You know it and I know it: Sometimes it’s just easier to sit at home, browse the Internet and order products with the few clicks of the mouse. In a world of laziness, online shopping takes the cake. The fact that we can now browse and purchase something like exercise equipment without ever having to get dressed and leave the house has shown that the retail world has been revolutionized. The keystone online retailer, Amazon, has really picked up this idea and run with it. Lazy, yes, but this remarkably simple process also means people aren’t driving all over the city trying to find that one store with the best product and price. Today, Amazon has taken the “greenness” of online shopping to a whole new, industry-leading level, with what it calls “Frustration Free Packaging.”

Like many major companies that stress a positive public relations image, Amazon is offering a simpler, more sustainable way to do things. In this case, it is shipping products chosen from an infinitely vast database of stuff in a more eco-friendly manner. Devised as a means to “alleviate wrap rage,” Frustration Free Packaging “is recyclable and comes without excess packaging materials such as hard plastic clamshell casings, plastic bindings, and wire ties,” all reducing the need to hack open your new gizmo with the nearest sharp metal object. Such a forward-thinking way of preparing products for transit is something that many manufacturers have partnered with Amazon to offer since 2008. Upon visiting the “Shop Amazon Green” page of the website, one can find a variety of products that can be packed and shipped in a manner that limits waste. The general categories of Toys, Coffee & Tea, Health and Personal Care, Electronics, Kindle and Amazon Basics offer a wide array of items that can, in fact, be packaged without frustration.

This way of thinking has caught the attention of many a green-thinking person, and has helped Amazon be recognized as a major company taking steps toward a greener way of life. If this has peaked your interest enough, you can see what this system looks like compared to traditional packaging by going here. By reducing aggravation with this packaging system, we can all feel even better about ordering nearly anything online for both the earth and our nerves — ready to leave the house or otherwise.