Amazon Now Goes Nationwide, Taking 30-Minute Delivery to Most Cities Across the Country – GeekWire
Amazon is expanding its 30-minute “Amazon Now” service to more US cities, with plans to reach tens of millions of customers nationwide by the end of the year.
The service, which GeekWire first revealed was filling permits in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood last November, delivers fresh groceries, household essentials, and other items from neighborhood fulfillment centers using its Amazon Flex citizen delivery army.
It has so far been limited to Seattle and Philadelphia as test markets.
The company announced Tuesday morning that Amazon Now is now widely available in Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, Philadelphia, and Seattle, and is “rapidly expanding” to Austin, Denver, Houston, Minneapolis, Orlando, Oklahoma City, Phoenix, and other cities.
The expansion is the latest and most aggressive move in Amazon’s push to handle “same-day” delivery, a category in which it competes with Gopuff, DoorDash, and Instacart.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy highlighted Amazon Now in his annual shareholder letter and the company’s Q1 earnings call last month, positioning it as part of a push for faster delivery that includes drones, one- and three-hour options, and same-day shipping.
Prime members pay a $3.99 fee for Amazon Now delivery, compared to $13.99 for non-Prime customers. Orders under $15 carry an additional small order fee of $1.99 for Prime members and $3.99 for non-Prime members — a change from the low $1.99 fee when it launched in December.
In two separate GeekWire tests of Amazon Now in Seattle, orders arrived well under the 30-minute promise. Journalist Kurt Schlosser clocked his delivery in 23 minutes in December, and a separate live test during the GeekWire Podcast in February clocked in at 19 minutes.
Amazon also faces competition from Walmart, which has been quietly hitting the same pace in its existing store network. Walmart CEO John Furner said in February that the company averages less than an hour for Express Delivery orders, with the bulk arriving in less than 30 minutes — excluding micro-hubs.
Amazon does not promise the fastest delivery times. Gopuff’s Fam20 promises 20 minutes, and DoorDash tested 10- to 15-minute deliveries in New York before ending the program. But reliability has been a weak point of fast delivery services, and with its transport technology, Amazon is betting that hitting every 30 minutes is more important than promising 10.
Walmart is also a competitor in this field, quietly hitting the same speed in the existing store network. Walmart CEO John Furner said in February the company averaged less than an hour for Express Delivery orders, with the largest number arriving in less than 30 minutes.
Amazon has struggled to make economic delivery work quickly in the past.
Its one- to two-hour “Prime Now” delivery service was launched in 2014 and closed in 2021, while “Amazon Today,” which used Flex drivers to pick up orders from supermarkets and retailers, was discontinued in late 2024 after drivers often left stores with one or two items.
Amazon Now takes a different approach, using company-owned hubs designed for faster fulfillment.
The service is accessible through the Amazon shopping app and website at amazon.com/now. Amazon declined to provide a full list of cities where the service will soon be available but said customers can check the app to see if Amazon Now is offered in their area.
