Amazon sued over Subscribe & Save feature

Amazon tells its customers they can save by signing up for regular, automatic purchases of certain products. But a new lawsuit alleges Amazon's Subscribe & Save program is more like Subscribe & Switch."

In a lawsuit filed May 15 in the federal court for the Western District of Washington, Pennsylvania residents Aaron and Leah Herman claim the Seattle-based e-commerce giant tricked them into signing up for automatic purchases of their coffee in exchange for discounts before jacking up the price.

The Hermans and their attorneys with the Seattle-based firm Stritmatter Law say the program violates Washington's Consumer Protection Act and seek to open the lawsuit to others who signed up for automatic purchases through Amazon.

Amazon did not comment on the lawsuit itself. However, a spokesperson said in an emailed statement that the program is "designed to help customers save time and money on everyday products through convenient, flexible, and recurring deliveries."

The Hermans signed up for recurring purchases of their favorite brand of coffee on Amazon in February 2024, according to the lawsuit, under the belief they would save money. Amazon advertised that subscribers can save up to 15% compared with a single purchase.

The couple found that even with the 15% discount, their coffee payments steadily ticked up between February and October 2024 from around $17 to nearly $29 - past the prices offered by third-party sellers.

Amazon did not adequately inform the Hermans that they could purchase the same product for less from other sellers on Amazon, the lawsuit claims.

The Amazon spokesperson noted in their statement that the program's customers receive an email showing any changes to an item's price and applicable savings for their upcoming order.

"If a product price changes, customers can review, modify, skip, or cancel their subscription at any time before their order ships, the spokesperson wrote.

Although the Hermans received emails notifying them of the price increases, they didn't have time to look for a better price before the payment went through, the lawsuit claims.

They would not have signed up for the Subscribe & Save program if they knew the price would go up, the lawsuit claims.

The lawsuit seeks damages for the Hermans and potential class members, but it does not specify an amount.

"This is about control. By offering artificially low prices on initial purchases, Amazon induces people to part with the most important feature in a free market-choice. Then the real price of ‘Subscribe & Switch' comes due," the lawsuit says.

Another of Amazon's subscription services has recently drawn criticism. In September, Amazon agreed to pay $2.5 billion to settle Federal Trade Commission claims that the company tricked customers into $139 Prime memberships.

The FTC accused Amazon of duping millions of its customers into signing up for the company's subscription service and making cancellations challenging. Amazon did not admit any wrongdoing.

Amazon is also juggling another lawsuit from the state of California over an alleged price-fixing scheme. The state has claimed the company coerces its vendors to raise prices outside of the Amazon store and punishes vendors if their products are offered for less on competing sites.

The case is expected to go to trial next year.

This story has been updated with Amazon's statement.

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This story was originally published May 26, 2026 at 5:02 PM.