5 things you may not know about Amazon packaging

Since launching in November 2008 with 19 items, our Frustration-Free Packaging programs have grown to include three tiers of certification and multiple other initiatives focused on reducing packaging waste across our suite of packaging. These packaging programs are good for customers, good for business, and good for the environment. Frustration-Free Packaging is designed without plastic clamshells, wire ties, and other redundant packaging features, so it’s super easy to open and 100% recyclable – eliminating “wrap rage” for customers. Products certified as ready to ship under the Frustration-Free Packaging Program are delivered without additional packaging, while ensuring they arrive undamaged to our customers. Over the past 10 years, our sustainable packaging initiatives have eliminated more than 244,000 tons of packaging materials, avoiding 500 million shipping boxes. Our programs have reduced packaging waste by 16%, avoiding 305 million shipping boxes in 2017 alone.

Damaged items frustrate customers, create waste, and add cost, so we work hard to protect products all the way to their final destination. By thoroughly testing products in the Amazon Packaging Lab located in Seattle, and in fulfillment centers across the globe, we identify specific steps that manufacturers can take to improve their packaging. The Amazon Packaging Engineering team at the lab drops, squeezes, vibrates, and jostles thousands of packages a year with machines that precisely simulate the entire journey of a package to customers. Only products that successfully pass this rigorous testing program are certified as part of our Frustration-Free Packaging Program.

We collaborate with manufacturers worldwide to help them innovate and improve their packaging, cutting waste and costs throughout the supply chain. Starting with specific performance data and metrics on each of the products manufacturers sell with Amazon, brand owners and our packaging team can work together in our lab to create new packaging for a specific product and test it the same day.

Did you know that you can contact us to share feedback about your packages? Millions of times a year, we receive pictures and stories about packaging that worked well – like Frustration-Free Packaging – but also when it didn’t meet customers’ expectations. Our packaging team reviews this feedback and works with manufacturers to continuously improve packaging design and delivery.

Customers can search for products available in Frustration-Free Packaging, then choose that option before adding products to their cart – this appears on the product detail page, similar to options like color or size.

For more about how we are putting our inventive culture to work on sustainability, visit our website.