Best Buy Offers Free Shipping For The Holidays

For the fourth consecutive year, Best Buy is offering free shipping on all online orders with no minimum purchase for the holidays.

Free shipping will be available from Nov. 8 to Dec. 25, as long as merchandise is available. The service is in addition to the electronics retailer’s same-day delivery option, which is available in 40 markets in the United States and has a $5.99 order fee.

“Best Buy connecting its free shipping promotion to its omnichannel strategy is a great move,” said Charles Dimov, VP of marketing for OrderDynamics, according to Chain Store Age.

“First, it takes away the purchasing barrier of the dreaded minimum order required. Then, it reminds shoppers, ‘if you want it even faster, more conveniently and the opportunity to see, touch and feel the product first, come into the store for a pickup,’” he added. “The in-store pickup saves Best Buy the cost of shipping and also reduces returns. Given that only 27.5 percent of retailers in the U.S. today offer the BOPIS option to customers, as this is a nice differentiator for Best Buy.”

The free shipping offer is a way for Best Buy to compete with rivals such as Amazon, Walmart and Target. Amazon announced last week that it is offering free shipping without a minimum purchase on “orders that will arrive in time for the Christmas holiday” for hundreds of millions of items. There is usually a $25 minimum for non-Prime members.

In addition, Target plans to offer free two-day shipping without a minimum order on “hundreds of thousands of items” until Dec. 22.

Target CEO Brian Cornell told the media at an event in late October, “I have never felt better about our position and our readiness to deliver against the holiday season. As those [Toys R Us and Sears] stores close, it’s real market share that’s up for grabs.”

Walmart, too, plans to expand in-store returns and two-day shipping for items offered on its website by third-party sellers. As of now, the retailer gives customers free two-day shipping on orders of $35 or greater on a selection that includes millions of products.