$8.00 for shipping or.... $0.87 for some batteries

December 4, 2007 7:14 AM

Straight from the Department of Things Everybody But Me Probably Knew About Two Years Ago, it was only yesterday that I discovered the mind-boggling usefulness of the Amazon Filler Item Finder, which allows you to enter the exact price of the item you need to pad your order up to $25.00 for free shipping. Happy postage-free holidays.

The categories for the finder are customizable as well, so you can somewhat search only for items that might be practical as filler items.

I stumbled across this last night after I was 84 cents short and wondering "god, is there a way to find out what items on Amazon are available for a dollar?" and if I'm the last person on earth to have know this site existed, please at the very least enjoy this rare moment of my amazed joy... like a child seeing snowfall for the first time.

posted by XQUZYPHYR (54 comments total)

I must have missed the memo, same as you. And here I've been scouring my wish list for 2.00 biographies and other bric-a-brac.
posted by absalom at 7:16 AM on December 4, 2007

Hey it works on various international versions too! Cool!

You are a beautiful sparkly snowflake....
posted by chillmost at 7:18 AM on December 4, 2007

That's brilliant.

I usually just pad mine with another CD from Naxos, though, even if that's not optimal.
posted by Wolfdog at 7:18 AM on December 4, 2007

well, looks like you weren't the only one.

Thanks for making my horrible holiday shopping a little easier.
posted by munchingzombie at 7:19 AM on December 4, 2007

Cool!
posted by amro at 7:22 AM on December 4, 2007

Filler Item Finder, where have you been all my life?
posted by SemioticRobotic at 7:23 AM on December 4, 2007

What a great way to take an extra eight bucks from you to save you four on shipping. Amazon is brilliant.
posted by caddis at 7:24 AM on December 4, 2007 [3 favorites]

Nice, thanks!
posted by jquinby at 7:26 AM on December 4, 2007

Thank you! I had no idea either. Definitely will share this link around!
posted by pointystick at 7:28 AM on December 4, 2007

Neat idea, though my usual M.O. is to just let the order sit there for a day or two because I know I'll remember something I need to add and then not only do I get the free shipping but I also get all the stuff I really needed including a period at the end of this very long sentence.
posted by DU at 7:30 AM on December 4, 2007 [1 favorite]

What a great way to take an extra eight bucks from you to save you four on shipping. Amazon is brilliant.

Book shipping in the U.S. is a $3.00 base fee plus a dollar for each item. I was ordering three books, meaning I would have had to pay six bucks to ship a $24.16 order. Instead, thanks to this site I added an 87-cent pack of AAA batteries to my order, which I've got maybe a 50% chance of using, and my shipping was free. So I don't really see where Amazon made out on this deal.
posted by XQUZYPHYR at 7:31 AM on December 4, 2007 [4 favorites]

Also useful for using up a gift certificate. Hey, lookit, a lamp dimmer, cool!
posted by Dreama at 7:31 AM on December 4, 2007

I use Amazon Prime. I get free two day shipping (and I don't have to group my items together) for an annual membership that costs me $79 bucks a year. I can order those 89 cent batteries if I need them and get free shipping.

I originally did this to save money, but now I just buy everything on Amazon. No taxes, no shipping. Good for me, good for them.

Three cheers for free enterprise.
posted by Pants! at 7:33 AM on December 4, 2007 [1 favorite]

Fabulous! Helps with fulfilling those Christmas Wish List gifts, too. Thank you.
posted by misha at 7:34 AM on December 4, 2007

my favorite amazon hack is an alternative searching interface.
posted by shothotbot at 7:35 AM on December 4, 2007 [14 favorites]

Plus Amazon Prime can be shared with members of your family, and they don't have to share your address. (Well, they're supposed to share the same address, but Amazon doesn't seem to care.)
posted by smackfu at 7:43 AM on December 4, 2007

Whoa, that searching interface is great. I hate hate hate Amazon's ridiculous results and UI (actually, the main thing I hate is the hidden state machine that gives me different results every time I search).
posted by DU at 7:44 AM on December 4, 2007

That is seriously awesome.
posted by jeffxl at 7:45 AM on December 4, 2007

If you use the filler service more than a couple of times a month, Prime is better. I agree with Pants, the ability to order a $2 computer part without worrying about shipping is fantastic.
posted by anser at 7:45 AM on December 4, 2007 [1 favorite]

I hit Post too quick - on the other hand, the brilliant thing about Filler is the quasi random way it shuffles Amazon's catalog - just pick a number (regardless of whether you need it for shipping) and browse away. I wish they'd remove the $15 limit though - I'd love to try this at the $300 level!
posted by anser at 7:48 AM on December 4, 2007

ummm- what's that alternative search interface again? that link is sumpin my puter barfs on..... "mab.xul"???
posted by drhydro at 7:54 AM on December 4, 2007

Also useful for using up a gift certificate.

Why would you need to "use up" a gift certificate for Amazon.com? I thought it gets uploaded to your account and stays there forever. I get Amazon.com gift certificates at CoinStar to avoid the nonsense transaction fees and all I do with them is load them into an account balance.

I use Amazon Prime. I get free two day shipping (and I don't have to group my items together) for an annual membership that costs me $79 bucks a year. I can order those 89 cent batteries if I need them and get free shipping ... but now I just buy everything on Amazon. No taxes, no shipping.

That's all well and good, but if we both paid the same price for batteries, you still paid about eighty bucks more than I did for shipping. I don't understand how you can say "no shipping" when you most definitely paid $79 for shipping- you just paid in advance.
posted by XQUZYPHYR at 7:56 AM on December 4, 2007

sorry drhydro, I think it might be Mozilla only. xul. its super cool though. super cool.
posted by shothotbot at 8:00 AM on December 4, 2007

drhydro,

For me, it took a while to load, but mab.xul is my new best friend. Ironically, I was thinking last night of posting to Ask MeFi, because I was looking for something like this.
posted by lukemeister at 8:00 AM on December 4, 2007

I'm using Firefox. I just tried IE, and it didn't know what do do with the xul file.
posted by lukemeister at 8:06 AM on December 4, 2007

what *to* do. I'm in deep do-do now.
posted by lukemeister at 8:07 AM on December 4, 2007

My problem with the free shipping isn't spending $1.23 on a filler item. It's spending $10 on a filler item, because I want a $15 book. So I either buy something I kinda want, which is Amazon's whole point, or just wait to buy it. I'm not spending $4 on shipping, and I'm not buying it at B&N for full list.
posted by smackfu at 8:22 AM on December 4, 2007

In addition to the filler finder and XUL interface, don't miss the Super Saver Shipping Search and Amazon Light. Note that all of these tools make money on commission when you add stuff to your cart through their results.
posted by Rhomboid at 8:22 AM on December 4, 2007

the ability to order a $2 computer part without worrying about shipping is fantastic.

If you're talking about Prime here, it's been my experience that very few small randomy things like that are eligible for Prime -- they're mostly sold by amazon storefronts, who charge their own shipping.

In fact, I'm finding that very little of what I've ordered this year was eligible for prime. And they just auto-renewed my $79 membership for another year, grrr.
posted by luser at 8:24 AM on December 4, 2007

One upon a time this would have been called out as a PepsiBlue post.
posted by limon at 8:44 AM on December 4, 2007 [2 favorites]

And the best thing about Amazon is the way they invented that awesome thing that nobody else would've thought of and isn't obvious in the slightest, and let you buy things with just one click! Isn't that amazing?!!?
posted by inigo2 at 8:47 AM on December 4, 2007

In fact, I'm finding that very little of what I've ordered this year was eligible for prime.

Well, the same stuff isn't eligible for the $25 free shipping either, so it's a bit of a wash.
posted by smackfu at 9:01 AM on December 4, 2007

That's all well and good, but if we both paid the same price for batteries, you still paid about eighty bucks more than I did for shipping. I don't understand how you can say "no shipping" when you most definitely paid $79 for shipping- you just paid in advance.

Because I order many, many things from Amazon. Several times a month. Plus, I get the two-day shipping.
posted by Pants! at 9:01 AM on December 4, 2007

I'm with Pants!. I'm in Amazon Prime and I buy almost every consumer item I can think of from them. It's fantastic, if frighteningly consumeristic. One click makes it particularly painless.
posted by Nelson at 9:05 AM on December 4, 2007

I like Prime, too. I buy enough from Amazon each year that it saves me money on shipping, plus it's two-day delivery. (Sometimes one day: I ordered some books yesterday and they got here today.)
posted by kirkaracha at 9:13 AM on December 4, 2007 [1 favorite]

I buy it with Amazon Prime
Cat food, or books for my mime
Earrings and pans
Drill bits and fans
I use it all of the thyme
posted by Pants! at 9:38 AM on December 4, 2007

So I don't really see where Amazon made out on this deal.

Amazon's Super Saver Shipping allows them to moderate their shipping chain when it's being swamped. Normally when you order something from Amazon it is shipped within 24 hours. With Super Saver shipping it can take as long as a week, especially in December.

This is in ADDITION to their savings for slower shipping.

They save a lot of money by not having to deliver everything 'instantly' and they pass you some of the discount.
posted by onalark at 10:59 AM on December 4, 2007

Nice find. Thanks.
posted by cmgonzalez at 11:41 AM on December 4, 2007

This rules.
posted by unknowncommand at 12:49 PM on December 4, 2007

Give Amazon a go, and I'm sure you'll agree that their product range and customer service can't be beat.

Thanks Amazon, your fee shipping has saved my marriage!
posted by mattoxic at 1:03 PM on December 4, 2007

Why would you need to "use up" a gift certificate for Amazon.com?

You don't ever have to, but sometimes you want to! Mmm, stuff.
posted by Dreama at 1:21 PM on December 4, 2007

One upon a time this would have been called out as a PepsiBlue post.

Probably a time that isn't holiday season shopping but before the free shipping deadline has passed.

Cool find, XQU. Thanks.
posted by phearlez at 2:07 PM on December 4, 2007

I've also got amazon prime. I actually ordered a $1.5 mini-tripod off of there and had it shipped for free in two days :)

Inside this big amazon box, with that plastic-bag padding they use was this tiny plastic bag with a little tab for hanging it on a rack in a store. It looked like something you'd buy at a dollar store.
posted by delmoi at 3:02 PM on December 4, 2007

The one thing I don't like about Prime is that 1-day shipping is $3.99 extra... per item. That seems a little pointless. It's not like shipping two books overnight is that much more than shipping one.
posted by smackfu at 3:20 PM on December 4, 2007

This is bizarre, I can't figure out half of these items actually do. Like what is a Wilton Comfort Santa Grip useful for?!
posted by sim.possible at 4:21 PM on December 4, 2007

One upon a time this would have been called out as a PepsiBlue post.

A completely ad-free site asking selling no product providing a useful tool for people to spend less money somewhere?

I would recommend paying for express shipping of the stick from out your butt.
posted by XQUZYPHYR at 4:22 PM on December 4, 2007 [2 favorites]

sim.possible, it's a cookie cutter. It's useful for making cookies.
posted by pupdog at 4:46 PM on December 4, 2007

Like what is a Wilton Comfort Santa Grip useful for?!

Looks like a cookie cutter.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 5:15 PM on December 4, 2007

Thanks, this is a neat little post - would have been very useful a couple of times earlier this year. Plus, this made me laugh:

One upon a time this would have been called out as a PepsiBlue post.

I call bullshit on that. From the very beginning of the site, Matt's not only been ok with but encouraged the posting of cool new apps and products to the front page. Hell, pick any month in the 1999 archive and just count how many product-related posts there are. If you're gonna pull "once upon a time" rose-colored glasses stuff, at least try to be accurate.
posted by mediareport at 6:02 PM on December 4, 2007

my favorite amazon hack is an alternative searching interface.

See also: Amazon Lite was created by our very own kokogiak (who, if I'm not mistaken, used to work at Amazon.)
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 6:14 PM on December 4, 2007

This is useful, though maybe not quite as useful as my favorite Amazon hack that lets me set a price and be told when it hits (like Half.com does). I know the guys who made this, though I'm not one of them. And yes, they're getting the affiliate fees.
posted by cali at 9:25 PM on December 4, 2007

If you're gonna pull "once upon a time" rose-colored glasses stuff, at least try to be accurate.

But... surely that's a major contradiction?!
posted by Chunder at 4:25 AM on December 5, 2007

i like batteries
posted by frogger12 at 10:38 AM on December 10, 2007

Neat idea, though my usual M.O. is to just let the order sit there for a day or two because I know I'll remember something I need to add and then not only do I get the free shipping but I also get all the stuff I really needed including a period at the end of this very long sentence.

I see that and raise you the oldest item in my Amazon shopping cart was added on October 30, 2004.
posted by oaf at 12:04 PM on December 10, 2007