Price is a significant factor in why a good number of people buy products on Amazon.com, either from the e-tailer itself or a third-party on the site. A report published earlier this year by researchers at Ohio State's Fisher College of Business made the case, showing that Amazon customers in states where the company began collecting sales tax cut their spending by nearly 10 percent.
Now, new research from William Blair, an investment bank, shows that even with state sales tax included, Amazon has lower prices on identical items sold by a group of 40 large retailers. In total, Amazon's price was 5.9 percent for the same items when purchased by non-Prime members and 8.3 percent lower when purchased by Amazon Prime subscribers.
Among the chain's that faired least favorably compared to Amazon were:
A small number had better prices on the same item than Amazon:
Interestingly, Amazon's savings advantage on the same items has declined slightly in recent years for non-Prime members, from 6.4 percent in 2012 to 6.1 percent in 2013 and 5.9 percent in 2014. During the same period, the average savings have gone up for Prime members, from 7.5% in 2012 to 8.2 percent in 2013 and 8.3 percent this year.