If there’s something you need but you can’t find it locally, Amazon could be the answer.
But how does shopping on Amazon work if you live in Malaysia?
In this guide, we’ll give you the lowdown on how to buy from Amazon in Malaysia. This includes payment, shipping and tracking, plus how to save money when paying in other currencies using clever solutions such as Wise.
So, let’s get started.
| ❗️ Before shopping on Amazon from a different region, make sure you know what are the costs. Amazon currency conversion rates includes all fees related to the use of Amazon Currency Converter.¹ With the Wise account, you can avoid hefty currency conversion and hidden fees! |
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There isn’t a dedicated Amazon website for Malaysia. However, you can still shop at other Amazon sites in other countries and have your order shipped over.
You’ll find possibly the largest selection of items on the Amazon US site (Amazon.com), although you can also shop on Amazon UK, Australia, India or another local site.
Amazon Global delivers to hundreds of countries worldwide¹, including Malaysia. However, not all items are available for Amazon shipping to Malaysia, as it depends on the product and/or seller.
There’s an easy way to find out which products can be shipped to Malaysia. All you’ll need to do is select your delivery country - we’ll look at this more in the next section of this guide.
Most Amazon packages in Malaysia are delivered by Pos Malaysia².
There are some items that Amazon may not be able to ship to Malaysia, such as certain electronic equipment³. for example. You can check the Malaysian government’s list of restricted items here.
You might find that these items still appear on your Amazon search results, even after you’ve selected Malaysia as your delivery country. There’s an easy way to filter these out. Simply turn on ‘1-click ordering’ in your purchase preferences (you don’t need to use it)⁴.
You can also shop using the Amazon app. Although like with the website, there isn’t a dedicated Amazon Malaysia app. You should also bear in mind that the app is only available in certain languages⁵, which doesn’t include any native Malaysian languages.
If your order is trackable, you’ll find tracking information in your order details - or in the confirmation email you receive from Amazon.
However, many standard international deliveries aren’t eligible for Amazon tracking services⁶.
Ready to pay for your order? Amazon accepts all major credit and debit cards, including Visa and Mastercard⁷. You’ll have the option to choose the currency of your card during the checkout process.
You’ll find that there are a number of extra costs to pay when shopping internationally. It’s not just the price of the item, but shipping costs, currency conversion rates and customs/import taxes too.
It’s important to factor these in when deciding whether to have an Amazon order shipped to Malaysia - as it could end up being too expensive.
There’s nearly always a shipping fee involved when shopping with Amazon Global. This can vary considerably depending on the product weight and size, delivery address and speed. If you want your item faster, you’ll need to be prepared to pay a little more⁸.
You can find out the shipping costs on the product page, where import and shipping fees are clearly listed.
As the recipient of an international shipment, you’ll be responsible for paying all relevant import taxes, fees and customs duties. Luckily, Amazon makes it easy to see in advance how much you can expect to pay.
You’ll pay an Import Fees Deposit, which is an estimate of the taxes and duties that may apply. This deposit will then be used by Amazon Global (or its shipping partners in Malaysia) to pay the import fees on your behalf⁹. You can see the amount in import fees you can expect to pay on the Amazon product page, before moving through to checkout.
On some items, there is no Import Fees Deposit due. This could be because of the type of item, or because it falls under a minimum value¹⁰.
One of the main drawbacks of buying from an Amazon site in another country is that a currency conversion will usually be needed. For example, if you’re paying in MYR on Amazon US, requiring a conversion to USD.
When this currency conversion happens, you’re unlikely to get the mid-market exchange rate you’ll see on Google or currency sites like XE.com¹¹. Your bank or credit card provider may also charge additional fees¹¹. All of this can make it more expensive to shop from Amazon in Malaysia.
Luckily, there is a way around this - Wise.
Open a Wise multi-currency account and you’ll have a money-saving way to shop on websites all over the world, in over 40+ currencies!
With your Wise account, you’ll be able to get your own international debit card. This can be used for contactless payments in person in 150+ countries, or for online shopping on sites like Amazon.
What’s more, you’ll always get the real, mid-market exchange rate with Wise. This means you can add Malaysian Ringgit to your Wise account and automatically convert it to your needed currency when checking out, taking advantage of the fairest exchange rates around. For example, you can shop on Amazon US, choose to pay in USD, and let your card automatically convert your MYR to USD with a much better rate than Amazon. It could save you a bundle.
Unfortunately, Malaysia isn’t one of the countries where you can benefit from Amazon Prime membership benefits like fast, free shipping¹².
Besides, many products available for delivery to Malaysia aren’t eligible for Amazon Prime, so signing up for a subscription (even if available) wouldn’t be good value.
However, you can sign up for Amazon Prime Video in Malaysia. While this may not save you time and money on shipping, it does give you access to the Prime Video TV and movie streaming service for a set monthly fee (around RM24)¹³.
If you have a question, technical issue or something goes wrong with your order, you can contact Amazon customer services for help.
Simply head to the Customer Services page on the Amazon site you’re shopping on (i.e. Amazon US or Amazon UK). Here, you’ll find a number of help topics, as well as options to do the following¹⁴:
You’ll need to sign into your account in order to access these services.
Sources used for this article:
Sources checked on 14.06.2022 .
*Please see terms of use and product availability for your region or visit Wise fees and pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.
This publication is provided for general information purposes and does not constitute legal, tax or other professional advice from Wise Payments Limited or its subsidiaries and its affiliates, and it is not intended as a substitute for obtaining advice from a financial advisor or any other professional.
We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether expressed or implied, that the content in the publication is accurate, complete or up to date.
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