Add Another Person to Your Amazon Prime Account

Understanding Amazon Prime Household Features

Amazon Prime membership includes options for sharing your account with other people in your home. The primary account holder — the person who pays for the Prime membership — can add up to two additional adults to their account through Amazon's Household feature. This means up to three adults total can share one Prime membership. Additionally, you can add an unlimited number of children to the account, though these child accounts have certain restrictions for their own protection.

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The Household feature works by linking multiple Amazon accounts under one Prime membership. When adults are added to a household, they gain access to many of the same Prime benefits as the primary account holder. This includes free two-day shipping on millions of items, access to Prime Video for streaming movies and shows, Prime Music for listening to songs, and Prime Reading for accessing books and magazines. However, some features work differently when accounts are linked. For example, Alexa device controls and recommendations may be shared across the household, and purchase history visibility depends on the settings you choose.

It's important to understand that adding someone to your household is different from simply sharing your login password. When you add a person through the official Household feature, Amazon provides tools to manage who sees what information and who can make purchases. This creates a more organized system than password sharing, which can lead to confusion about order history, payment methods, and viewing recommendations.

The Household feature has been available through Amazon for years, though the specific features and rules have changed over time. As of recent updates, Amazon has emphasized that Household members should live in the same household and share the same address. This is different from the past, when Amazon allowed more flexibility about where members lived. Understanding these current requirements helps you determine whether adding someone to your account is the right option for your situation.

Practical Takeaway: Before adding anyone to your household, clarify in your mind what benefits they'll use most (Prime Video, free shipping, Prime Music) and confirm that they live at your address, as current Amazon policy requires household members to share a physical location.

Step-by-Step Process for Adding an Adult to Your Household

Adding an adult to your Amazon Prime household involves several straightforward steps. First, you'll need to visit the Amazon account settings page, which you can reach by clicking on "Account & Lists" in the upper right corner of Amazon.com. From there, select "Your Account," and look for the option labeled "Household & Family Library" or similar wording (Amazon occasionally updates menu names). This section is where all household management happens.

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Once you're in the Household section, look for a button or link that says "Add Adult" or "Invite Adults." You'll be asked for the email address or phone number of the person you want to add. It's important to use information that the other person actually uses and checks regularly, because Amazon will send them an invitation that they must accept. The person you're adding will receive an email or notification asking them to confirm they want to join your household. They cannot be added without their agreement.

The person you invite will need their own Amazon account to join your household. If they don't have an Amazon account yet, they'll need to create one before they can accept the household invitation. This is a security measure Amazon uses to ensure that people are who they claim to be. The account creation process is free and only requires an email address and password.

After the invited person accepts the invitation, their Amazon account becomes linked to your Prime membership. This linking typically takes effect within a few minutes, though it may take a few hours for all features to fully sync. At this point, the new household member can start using Prime benefits like free shipping and video streaming on their own Amazon account.

There are some important limitations to know about. Amazon allows you to add a maximum of two adults to your household (along with the primary account holder, this totals three adults). If you need to add more people, you would need to remove an existing adult first. Additionally, Amazon states that household members should be in the same household — meaning they should live at the same address as the primary account holder. Amazon may verify addresses and has removed people from households in cases where members don't appear to live together.

Practical Takeaway: Have the email address or phone number of the person you want to add ready, and make sure they have an Amazon account or can create one. The process takes only a few minutes, but the other person must actively accept the invitation for the household link to complete.

Managing Payments and Purchase Permissions

One of the most important aspects of adding someone to your household is understanding how payments work. By default, all adults in a household share the same payment method — typically the credit card or payment information associated with the primary account holder. This means that if another adult in your household makes a purchase on Amazon, it will be charged to your account's payment method unless you change the settings.

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Amazon provides tools to control this situation. In the Household & Family Library settings, you can set different permission levels for each household member. You have the option to allow or prevent other adults from making purchases using the shared payment method. Some primary account holders choose to allow household members to make purchases freely, while others restrict purchasing to only themselves and ask other adults to use a different payment method for their own items.

If you want to allow another household member to make purchases but want them to use their own payment method instead of yours, you can adjust the settings so that they need to provide their own payment information when checking out. This prevents unwanted charges to your account while still giving them access to Prime shipping benefits. However, this requires them to add their own payment method to their Amazon account.

It's also useful to know that you can view order history for items purchased by other household members. The primary account holder maintains visibility into who bought what and when. This transparency can help you catch any unauthorized purchases or unusual activity. You should discuss with household members what kinds of purchases are expected and what should be paid for separately.

Another payment consideration involves Prime Video purchases. If your household members watch movies or shows on Prime Video that cost extra (beyond the included Prime Video catalog), those purchases will also be charged to the primary account holder's payment method by default. You can adjust parental controls and purchasing restrictions for other household members to prevent unexpected charges.

Practical Takeaway: Before adding someone to your household, decide whether they can make purchases on your account's payment method. Log into your household settings and set appropriate purchasing restrictions for each member, and consider whether they should add their own payment method instead.

Privacy, Recommendations, and Viewing Controls

Adding someone to your household means that some of your information and theirs will be shared or visible across the linked accounts. Understanding what gets shared and what stays private helps you maintain the boundaries you want with household members. For example, order history visibility is something you can control. You have the option to see what other household members have purchased, and they can potentially see what you've purchased, depending on your settings.

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Prime Video recommendations and watch history work somewhat differently in a household. By default, what one person watches may influence recommendations shown to others in the household, since Amazon's system learns from all viewing activity on the account. However, you can set up separate profiles within Prime Video for each household member. These profiles keep viewing history and recommendations separate, so if one person watches action movies all day, it won't fill another person's recommendations with action content. Setting up individual profiles is a simple process within the Prime Video app or website.

Alexa devices and smart home features are another area where household members' access matters. If you have Alexa-enabled devices like Echo speakers or displays, household members can typically control these devices and access features through Alexa. However, voice recognition can be set up so that Alexa recognizes different household members and shows them their own personalized information (like their calendar or to-do lists) when they use the device. You can manage Alexa access and device controls through your Alexa app.

For families with young people, Amazon provides additional controls. If you add a child to the household (rather than an adult), parental controls are more extensive. You can restrict what content they see, whether they can make purchases, and which features they can access. Child accounts are designed with these limitations built in. Adult accounts have fewer restrictions by design, so if you're adding other adults, you'll want to have conversations about shared devices and privacy expectations.

An important note: household members will see some shared information like the primary account holder's name and email associated with the Prime membership. They may also see communication about the Prime membership itself, such as renewal notices. However, they shouldn't see private information like your full payment card details or security settings unless you specifically share that information.