book is in Singapore, the cheaper it is in USA. It depends on currency rates of course.

Bulky or heavy items have additional surcharges. Anything more than 5 pounds (2.26kg) is considered heavy. The weight surcharges are as follows:

  • Standard Shipping - US1.99/lb
  • Expedited Shipping - US1.99/lb
  • Priority Shipping - US2.49/lb

So if you are shipping a 5lb (2.2kg) item, that would translate to an extra US$9.95.

Amazon.co.uk (source) - (Sales tax: 16% for electronics)

Shipping charges and delivery times:

  • Standard airmail 7 - 10 days
    Books - UK5.49 (box) - UK2.99 (item)
    Disc - UK2.09 (box) - UK1.49 (item)
  • Expedited Shipping 5 - 10 days
    UK10.99 (box) + UK4.99 per kg
  • Priority Express 2-4 days
    UK19.99 (box) plus
    Disc - UK1.99
    Books - UK2.49
    Others - UK4.99 per kg

Sometimes books here are cheaper than on Amazon US. This price difference is due to exchange rates and often the book distribution agreement. Their per item shipping charge is lower.

The delivery is about 10-14 days, from my experience with Standard airmail.

Amazon.ca (source)

Shipping charges and delivery times:

  • Standard 8-12 weeks
    Books - CA9.99 (box) - CA5.49 (item)
    Disc - CA4.99 (box) - CA2.49 (item)
  • Expedited 2-4 weeks
    Books - CA15.99 (box) - CA8.99 (item)
    Disc - CA9.99 (box) - CA3.99 (item)
  • Priority 3-7 days
    Books - CA19.99 (box) - CA9.99 (item)
    Disc - CA19.99 (box) - CA4.99 (item)

If you're not going for Priority shipping, the shipping time is very long. The per-item shipping charge is quite high.

Amazon.de (source) - (Sales tax: 7% for normal products, 16% for electronics)

Shipping charges and delivery times:

  • Standard 7-9 days
    Euro9 (box) and Euro4 per KG
  • Express 2-12 days
    Euro28 (box) and Euro8 per KG

Items sold in Europe are relatively pricey. You might be able to find some electronics that can ship direct from Amazon Germany.

The delivery is about 2 weeks, from my experience with Standard shipping.

Amazon.fr (source) - (Sales tax: 5.5% for normal products, 16% for electronics)

Shipping charges and delivery times:

  • Standard 12-15 days
    Euro12 (box) - Euro1.50 (item)
  • Priority 7-14 days
    Euro14 (box) - Euro6 per KG
  • Lightning 2-4 days
    Euro28 (box) - Euro9 per KG

Again, items in Europe are pricey. In addition to box charges, standard shipping has per-item charges, and express shipping has per-KG charges.

Amazon.it (source)

Shipping charges and delivery times:

  • Standard 12-15 days
    Euro14 (box) + Euro5 per KG
  • Express 2-6 days
    Euro25 (box) + Euro5 per KG

Items from Amazon Italy are also quite pricey. I've not bought here so I can't comment on the shipping time.

Amazon.es (source)

Shipping charges and delivery times:

  • Standard 12-15 days
    Euro14 (box) + Euro4 per KG
  • Express 2-6 days
    Euro20 (box) + Euro9 per KG

Items from Amazon Spain are quite pricey. I've not bought here so I can't comment on the shipping time. The standard and express shipping times are the same but at different charges.

Amazon.co.jp (source) - (Sales tax: 5%)

Shipping charges and delivery times:

  • International Express 2-5 business days
    Per shipment - 600 yen (box)
    Books - 400 yen (item)
    Discs - 300 yen (item)

The only shipping option is International Express. The per shipment charge is expensive, but per item charge is relatively cheap.

Shipping is very fast. I've the shipping date confirmation on a Friday and it was here next Monday.

In general, the Japanese books in Kino are 20-30% more expensive than Amazon Japan (with per item charge but no per box added). Buying from Kino means you don't have to pay the hefty per shipment charge. Again, if you're buying a few books, Kino's price doesn't look very good already.

Amazon third party merchants

If Amazon doesn't ship the item you want overseas, try the Amazon third party merchants. Merchants who can ship overseas will indicate on their page with "international shipping available". Each merchant has their own shipping rates and time. Generally, their shipping is more expensive than Amazon.

There's no consolidation orders for different items even if bought from the same merchant. E.g. If you buy a book and a DVD from a merchant, it will be shipped out in two boxes, and hence there will be two per-box charges.

3. Examples on calculating shipping charges

I shall use Amazon US shipping rates, the Standard Shipping, for these examples. Price of the items are not included.

For an order of 1 book:
US4.99 (box) + US4.99 (item)

2 books:
US4.99 (box) + (2 x US4.99) (item)

2 discs:
US4.99 (box) + (2 x US3.99) (item)

1 book, 1 disc:
US4.99 (box) + US4.99 (book) + US3.99 (disc)

The box charge, or per shipment charge, is always there.

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Comments

Cavin (not verified) Mon, 17 May 2010 - 14:01

Hi Parka,

Aside from books, assuming I'm ordering some bike parts like wheel set etc etc. Is it better to ship from UK to SG or via vpost UK to SG?

The items is less than 4kg.

Any good tips?

Appreciated.

Teoh Yi Chie Mon, 17 May 2010 - 17:33

@Cavin
I don't think Amazon ship those direct so you'll have to go through vPOST. Try and see if there are any third party Amazon merchants selling because sometimes they do ship internationally, and the shipping cost are also provided so you can compare. You can use vPOST shipping calculator to calculate shipping but note that they choose the higher price based on weight or box volume.

johnny (not verified) Thu, 03 Jun 2010 - 11:49

hi i'm new to buying online. Just wondering if i'm order 2 dvds from japan how would i go about calculating the shipping fee(box,item). Or is the shipping fee fixed regardless of the amount of items you bought.

Thanks!

Teoh Yi Chie Thu, 03 Jun 2010 - 12:04

@johnny
According to the shipping rates posted above for Amazon Japan, for discs, the box is 1400yen and each disc is 300yen.

For the 2 DVDs, your the total shipping charges should be 1400yen + (2 x 300yen) = 2000yen.

Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 29 Jun 2010 - 20:15

Hi there, really useful guide, thank alot

i have a little question regarding buying online.

is there a limit to the number of books in a box? if i want to buy 10 to 12 books is it alright to count the shipping cost as USD 4.99 + (10x4.99) = roughly 55 USD for shipping? Is there any other charges involve other then the price of the book and the shipping cost?

Thanks in advance

Teoh Yi Chie Tue, 29 Jun 2010 - 21:23

@Anonymous
For 10 books, it's 55 USD as you've calculated.

If your book is of unusual size and weight, there will be a surcharge around 8 - 10 USD for that particular book. I know that any book above 5 pounds (about 2 kg) will have that surcharge.

zj (not verified) Thu, 08 Jul 2010 - 00:11

Can anyone help ? I just ordered two skirts from amazon.co.jp
When I clicked check out they said the merchandise cannot be shipped to my singapore address ..anyone can help me with this ? Thanks a lot

Xlrate (not verified) Mon, 12 Jul 2010 - 21:07

Hey, you have a useful guide here. So from the other comments I have read, you just have to create an account for vPOST and use their address they give and everything will be fine? Cause I order a pair of headphones from Amazon and used the address vPOST gave me. and when after the payment is made, how long will vPOST take to ship to SIngapore and do they deliver to my doorstep? IS it a safe way of buying the headphones?(Reason of buying on Amazon is because it is way cheaper than getting it locally)

SP (not verified) Tue, 13 Jul 2010 - 23:00

I am kinda lost here>.<.I have never bought stuff online before but I wanna buy books from amazon since they are a lot cheaper even with the shipping fees.As i am rather uncomfortable with giving the info of my credit card,is there other means to purchase stuff from amazon,say paypal etc?Oh and do I necessary have to go thru the VPost thingy before it can be delivered to my house assuming i am only buying books?Thanks for reading.

SP (not verified) Tue, 13 Jul 2010 - 23:59

Hey parka thanks for the real quite reply!<3.I checked the webbie u recommended me,it is really great.Have you purchased books from there before?It says free shipping worldwide,sg inclusive?Is the purchasing procedure identical to that of amazon?Thanks again!

Teoh Yi Chie Thu, 15 Jul 2010 - 10:23

@SP
Their prices are inclusive of shipping worldwide. What you see is what you pay. Shipping takes about 2 weeks time.

Purchase procedure is roughly the same for online shops everywhere.

SP (not verified) Sun, 25 Jul 2010 - 13:01

Heya Parka.I ordered from bookdepository few days back and they told me to check with the local delivery services if my mail doesnt arrive in time.But who do I really check with?I mean there are a number of delivery services here right o.o?Am i supposed to call all of them?
Thanks again!

Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 27 Jul 2010 - 17:29

Hi, i recently bought an electronic item from ebay.com (US) but its been month since the item been posted on 26 june, but till now, its been a months & item still not arrived. i've contacted the person, he says that it requires 15-20 working days to process. i'm curious as item already left US on 6 jul, but how come it need so long to clear customs or watsoever??? as item still dunno where it lies with a useless tracking no. that i can only track till before its dispatch to SIN. should i file for a dispute to get my $$$ back nw?

Teoh Yi Chie Tue, 27 Jul 2010 - 18:50

@Anonymous
The time it takes to ship can vary by a lot (of days). I've experienced waiting for 30 days before, from Amazon. Typically, if it is sent by air, it should take about 2 weeks, by ship, it would be at least a month.

I don't know what tracking number that is. It's probably not a location tracking but a non-delivery tracker, meaning it will only update when there's a non-delivery. You should check with your seller.

Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 29 Jul 2010 - 19:23

hey bro, thanks for the guide, its really useful. i made an order of 7 books and saved alot. However, i have a question, for my 7 books, its separated into 3 shipment, 5-1-1 comes in different dates. does this increase the price of the shipment or anything?

SP (not verified) Wed, 04 Aug 2010 - 22:43

Hey Parka,
Just an update.I just received the mail from bookdepository and the book is in great condition!It took about 10days for it to arrive at my doorstep!Very happy with their services,thanks for the guidance and great recommendation:)

D (not verified) Sun, 22 Aug 2010 - 21:13

Hi Parka,

Is the delivery of books straight to your doorstep, or is it deposited in your mailbox?(I live in a private apartment)

Reason why I'm asking is because I'm wondering if I need to be home for the delivery.

Thanks in advance!

CS (not verified) Sun, 05 Sep 2010 - 10:41

Hi Parka,
I am planning to make an order for 3 unreleased PC/PS3 Games with international shipment and different release dates.

I made the choice to group my shipments, but it still says minimum 3 shipments needed to fulfil my order, and respective delivery dates are close to the release dates of each game. The conflicting thing is that the calculated shipping charges show up as 1 Shipment + 3 items, which will save a lot of money.

Question is, as the items become available, will Amazon hold back my shipments? or ship on the listed delivery dates?

Teoh Yi Chie Sun, 05 Sep 2010 - 10:56

@CS
If you're chosen to group the shipment, but Amazon splits it up afterward, they'll cover the shipping cost. The shipping cost is fixed after they've issued the invoice.

By the way, for games, they go by priority shipping, the most expensive one out of the three shipping options. You might want to check if you're able to get the game locally because it might be cheaper.

CS (not verified) Sun, 05 Sep 2010 - 11:13

Hi Parka,
Since all 3 that I am buying are collector's editions (Civilization 5, LittleBigPlanet 2, Gran Turismo 5), its highly possible they will not be available locally.

But to be really clear, the shipment option was listed as "Group my items into as few shipments as possible (minimum 3-- why?)", and 3 different delivery dates (each date is close to respective release date) were listed on each item too. Shipment mode is international priority only. The funny thing was that the calculated shipment charge is $29.99 + 3x$5.99 = $47.96, or 1 shipment + 3 items.

I also played around using my vPost USA addresses and its the same thing, shipping is calculated as 1 shipment + 3 items.

Flaw in the system perhaps?
But I'll take advantage of it as long as I can ensure Amazon will ship in the 3 quick shipments as listed.

Teoh Yi Chie Sun, 05 Sep 2010 - 12:16

@CS
The calculated charge is correct since you've chosen to group into as few shipments as possible.

It's not a flaw in the system. Amazon want to ship out the item whenever they become available so that the slowest item will not delay the whole order.

Kevin Lee (not verified) Sat, 11 Sep 2010 - 01:24

Hi there,

For the shipping, if i'm going to ship from singapore to US will i get Standard domestic shipping credit( Or the international shipping credit) back ? or the Charges for the shipping will charge under my expenses?

Teoh Yi Chie Sat, 11 Sep 2010 - 01:41

@Kevin Lee
I can't remember clearly if they will refund the shipping charge should you need to return an item. It should be stated in the email they will send you after you request for a return.

My guess is, they should refund the shipping charge if there's an error on their part, eg, item damaged during shipping -- happened to me once.

Kevin Lee (not verified) Sat, 11 Sep 2010 - 21:40

ohhh, what i mean is the shipping charges that they will credit to you. Cause if i have a US customer who is going to buy the item that i have listed. Does Amazon going to credit the international charges to me? Or will it be a expense to me?

Eric (not verified) Mon, 13 Sep 2010 - 23:17

Hi Parka,

Thanks for the nice info! I was wondering if there's any problem importing CDs or DVDs via amazon.com though - I heard that the customs confiscates lots of DVDs or they will throw your DVD shipments to MDA for censorship that takes ages. Is this true? Thanks!

Miumiu (not verified) Thu, 16 Sep 2010 - 01:02

HI Parka,

I am looking into shipping a huge box of a stroller from Amazon.com.
Its volumetric weight is about 14.5kg. Is it wise to ship directly from Amazon?
Or should I find forwarders like DHL, CWG?

The shipping charges for such items are astronomically high!

Do share your opinion.

Teoh Yi Chie Thu, 16 Sep 2010 - 02:49

@Miumiu
You should ship direct from Amazon if you're able to do so. That's because their shipping charges aren't really calculated by weight, although they still add a weight surcharge (fixed amount) for heavy items.

For your case, a stroller will probably be shipped by the International Priority option, most likely DHL or USPS. The total shipping cost should be us$30 + us$6 + us$10 (weight surcharge) = us$46. This number is assuming you're not buying from a third party merchant from Amazon.

A forwarder will cost a few times more than that, I'm pretty sure, as they calculate shipping cost by weight.

Alex (not verified) Sun, 10 Oct 2010 - 14:17

I am a little confused. I have not been able to find a straight answer anywhere but if I order 3 or 4 things all from the same place at the same time will Amazon automatically ship them in one box? Does this mean I only need to pay the $2.98 shipping fee once?

Teoh Yi Chie Sun, 10 Oct 2010 - 17:20

@Alex
If your order has 3 items from Amazon, there will be 1 per-shipment charge and 3 per-item charge. The shipping charge doesn't change even if Amazon uses a box for each item.

If you order 3 items from third party merchants on Amazon, there will be 3 per-shipment box and 3 per-item charge. The shipping charge doesn't change even if they use 1 box for 3 items.

Zorro (not verified) Tue, 12 Oct 2010 - 09:37

Hey. :D
Thanks so much for this informative blog. Just one more question to add to the rest though.
What Singapore debit cards are accepted at Amazon.com?

Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 17 Nov 2010 - 07:48

When I sell stuff on amazon, do i have to pay the shipping or does the customer have to pay for it?

Allan (not verified) Wed, 24 Nov 2010 - 11:22

Hi Parka,
thanks for your informative blog. Im here in Singapore.
Is it ok to order to blu-ray disc like this one below now?
https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Potter-Years-Giftset-Blu-ray/dp/B002Q8GKLM
its a gifset box from amazon which cost only $39.99.
Will it be delivered to me or will not allowed by customs.
This is my first time to order via Amazon as I've got some non-verified hearsays
that CD/DVD are not allowed to be shipped / ordered in Singapore.
Thank you.

Jim (not verified) Sun, 28 Nov 2010 - 18:13

Hi, I was wondering if there is a choice of being able to order from Amazon marketplace and ship directly here? Because from what I've read here, it seems possible, but I've tried adding about every similar item from different marketplace sellers into my cart but I keep getting a "Not able to ship to your location" for every single item. Even when a few of them does list International Shipping.

Is it just the marketplace sellers? Or is it impossible to buy from the marketplace and ship direct to here? Do I need to order and ship using Vpost instead? Thanks.

Teoh Yi Chie Sun, 28 Nov 2010 - 20:10

@Jim
You can tell which sellers can ship internationally when they display a link to their "International & domestic shipping rates" page. Those that ship within the country only display "Domestic shipping rates".

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