How to Get USA Pricing on Kindle Books (from Anywhere in the World)
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Ever been excited to buy a Kindle book only to be disappointed that the sale wasn’t available in your region? As a company based out of Canada, we know the feeling.
If you have experienced this, we have some good news. We’ve discovered a way to get American pricing even if you’re not an American citizen. This method is completely legal, doesn’t break the terms of service and I’ve spoken with Amazon directly (see bottom) to make sure this method is permissible. I’d love to teach you how to do this so you don’t have to miss out on another great deal.
You Won’t Need To Spend An Additional $11 Anymore
The first step is to get an American address. Entire businesses have been started to provide mailboxes and package forwarding to people in other countries. These businesses make money by charging a monthly fee for a mailbox and then extra for receiving and forwarding your mail to you. Because this is for Kindle books, we don’t need any forwarding options. There won’t be any mail, we just need the address.
To find a mailbox, Google “get USA address” or “get USA address free”. Offers change regularly and some companies will allow you to set up your mailbox for free (often for a limited time). Once you have your address it’s now time for the last step and that’s to let Amazon know you want American pricing on your Kindle books.
“Manage My Kindle”
From your Amazon Account click “Manage My Kindle“. From there on the left hand sidebar click “Country Settings” which is under the heading “Your Kindle Account”.
You’ll now see the Country you’re registered with. Click “Change” and put in your new American address.
You’re done. Seriously, that’s it. You’ll now see USA pricing for all Kindle books when you shop on Amazon.com.
We realize that even though this method is legal and not breaking the terms of service, some may frown upon it as a grey area/loophole. To ensure that this was not the case we ran it by a Kindle specialist from Amazon. Here is an abridged version of my conversation with Pallavi from the Amazon team:
A Customer Service Associate will be with you in a moment.
You are now connected to Pallavi from Amazon.com.
Pallavi: Hello, my name is Pallavi. I’ll be happy to help you.
Me: My question is regarding the terms of service for purchasing Kindle books on Amazon.com. Under “Your Kindle Account” it has an option for Country Settings. There I’m able to pick my country by putting in my address. I am living in Canada but I have a forwarding address in the United States. If I put in my United States address I receive USA pricing. Does that break your terms of service?
Pallavi: Please give me a moment to recheck this information.
Pallavi: In this case if you are actually having a Valid US billing address then you can keep the info and shop for the books in that case.
Me: Thanks, I just want to clarify. You’re saying there is no rule stating that I must reside or be present in that country, but instead that I must have a valid billing address in that country. Am I correct?
Pallavi: Yes you’re absolutely correct.
so how do you setup your billing address to be your forwarding address if you have a Canadian credit card?
It shouldn’t be necessary to change it. Once you follow the above steps you’ll have American pricing without updating the address linked to your credit card. Under “Edit or Delete a Payment Method” you can link your credit card to your Canadian or American address but that won’t produce a change since Amazon delivers your bill electronically rather than to a physical address.
I’m wondering like Samuel….What you have in the US is a forwarding or shipping address. It’s not the billing address unless it’s where your credit card bills go to….
Amazon doesn’t require your billing address with them to be the same as your credit card’s billing address. I just switched mine from my Canadian address to my American address with no issue. Hope that helps.
Yes this sounds good … but if you don’t have a US credit card, how is it possible to set up a US billing address?
See my response to Samuel below. Thanks.
Thanks for this. I have been wondering how to switch from UK store to US for ages. Interestingly I did have an issue with billing on some of my purchases since my card is registered in the UK. I got round this by purchasing an Amazon.com Kindle gift voucher and paying with that instead, as the gift voucher didn’t seem to mind me purchasing with a UK registered card!
Thank you Jeremy for that wonderful tip. I will be able to save a bunch of dollars plus get books that I couldn’t purchase before, books that were not available on Amazon.ca. For folks that are concerned, it’s very easy to switch your Kindle account…just follow Jeremy’s instructions. Nothing else will be changed; not your credit card or the other areas of your Amazon account, just the address of your Kindle account and that you are able to purchase Kindle books at US prices. Beautiful!
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! I have often been grieved by not being able to purchase books or by paying substantially more than the advertised price! This is great – took only a couple of minutes to set up. And just this week I wanted to order something that could not be delivered to South Africa – and this issue is now also addressed! So thanks again ;-)
Hey guys, this is Josef from Forwardo. I just stumbled upon this article and can confirm everything Jeremy said. Use your own address as billing and our address for shipping and it works just fine.
I just wanted to let you know that we have extended free signup promotion with code APRIL till the end of May.
And also short note what can be done with Forwardo Mailbox – if you are interested in subscription of any printed magazine (like rare ones with no International subscription option), you can subscribe them into your Forwardo Mailbox and have them forwarded home in bulk anytime you want, there is 365 days free storage for subscribed magazines.
Thanks for stopping by Josef. I updated the article with the new expiry date. We’re grateful for the service you provide.
[…] How to Get American Prices on Kindle Books from Anywhere in the World […]
I received a message this morning from Amazon telling me that this was not legal.. “We are writing because the home country registered to your Kindle account may not match your country of residence. Due to publishing rights, the home country registered to your account must match your country of residence”
They then go on to request ID for my US address. Guess I’ll be reverting to my UK pricing :(
Hi, I tried this, but got an email from Amazon telling me that I needed to provide some proof that my US address was a true address where I had some ID or bills in my name for it. I could not provide that so I did not continue. Could someone check this with Amazon? I’d like to do this, but I think Amazon won’t have it unless I have some bills going to that US address.
I’ve unfortunately received many more e-mails from people who have received the same e-mail you did. I suspect a surge of people all changing their countries to the same address on the same day caught Amazon’s attention and a specialist different from the one I spoke to understands the rules differently. Originally the Kindle specialist I spoke with thought it wasn’t okay but I gave some pushback and he realized there was no such stipulation in the terms.
Unfortunately your only option would be to debate the terms by replying to the e-mail. I realize most will not want to engage in that and will have to switch back.
Sorry everyone, I myself received permission and a go-ahead from Amazon. I didn’t expect this type of resistance but unfortunately when you have a large team with something not clear in the terms it’s open to interpretation, even different ones within the same company.
I have experienced the reverse. I am an American citizen, born and bred. I have a US address, and a VISA card from an American bank (which I’ve had for years). My country settings show American. However, I am living overseas, and when I order from Kindle, if there is an international price difference, they want to charge me for that. I’m thinking that their system reads where you are logging in from, and that is that, as far as they seem to be concerned. Any advice there?
From your Amazon Account click “Manage My Kindle“. From there on the left hand sidebar click “Country Settings” which is under the heading “Your Kindle Account”.
What country does it say? Also, are you shopping on Amazon.com or using a local store?
Do you know if the problem mentioned in the las comment still persist? or is still possible use this way of shopping? Thanks
Not sure Joe. Give it a shot and let us know. I never had any issues.