Amazon’s convenience comes at a cost – to workers, to independent retailers and to the planet. The good news? There has never been a better choice of ethical alternatives

For many of us, Amazon has become the default – a one-click answer to almost anything we need. But the company’s reputation has caught up with it, and a growing number of shoppers are choosing to take their custom elsewhere. Ethical Consumer now runs an active boycott of Amazon, and once you start looking, alternatives are surprisingly easy to find.

This guide explains why people are stepping away from Amazon, how the company measures up against more responsible retailers, and where to shop instead – broken down by category so you can switch one habit at a time.

Why are people boycotting Amazon?

Ethical Consumer’s boycott centres on Amazon’s staggering tax avoidance, which its research estimates may have cost the UK public purse around £433 million in 2023 alone. But tax is only part of the picture. The company has been widely criticised for poor treatment of warehouse staff, for using its market dominance to crush the smaller independent retailers it claims to support, and for the environmental footprint of its operations.

More recently, campaigners have raised concerns about Amazon Web Services and its links to the conflict in Gaza. Whatever your particular reason, the underlying theme is consistent: a business that makes enormous profits while paying poverty wages, dodging tax and squeezing competitors out of the market.

How does Amazon compare on the 4Ps?

At etheco, we assess every retailer through our 4Ps framework. Amazon scores poorly on all four:

• Planet: a vast logistics and data-centre footprint, with weak commitments to cutting emissions compared with sector leaders.
• People: repeated criticism over warehouse conditions, workers’ rights and supply-chain oversight.
• Pocket: prices can look cheap, but ethical alternatives are often the same or even cheaper – especially on books.
• Performance: undeniably convenient and reliable, which is precisely why it is so hard to leave – but convenience need not mean compromise.

Ethical Consumer rates Amazon at the very bottom of most of its retailer tables. The encouraging news is how many higher-scoring options now exist.

Books: World of Books, Hive and Bookshop.org

Amazon began as a bookseller and still controls more than half of UK print sales. Independent bookshops have suffered as a result, but they are recovering – numbers are now at their highest since 2013. If you have a local independent, it is always worth supporting; the Booksellers Association has a handy search tool for finding one.

Shopping online? World of Books is a certified B Corp selling second-hand titles and is an Ethical Consumer Best Buy. Hive channels a share of every purchase to an independent bookshop of your choice, while Bookshop.org -also a B Corp – gives the bulk of its profit margin back to local stores. For second-hand bargains on the high street, Oxfam remains a top-rated choice.

One word of warning: AbeBooks and Book Depository are both owned by Amazon, so they are best avoided if you are trying to break the habit.

Everyday essentials: Ethical Superstore and Big Green Smile

For the kind of household odds and ends most of us once reached for Amazon to buy, Ethical Superstore is the closest thing to a one-stop shop – food, cleaning products, personal care, homewares and even pet supplies, all chosen with ethics in mind. Big Green Smile is another strong option, particularly for natural and organic personal care, though it pays to check individual brands.

Gifts, marketplaces and the garden

For gifts, Green Tulip offers a trusted, well-curated selection of planet-friendly presents. When you simply need a marketplace, Etsy is a far more ethical home for small, creative businesses – it runs on renewable energy and never competes with its own sellers, unlike Amazon. UK marketplace OnBuy is another to watch: it pays its UK taxes and refuses to sell its own products against its sellers. For the garden, Envii offers sustainable alternatives that don’t compromise on performance.

Tech, e-readers and audiobooks

Electronics are one of Amazon’s strongholds, but second-hand is almost always the greener choice. Refurbished specialists such as CeX and Back Market can save you money and keep working devices out of landfill; for new kit, Ethical Consumer rates Richer Sounds as a strong high-street option. For e-readers, Kobo and Bookeen both out-score the Kindle on ethics, while Libby lets you borrow ebooks and audiobooks free through your local library. And if Audible is the habit you’re breaking, xigxag – a B Corp and Ethical Consumer Best Buy – offers audiobooks with no subscription and prices that fall the more you read.

Small switches, big difference

You don’t have to change everything overnight. Swapping a single category – books, say, or gifts – is a meaningful first step, and most people find they barely miss next-day delivery once they are a little more organised. Each purchase moved away from Amazon is money redirected to a business trying to do better.

Ready to make the switch? Take a look at our etheco directory to explore the ethical and eco-friendly retailers we highly rate – and shop with a clearer conscience.

References

Ethical Consumer (2025), Ethical alternatives to Amazon
Ethical Consumer (2024), Amazon’s substantial tax avoidance in the UK
Ethical Consumer, Boycott Amazon campaign
Ethical Consumer, Ten reasons to avoid Amazon
The Humble Home (2024), Conscious Living: Online Alternatives to Amazon
Ethical Revolution, Amazon Alternatives and Alternatives to Amazon Services
Booksellers Association, Local bookshop search