Amazon Marketplace - Fees


Advertisements

In this chapter, we will discuss the types of fees that Amazon charges from the merchants who do business using its platform −

  • Variable Closing Fees
  • Amazon Fulfillment Fees
  • Referral Fees

Let’s discuss these in detail, starting with Variable Closing Fees.

Variable Closing Fees

Amazon charges sellers a Variable Closing Fee for every item sold via Amazon’s platform. This fee is charged in addition to a referral fee. This fee is somewhat complicated and has varied over the years. It depends on several things like the product type and the shipment method.

Going by the product type, Amazon splits the products in two categories: Media Products or BMVD products and non-media products. BMVD includes music, videos, books, DVDs, computer software, video games, etc. It is easier to calculate the variable closing fee for BMVD products and is almost a standard value of $1.35. So, whether you are an individual seller or a professional seller, using FBA or shipping yourself, you need to pay $1.35 for every BMVD product that you sell.

For non-media products, if you are using FBA, then there will be no variable closing fee. If you are shipping by yourself and offering free shipping, even then you won’t be charged the variable closing fee.

Coming to the last situation in which you are shipping the product yourself and you are also charging a shipping fee. In this case, the variable closing fee to be paid, is calculated by taking a fixed fee and adding an amount per pound of shipping weight.

The basic rate is $0.45 per item sold plus $0.05 multiplied by the number of pounds of shipping weight of the product. For example, if your product weighs 10 pounds, then you will be charged a fixed fee of $0.45, plus $0.05 × 10 = $0.5, i.e. a total of $0.95 as variable closing fee.

Media Products (per item)

Product Type Domestic Standard Domestic Expedited International
Books $1.35 $1.35 $1.35
Music & DVD's $1.35 $1.35 $1.35
Software $1.35 $1.35 Not Available
Computer & Video Games $1.35 $1.35 Not Available
Video Game Consoles $1.35 $1.35 Not Available

Non-Media Products (per item plus per weight)

Product Type Domestic Standard Domestic Expedited International
Non-Media products $0.45+$0.05/lb $0.65+$0.10/lb Not Available

Fulfillment by Amazon

You might be well-versed with this term by now. Let us look at the fees related to it. Amazon charges a fee for shipping the product for you, which will lower than the expense you will incur in shipping the same product. The calculation of fulfilment fees for orders placed on Amazon is based on the category type and the product size tier.

The charges as per Amazon for Standard-Size Media Products, applicable on both domestic and international orders are listed below.

Fulfillment Fee Product Size Tier ($299.99 or less) Zero- Fee Fulfillment($300 or more)
Small Standard-Size Large Standard-Size

Order Handling (per order)

$0.00 $0.00 $0.00

Pick & Pack (per unit)

$1.06 $1.06 $0.00

Weight Handling(per lb)

Based on the Out bound Shipping wt.

1 lb. $0.50 $0.85 $0.00
2 lb. $1.24
Over 2 lb. $1.24+$0.41/lb.(Above the first 2 lb.)

The charges as per Amazon for Standard-Size Non-Media Products, applicable on both domestic and international orders are listed below.

Fulfillment Fee Product Size Tier ($299.99 or less) Zero- Fee Fulfillment($300 or more)
Small Standard-Size Large Standard-Size

Order Handling (per order)

$0.00 $0.00 $0.00

Pick & Pack (per unit)

$1.06 $1.06 $0.00

Weight Handling(per lb)

Based on the Out bound Shipping wt.

1 lb. $0.50 $0.96 $0.00
2 lb. $0.95
Over 2 lb. $1.95+$0.39/lb.(Above the first 2 lb.)

The charges as per Amazon for Oversize Media and Non-Media, applicable only on domestic orders are listed below.

Fulfillment Fee Product Size Tier
Small Oversize Medium Oversize Large Oversize Special Oversize

Order Handling(per order)

$0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00

Pick & Pack(per unit)

$4.09 $5.20 $8.40 $10.53

Weight Handling

Based on the Out bound Shipping wt.

$2.06+$0.39/l b. (Above the first 2 lb.) $2.73+$0.39/lb. (Above the first 2 lb.) $63.98+$0.80/ lb (Above the first 90 lb.) $124.58+$0.92/l b. (Above the first 90 lb.)

Special Handling

Applies to plasma and projection large screen television units with screens 42” or larger. However, smaller televisions could qualify for the Special Handling Fee based on factors like weight and on how delicately it is to be handled

$40

Referral Fees

Referral fee is the fee that you pay Amazon for referring the sale to you and for providing an access to a massive audience. Sellers pay a referral fee on each item sold which is calculated on the product price and on any gift wrap charges borne by the buyer.

Items in several categories have a per-item minimum referral fee as listed below −

Product Type Referral Fee Percentage
Personal Computer 6%
Cell phone devices, Camera & Photo, Consumer Electronics, Video Game Consoles 8%
Industrial & Scientific Products 12%
Books, Beauty products, Baby products, Clothing & Accessories, Furniture & Decor, Health & Personal care, Home & Garden, Kitchen Products, Luggage & Travel Accessories, Musical Instruments, Office Products, Shoes, Watches, Handbags & Glasses, Sports, Toys & Games, DVD, Video Games & Software 15%
Jewelry 20%
Independent Design 25%

Amazon has cut its referral fee by 1-7% on some categories including computers, laptops, mobile devices and tablets, electronics, video games, educational software, musical instruments, etc.

Advertisements