Selling on Amazon: Fees in 2026 – A Complete Breakdown

Table of Contents

1. Ways to Sell a Product on Amazon: Amazon Vendor vs. Third-Party Seller
2. Individual vs. Professional - Choosing the Right Selling Plan
3. Shipping and Fulfillment Related Amazon Fees
4. What Changed in 2026
5. Selling on Amazon Referral Fee
6. How to Understand Amazon Selling Fees

Every rate in this guide comes from Amazon’s own Seller Central fee pages and was checked on October 22, 2026. Amazon changes fees often, so confirm your numbers in the Revenue Calculator before you set a price.

Ways to Sell a Product on Amazon: Amazon Vendor vs. Third-Party Seller

Before we go into the details of selling on Amazon and its fees, let’s go through the types of sellers on the platform. These include third-party or 3P sellers and Amazon vendors or 1P sellers, both with access to different seller accounts.

How Does Amazon Vendor Central Work?

An Amazon vendor has access to Vendor Central. This is an invite-only platform made up of businesses, distributors, and manufacturers that sell products directly to Amazon. Once you get into the program, you essentially become one of Amazon’s many suppliers. Vendors receive purchase order listings and are expected to deliver the inventory as per Amazon’s requirements. 

A Vendor Central interface is where vendors manage seller affairs and functions much like a Seller Central dashboard for third-party sellers. Once all outstanding orders are fulfilled, it’s up to Amazon to advertise and sell the products. Compared to third-party sellers, vendor duties appear relatively easy. However, that’s hardly the case. 

Amazon vendors have to face plenty of challenges including—but not limited to—adhering to strict contract terms, low-profit margins, and having to face and overcome hurdles on a routine basis. 

Try to become an Amazon Vendor if:

✔ Advertising is not your forte. 

✔ Logistics is your strong suit and you’re confident in your ability to deliver as per Amazon’s requirements

✔ You don’t want to sell directly to customers

✔ You don’t want hijackers taking over the product listing (which undergoes inspection by Amazon before going live)

✔ You want access to unique tools not available in Seller Central

Note: Amazon Vendors are also known as 1P or first-party sellers since Amazon directly sells the product to customers without a separate, third-party entity.  

How Does Amazon Seller Central Work?

An Amazon Seller Central account becomes available to third-party sellers after the registration stage. Like Vendor Central, there are plenty of features available within the dashboard to assist users with inventory management, marketing, product listing and optimization, and other facets of selling. 

Third-party sellers should create a unique brand to list products on Amazon via a Seller Central account. Unlike vendors, sellers need to self-manage online selling. This usually starts with product research and ends in post-launch product management. There are greater levels of control when it comes to logistics, fulfillment, pricing, and advertisement. 

Third-party sellers account for most of the units sold in Amazon’s store. Sellers like 3P because even though it involves greater risks, it also yields greater rewards. 

Try to become a third-party seller if:

✔ You want to target the millions of customers that visit Amazon daily 

✔ You want more control over business affairs

✔ You want to sell items at significant profit margins 

✔ You can’t wait for an approval to become a vendor from Amazon and want to start selling ASAP

✔ You want to leverage the plethora of selling tools available within the Seller Central dashboard

Now that we’ve gone through the pros and cons of both selling options, which one is best for you?

Amazon Vendor vs. Third-Party Selling – The Verdict

We suggest becoming a third-party seller for the obvious reason that Amazon Vendor Central is an invite-only program. The bulk of invites are sent to top-performing 3P sellers and influential brands operating outside the platform. So, even if you’re interested in selling directly to Amazon rather than the customers, you’ll need to begin with 3P selling. 

Individual vs. Professional – Choosing the Right Selling Plan

The next step is to sign up for a Seller Central account and subscribe to a selling plan. If you’re interested in knowing the requirements and steps to take to successfully register as a third-party seller, check out our complete Amazon FBA checklist guide.

After being approved to sell, you’ll be asked to subscribe to one of two selling plans: the Individual plan or the Professional plan. Take a look at what both plans have to offer to determine which one best suits your needs and goals as a seller.

• The Individual Plan: Follows a pay-per-sale format and charges $0.99 per item sold plus additional selling fees. This plan is better suited to beginners with little to no idea of how online selling works and who want to test the waters first. It's also suited to sellers that haven't decided what to sell yet. And to those projecting sales of 40 items or less a month.
• The Professional Plan: Sellers subscribed to the Professional plan have to pay a flat $39.99 monthly fee plus any additional selling costs. This plan opens the doors to product advertisement, access to advanced selling tools like reports and APIs, the ability to sell in restricted categories, and the potential to break into the top ranks. If you’re more experienced in selling on Amazon, we recommend you opt for the Professional plan. 

Note: there’s no wrong choice here; Amazon allows you to cancel or change your plan at any given moment.

Shipping and Fulfillment Related Amazon Fees

FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) and FBM (Fulfillment by Merchant) are two popular methods of fulfilling customer orders. Before we get into that, though, let’s go through the costs of bringing your products safely to your chosen storage facility or one of Amazon’s fulfillment centers. 

We think it's important to understand the costs associated with transporting products from the manufacturing hub to a storage point too.

First, US sellers will need to purchase UPCs (Universal Product Codes). UPC (EAN in Europe) is a 12-digit long product identification number assigned to each item that helps track and identify as it moves across the global supply chain. The most trusted supplier of UPCs in the US is GS1.

Secondly, if your products are manufactured in the same country as your Amazon marketplace, then you’ll save up on shipping costs. However, if you decide to manufacture and ship products from China, get to know the costs. It is highly recommended to outsource the task to a reliable freight forwarding company, so that you don’t have to deal with clearing customs, paperwork, and ensuring import compliance.

Now, let’s move onto the main types of Amazon fulfillment and shipping methods.

Key Differences Between Amazon FBA and FBM

After setting up an account, you’ll have the choice to fulfill customer orders yourself (FBM) or pay Amazon to do it on your behalf (FBA). There are many factors to consider when deciding whether to go for FBA, FBM, or both (which can  increase visibility and boost sales velocity). 

In the FBA model, inventory is stored in one of Amazon’s fulfillment centers. Once a purchase is made, Amazon picks, packs, and ships the order to the customer. It also takes care of customer support. By choosing the FBM model, sellers have access to none of these features. Of course, all the benefits that come as a result of selling via FBA come at a cost. 

Let’s take a look at the upsides, downsides, and fees involved with both fulfillment models.

Advantages of FBA

By paying per-unit FBA fees on every item you sell, you’ll get these benefits:

• The Buy Box: When multiple sellers offer the same product, a ‘buy box’ is awarded to one. When a customer buys the product, the seller with the buy box makes the sale. There are several ways to up your chances of getting and keeping the buy box and FBA is one of them. Product price and seller feedback are the other two factors that Amazon considers.
• Ease of Selling: A large percentage of Amazon sellers manage the A-Z of selling all by themselves. In exchange for a fee, sellers won’t need to store, pack, transport products to customers, handle refunds or customer support. Needless to say, this will be impossible for one person to manage once those sales start rolling in.
• Target Prime Buyers: FBA-fulfilled products qualify for Prime delivery, which gives you access to a huge audience of Prime members. An increase in buyers means more sales and more sales translates to more profits.
• Remain Operational 24/7: Sellers need sleep but Amazon does not. Once your Advertising Cost of Sales (ACOS) begins to dip and sales pick up, they need to remain operational around the clock and become more of a necessity than a luxury.
• Focus on Growing the Business: With logistic concerns out of the way, you have more time to focus on other aspects of your business.

Disadvantages of FBA

Here are a few not-so-desirable aspects of FBA:

• FBA fees: Convenience comes in the shape of fulfillment fees—a per-unit cost that varies depending on the size tier, shipping weight, and the item’s selling price. 
• Decreased Control: Control over your inventory ends once it reaches Amazon’s fulfillment center. As an FBM seller, it’s still possible to take corrective measures in case of faulty products or packaging. 
• Tax Considerations: Tax considerations are also a concern for sellers depending on where the inventory is located. 

Amazon FBA Fees (For Amazon.com)

Fulfillment fees on Amazon are complicated, to say the least. A fee depends on four things: the product size tier (small standard, large standard, small bulky, large bulky or extra-large), the shipping weight, whether the item is apparel or dangerous goods, and the item’s selling price (under $10, $10 to $50, or over $50). Amazon also charges a higher rate during the holiday peak.

The tables below show Amazon’s 2026 US rates. The non-peak columns apply from January 15 to October 14, 2026. The peak columns apply from October 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027. Since April 17, 2026, Amazon adds a 3.5% fuel and logistics-related surcharge on top of these fulfillment fees. Take a look at Amazon’s 2026 US FBA fulfillment fee changes page for the source rate cards.

Standard-size and oversize products (excluding apparel and dangerous goods)

Apparel

Apparel has its own rates for small and large standard sizes. Bulky and extra-large apparel uses the same rates as the table above.

Dangerous goods

Items that need special handling and hazmat storage have separate rates. The sale of dangerous goods on Amazon is subject to approval. For more details, go to the FBA Dangerous Goods Program page.

Calculate Shipping Weight

The unit weight is the weight of a single item plus the packaging. The dimensional weight is the unit volume (length x width x height) divided by 139. Large standard, bulky and extra-large products are charged on the greater of unit weight or dimensional weight. Small standard and extra-large 150+ lb products use unit weight only. For bulky and extra-large items, Amazon assumes a minimum width and height of 2 inches.

Example: a T-shirt measuring 13 x 9 x 0.85 inches weighs 5.4 oz. Its dimensional weight is 1.65 lb, so it falls in the 1.5+ to 1.75 lb band. At a price of $10–$50, the apparel fee is $6.14 in non-peak and $6.53 in peak, before the 3.5% surcharge.

Other things that change the fee:

• Low-Price FBA rates: products priced under $10 automatically get lower rates, about $0.86 less per unit than standard FBA rates on average. This replaces the old Small and Light program, which Amazon has retired. You do not need to enroll.
• Overmax handling fee: since January 15, 2026, extra-large products that exceed 96 inches on the longest side, or 130 inches in length plus girth, pay an extra fee.
• Low-inventory-level fee: for standard-size and bulky products, Amazon charges a fee on shipped units when your inventory falls below 28 days of supply relative to customer demand.
• Ships in Product Packaging (SIPP): certified standard-size products get lower fulfillment fees. Non-certified small and bulky products can pay additional fees.

FBA Monthly Inventory Storage Fees

Amazon charges monthly storage fees based on the space your inventory takes up in fulfillment centers, measured in cubic feet when the unit is packaged and ready to ship. Monthly fees for the current month are charged between the 7th and 15th of the next month. For example, the fee for June appears in the July payments report from July 7th to 15th.

The fee changes with the time of year and the product size tier. Oddly enough, oversize items cost less to store than standard-size items because standard-size items need more complex shelving, drawers and bins.

Storage utilization surcharge

Some sellers also pay a storage utilization surcharge on top of the base fee. Your storage utilization ratio is your average daily inventory volume divided by your average daily shipped volume over the past 13 weeks, shown in weeks. Amazon calculates it separately for standard-size and oversize. The surcharge applies only if all of these are true:

• You have a Professional selling account.
• Your first shipment to a US fulfillment center was more than 365 days ago.
• Your average daily inventory volume for the size tier is 25 cubic feet or more.
• Your storage utilization ratio for the size tier is above 22 weeks.

When it applies, the surcharge is added to the base fee for all inventory that is older than 30 days. It is the same in off-peak and peak months, so add it to the base rate for the month.

Note: Products that Amazon Warehousing and Distribution (AWD) auto-replenishes can qualify for a surcharge waiver if 70% or more of their FBA units were auto-replenished over the past 13 weeks.

FBA Aged Inventory Surcharge (Formerly Long-Term Storage Fees)

Amazon’s old long-term storage fee is now the aged inventory surcharge. It applies to inventory that has been in the fulfillment network for 181 days or longer. Amazon takes an inventory snapshot on the 15th of each month, and charges the surcharge between the 18th and 22nd. It is on top of the monthly storage fee.

Since January 16, 2026, items aged 366 days or more pay a higher per-unit minimum, and there is a new tier for items aged 456 days or more.

Amazon calculates inventory age on a first-in, first-out basis across the whole fulfillment network. Whenever a unit is sold or removed, it is taken from the oldest stock. The surcharge is calculated two ways, by cubic feet and by unit, and Amazon bills the higher amount.

Example: you hold 20 toys, each 11 x 8 x 2 inches (0.102 cubic feet), that are 457 days old. By cubic feet, that is 0.102 x $7.90 x 20 = $16.12. By unit, that is 20 x $0.35 = $7.00. Amazon bills $16.12.

Sell on Amazon by Avoiding Aged Inventory Surcharges

Use the FBA Inventory tool to see which ASINs will hit the surcharge within 60 days. Then reduce the chance of paying it with good forecasting and inventory management. You have three ways to clear older stock before the next snapshot:

1. Mark it down through Amazon Outlet. An Outlet deal needs a minimum discount of 20%.
2. Submit a removal or disposal order. Inventory you order removed before the cleanup date will not be charged, even if it has not physically left yet. The deadline is 11:59 p.m. PT on the 14th of the month.
3. Set up automated removals in your FBA settings.

FBA Capacity Limits

Amazon also limits how much inventory you can send to its fulfillment centers. You get one FBA capacity limit for each storage type every month. Individual selling accounts have a fixed limit of 15 cubic feet. New Professional accounts that have been active in FBA for less than 39 weeks do not get limits yet, so they can build a sales record first.

For everyone else, the limit depends on your IPI score, your historical sales volume, the seasonal and peak periods for your products, and your forecasts. Amazon usually announces limits in the fourth week of the month. You can see your limits and your usage in the Capacity Monitor at the bottom of the FBA dashboard.

Other FBA-Related Fees

Here’s a rundown of other situation-specific FBA fees.

Removal and Disposal Order Fees

This per-item fee applies when you ask Amazon to remove or dispose of inventory in a fulfillment center. The fee is calculated when you place the order and charged when the shipment leaves the fulfillment center. Since January 15, 2026, the fee for standard-size items up to 0.5 lb dropped from $1.04 to $0.84.

If you liquidate inventory instead, Amazon charges two fees on each item: a 15% liquidations referral fee on the item’s gross recovery value, plus a processing fee of $0.25 to $0.40 per standard-size unit (rising with weight, plus $0.20 per lb above 2 lb) or $0.60 to $1.90 per large bulky, extra-large or special handling unit (plus $0.20 per lb above 10 lb). The liquidation fees did not change in 2026.

Returns Processing Fee

Amazon charges a returns processing fee on products with a high return rate. For most products it applies only to returned units above a threshold that is set for each category. Your return rate is the share of a month’s shipped units that come back during that month and the next two. Thresholds range from 2.9% (Grocery and Gourmet) to 12.8% (Backpacks, Handbags and Luggage). Products that ship fewer than 25 units in a month are exempt. For apparel and shoes there is no threshold, and the fee applies to every returned unit.

Here is the fee per returned unit:

Inbound Placement Service Fee

If you send your inventory to fewer fulfillment centers than Amazon would choose (a minimal shipment split), Amazon charges an inbound placement service fee. Since January 15, 2026, the fee for standard-size products rose by about $0.05 per unit on average, and Amazon split the large bulky tier into small bulky and large bulky.

Manual Processing Fee

If you choose not to provide box content information for an inbound shipment, Amazon processes your boxes by hand at the fulfillment center and charges a manual processing fee. It is $0.15 per unit from January to October and $0.30 per unit in November and December, based on when the first unit of the shipment is received. Manually processed shipments can also be received more slowly.

Advantages of FBM

Self-fulfillment can be a far better alternative to FBA for a few reasons:

• No Fulfillment Fees: Although FBA can prove advantageous for smaller products, selling larger and bulkier items through FBA can take a good chunk out of your profits. If it’s large dimensional or heavy products you’re selling, opt for FBM.
• Greater Control over the Inventory: You will have more control over inventory. With that, mistakes with the packaging or faulty items can be rectified before they end up in the hands of unfortunate, unsatisfied buyers.
• Avoid Losses Due to Changes in Amazon’s Policies: It’s not uncommon to be charged with unexpected fees owing to changes in Amazon’s policies. Most sellers are occupied with running their businesses and can’t afford to keep track of shifts in Seller policies. Also, there’s the opportunity to save up on monthly storage costs during the October-December period.

Disadvantage of FBM

The majority of third-party sellers avoid FBM for the following reasons:

❌ Inability to Target Prime Buyers: Targeting Prime buyers is mostly a privilege of FBA sellers. There’s also Seller-Fulfilled Prime (SFP), but sellers have to qualify for it. This program can also be costly and forces sellers to adhere to strict fulfillment terms and conditions. 

❌ Fewer Chances of Winning the Buy Box: FBA is a major consideration for winning the buy box. Without it, FBM sellers experience decreased sales and revenue.

❌ Added Strain of Fulfilling Orders: Unless you have an established logistics network in place, expect to spend a lot of time shipping orders and handling customer support. Although new sellers can manage, once sales start to pick up, you’ll eventually need to switch to FBA out of necessity.

FBM-related Fees

FBM fees vary and depend on how well sellers manage the shipping aspect of their business. Other than that, they have to pay the same monthly subscription fee as FBA sellers.

What Changed in 2026

Amazon changed several fees this year. These are the dates to know:

• January 15: FBA fulfillment fees went up. For standard-size products priced $10–$50, the average increase is $0.08 per unit. For products under $10 it is $0.05, and for products over $50 it is $0.31. The overmax handling fee started, the bulky tier split into small bulky and large bulky, and removal fees for standard-size items up to 0.5 lb dropped to $0.84.
• January 16: the aged inventory surcharge changed. Items aged 366 days or more now pay at least $0.30 per unit, and items aged 456 days or more pay $7.90 per cubic foot or $0.35 per unit.
• April 17: Amazon added a 3.5% fuel and logistics-related surcharge to FBA fulfillment fees in the US and Canada. It reached Multi-Channel Fulfillment and Buy with Prime on May 2.
• October 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027: holiday peak fulfillment fees apply to FBA, Multi-Channel Fulfillment and Buy with Prime. The 3.5% surcharge applies to them too. See our Amazon Q4 preparation guide for the full Q4 dates.

Selling on Amazon Referral Fee

The Referral fee is a percentage-based cost applied to each item sold. It’s calculated based on the sales price and doesn’t consider taxes stemming from Amazon’s tax calculation services. The sale price is the amount paid by a buyer, including any gift-wrapping or delivery charges. Most categories have a minimum referral fee of $0.30. 

This fee varies from one product category to another. It can go as low as 3% (on the part of a watch’s price above $1,500) and as high as 45% for Amazon Device Accessories. Here are the rates for some common categories:

There are other miscellaneous selling fees sellers should know about.

High-Volume listing fee

Amazon charges sellers with a High-Volume monthly listing fee to make up for costs related to cataloging and maintaining a large number of SKUs (Stock Keeping Units). The fee is waived for the first 1.5 million active SKUs per marketplace. Once the number crosses 1.5 million, a listing fee of $0.001 is applied to each SKU over the limit. Amazon counts the highest number of active SKUs from the 5th to the 31st of the month, and charges the fee on the first day of the month.

For example, let’s say you have 2 million eligible SKUs listed for August. Your High-Volume listing fee for that month will be $500. The first 1.5 million SKUs are exempt from the cost, which leaves 500,000 units x $0.001 equaling $500. You can view the amount that has to be paid by going to the Inventory tab, selecting Inventory Reports, and downloading the High Volume Listing Report.

Note: Need more clarity? Take a look at the commonly asked questions about the High-Volume listing fee.

Refund Administration Fee

Once a seller refunds a customer, Amazon applies a Refund Administration fee on the referral amount it gives back to the seller. For most products this fee is 20% of the referral fee or $5—whichever amount is lesser. For books, music, video and DVD products, there is no refund administration fee on a 100% refund.

For example, a seller offers a full refund of $20.00 in total sales price on a 20% referral fee product, the Refund Administration fee will be calculated as follows:

$20.00 x 20% referral fee = $4 x 20% Refund Administration fee = $0.8. 

Closing and Rental Book Service Fee

Sellers must pay a $1.80 per-item closing fee on all media-related products. Media categories include DVD, Books, Video Game Consoles, Video, Music, Video Game Accessories, and Software & Computer Games.

A rental book service fee of $5.00 is applicable on each textbook rental sold. 

Understanding Amazon Selling Fees

In this guide, we covered everything from how to sell on Amazon to storage fees, shipping fees, and more. But with so many expenses to stay on top of, even the best can get the numbers wrong. Don't worry, we have your back. We created an Amazon fee calculator that shows the profit margin on each sale to make things easier. This beauty is super helpful if you're new to selling, or numbers just aren't your thing.