Import It or Buy It Locally? A Decision Framework
By George · updated 2026-08-24 · checked against the 2026 Bahamas tariff schedule
"It's so much cheaper on Amazon" is true often enough to be a habit and false often enough to be expensive. Here is how to decide in about a minute.
The break-even test
A local purchase wins whenever:
local price < (US price × duty multiplier) + freight
The multiplier already contains duty, the 1% processing fee and the compounding VAT. It is 1.1 × (1.01 + duty rate):
- 0% duty — multiply by 1.11 (laptops, monitors, printers, headphones, cameras, books, medicine, baby gear, LED lighting, cement, solar)
- 10% duty — multiply by 1.22 (smartphones, batteries)
- 20% duty — multiply by 1.33 (clothing, shoes, toys, cosmetics)
- 25% duty — multiply by 1.39 (furniture, hand tools)
- 35% duty — multiply by 1.50 (TVs, microwaves, small kitchen appliances)
- 45% duty — multiply by 1.61 (speakers, consoles, power tools, vacuums, bedding)
- 60% duty — multiply by 1.77 (mattresses)
These hold for entries of $1,000 or more, where the processing fee is a true 1%. On smaller entries the $10 minimum binds and the effective rate is higher — on a $100 item add about 10 percentage points, on a $300 item about 3.
Then add freight — and remember freight is taxed as part of the landed cost, so a $120 freight charge on that 35% TV costs you $132, not $120.
Where importing almost always wins
Duty-free, high-value, light. A $1,200 laptop lands at $1,333.20 — 11.1% over the US price, and it weighs three pounds. Computing equipment, cameras, headphones and printed books are the strongest cases in the schedule. A local retailer would have to be within about 11% of the US price to compete, which on electronics is unusual.
Add anything genuinely unavailable locally, at any duty rate, where the alternative is not buying it.
Where a local retailer usually wins
High duty, bulky, or both.
- Mattresses (60%). A 79% landed premium before freight, on an item that is expensive to ship. Nassau retailers frequently win outright.
- Bedding, comforters (45%). Same shape, smaller numbers.
- Speakers and soundbars (45%). $250 becomes $409.75.
- Small appliances (35%). A $150 microwave landing at $239.25 is rarely worth the wait.
- Anything cheap. Below about $50, the $10 entry minimum alone can exceed any price advantage — a $15 book costs $12.50 to bring in.
The middle ground: run the numbers
Between roughly 20% and 35% duty, the answer depends on the actual price gap and the actual freight quote. Do not estimate — get the landed figure from the calculator with your real freight cost, then compare it against a local quote.
Three things people forget
Returns. Import charges are paid on what enters the country, not on what you keep. A returned item has already cost you duty, fees and VAT, and getting those back is not practical for a consumer. A local purchase you can walk back into the shop has real option value on anything you might return — clothing above all.
Warranty and service. A US warranty you cannot practically claim from Nassau is worth less than a local one. On appliances and power tools this can outweigh a modest price gap.
Time. Consolidating to save the $10 minimum means waiting weeks. That is the right trade often, but it is a trade.
A worked comparison
A $600 television, US price, at 35% duty with a $5 levy. Import charges are $307.50, so it lands at $907.50 before freight; add $100 of ocean freight and it is $1,017.50. A local retailer at $1,000 is the cheaper option — with a warranty you can walk in and claim, and no three-week wait.
Change one variable — make it a duty-free $600 laptop instead — and it lands at $671 before freight. Now no local retailer is likely to be close.
Same price, same shop, opposite answer. That is what the tariff schedule does, and it is why the multiplier is worth checking before you click buy.