Amazon (Nasdaq:AMZN), Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) Offering Best Shipping Deals

Consumers will be the big winners this Christmas season as retailers compete for their dollars by offering free shipping, with Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) and Amazon (Nasdaq:AMZN) unsurprisingly leading the way.

Wal-Mart was the first retailer to strike, saying they would offer free shipping on about 60,000 items. Contrary to some competitors, they offer it with no minimum purchase.

Amazon quickly responded to the Wal-Mart challenge by saying they'll match or beat and free shipping offer, and will include free returns for a period of 30 days.

Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) is competing strongly next in line for shipping, but they don't include some of the more popular gifts, such as the Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPad. Their promotion runs until December 21.

Barnes & Noble (NYSE:BKS) is offering free shipping only on Cyber Monday.

While Target (NYSE:TGT) is competing in free shipping, they require a $50 minimum, and are only running it through December 11. Gap (NYSE:GPS) also requires a minimum acquisition of $50 to get the free shipping.

Penney's (NYSE:JCP) will provide free shipping from November 24 through November 30 on orders of $25 or more.

For the first time in their history, Macy's (NYSE:M) will offer free shipping, although customers must order $99 online in order to qualify for it. They're running their free shipping through December 20.

All the retailers mentioned in the article are up in trading today.