One of the perks of selling on Amazon is that you can outsource customer service, shipping, and inventory storage to the platform. Of course, all of these services do not come for free. Depending on how much inventory you move, Amazon FBA fees can take a large bite out of your profits if you are unprepared for them.   We’ll go over the fees you can expect to pay when you choose to go the Amazon FBA route so that when the end of the month comes, you won’t be pulling your hair out by the roots when you get that bill.

Amazon FBA Fees Explained

There are several types of charges sellers must pay to Amazon to use its platform: general fees, sales fees, and fulfillment fees. We’ll discuss general fees and sales fees in this section and tackle fulfillment fees later on.

General Fees

You have two options for handling general fees. You can either pay a per-item fee ($0.99) when you opt for the individual plan or a set monthly fee ($39.99) if you upgrade to the professional plan.  Since you don’t pay the fee until you sell something, the individual plan is best for beginners who are selling a limited number of items. On the other hand, the professional plan is preferred for those who move a lot of merchandise every month or who want to take advantage of the full suite of Amazon’s services, including order management tools and the option to choose your shipping rates. Professional sellers are also eligible to win the Buy Box.

Sales Fees

The most common sales fees you will encounter on Amazon are referral fees; however, you may face additional costs in some cases.  Let’s start with referral fees:

• Because Amazon is at its core a recommendation service, it charges you a referral fee at the time of sale for every transaction it facilitates for you.  
• All goods sold on Amazon are subject to referral fees.
• Referral fees vary greatly depending on your items. Therefore it’s always a good idea to consult the table the company provides.
• For the most common products, referral fees typically range from 6% to 20%.
• The average seller will pay roughly 15% for the majority of their sales.

Additional Sales Fees

Miscellaneous fees may apply depending on what you sell, how much you sell and whether or not the customer receives a refund. Here are a few examples:

• Rental book fees: A $5 service fee will be charged for each textbook rental you sell.
• Closing fees: Amazon applies a $1.80 closing charge to the sale if you sell media in any format. 
• High-volume fee: Amazon charges a listing fee for firms with a large number of SKUs. The charge is $0.001 per qualified SKU; however, for the first 1.5 million SKUs, Amazon waives the fee.
• Refund administration: For a refund, Amazon will charge you $5.00 or 20% of the applicable referral fee, whichever is less. If you’ve already received payment for the sale, you won’t be charged this fee.

What Is the Cost of Amazon FBA in 2021?

“Inside every FBA business there are anumber of fees to take into account when starting” – (Source: Canva)

Amazon made changes to its fee schedule for the fulfillment part of its services in June of 2021. Three factors determine these prices:

1. The product’s weight.
2. The product’s dimensions or size.
3. Channels used to sell the products, such as Amazon or an external website.

Amazon has divided its product sizes into two categories for the sake of simplicity:

• Standard Size – To be classified as a standard-size item, a product must weigh less than 20 pounds when fully packed. In addition, its size must not exceed 8 inches by 18 inches by 14 inches.

• Oversized – Anything that is larger than these dimensions and weighs more than 20 pounds qualifies as oversized. 

Within these sizes, there are subdivisions. The respective cost breakdown for products sold on Amazon, non-Amazon products, and monthly storage fees find mention below.

Amazon FBA Fees for Products Sold on Amazon

The fulfillment by Amazon service includes everything from picking, packing, and shipping the goods to your customers to assisting them with shipping, payments, returns and other issues. As previously stated, these prices are determined by the size and weight of your products.

Amazon fulfillment Fees Per Unit (June 1, 2021, & After)

Standard-Sized Products

Product Size	Product Price
Small (6 oz or less)	$2.70
Small (6 oz to 12 oz)	$2.84
Large (6 oz or less)	$3.47
Large (6+ to 12 oz)	$3.64
Large (12+ to 16 oz)	$4.25
Large (1+ to 1.75 lb)	$4.95
Large (1.75+ to 2 lb)	$4.95
Large (2+ to 2.75 lb)	$5.68
Large (2.75+ to 3 lb)	$5.68
Large (3+ to 4 lb)	$5.98
Large (4+ to 5 lb)	$6.28
Large (5+ to 6 lb)	$6.58
Large (6+ to 7 lb)	$6.88

For large standard size: 3+ pounds to 20 pounds $6.08  plus $0.30 per pound above first 3 pounds

Oversized Products

Product Size	Product Price
Small oversize (70 lb or less)	$8.66 + $0.38/lb above first lb
Medium oversize (150 lb or less)	$11.37 + $0.39/lb above first lb
Large oversize (150 lb or less)	$76.57 + $0.79/lb above first 90 lbs
Special oversize (Over 150 lb)	$138.11 + $0.79/lb above first 90 lbs

If you’re selling clothing, there are additional fees you’ll need to consider.

FBA Fee Changes for Clothes

Size tier	Shipping weight (packaging weight no longer applies)	fulfillment fee per unit1
Small standard	6 oz or less 6+ to 12 oz 12+ to 16 oz2	$3.00 $3.14 $3.62
Large standard	6 oz or less 6+ to 12 oz 12+ to 16 oz2 1+ to 2 lb 2+ to 3 lb 3+ lb to 20 lb	$3.87 $4.04 $4.65 $5.35 $6.08 $6.08+$0.30/lb above first 3 lbs

Oversize apparel tiers (small oversize, large oversize, and special oversize) are charged as per core fulfillment fees.

Amazon FBA Fees for Non-Amazon Products

You can also use Amazon FBA to sell things outside of its platform. For example, if you have a dedicated website for your product, you can have Amazon fulfill your orders through MCF (Multi-Channel fulfillment) instead of doing it yourself. It’s worth mentioning that MCF is a little more expensive than on-site fulfillment. Amazon knows that the products on your site may have several shipping alternatives. It has constructed its MCF fees to accommodate a variety of shipping alternatives, including: 

• Standard (3-5 days)
• Expedited (2-day)
• Priority (Next-day shipping). 

The costs for two product size categories – Standard and Oversize – are listed in the tables below.

Standard Shipping

Size tier	1 unit order	2 unit order	3 unit order	4 unit order	5+ unit order
Small standard: 4 oz or less	$3.95	$2.75	$2.39	$1.89	$1.79
Small standard: 4 to 10 oz	$4.95	$3.45	$2.95	$2.29	$1.99
Small standard: 10 to 16 oz	$5.79	$4.05	$3.45	$2.89	$2.59
Large standard: 10 oz or less	$5.49	$3.85	$3.29	$2.69	$2.39
Large standard: 10 to 16 oz	$5.79	$3.90	$3.40	$2.89	$2.59
Large standard: 1 to 2 lb	$5.95	$3.95	$3.45	$3.35	$2.95
Large standard: 2 to 21 lb	$5.95 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$3.95 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$3.45 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$3.35 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$2.95 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb
Small oversize	$10.99 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$6.80 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$5.80 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$4.80 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$3.80 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb

Size Tier	Unit Orders
Medium oversize	$15.30 + $0.39/lb above first 2 lb
Large oversize	$78.30 + $0.80/lb above first 90 lb
Special oversize	$143.30 + $0.92/lb above first 90 lb

Expedited Shipping

Size tier	1 unit order	2 unit order	3 unit order	4 unit order	5+ unit order
Small standard: 10 oz or less	$5.69	$3.99	$3.29	$2.89	$2.49
Small standard: 10 to 16 oz	$5.89	$4.19	$3.49	$3.09	$2.69
Large standard: 10 oz or less	$5.79	$4.09	$3.39	$2.99	$2.59
Large standard: 10 to 16 oz	$6.29	$4.59	$3.89	$3.49	$3.09
Large standard: 1 to 2 lb	$6.99	$4.99	$4.19	$3.69	$3.29
Large standard: 2 to 21 lb	$6.99 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$4.99 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$4.19 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$3.69 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$3.29 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb
Small oversize	$11.99 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$7.80 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$7.30 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$7.15 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb	$6.85 + $0.38/lb above first 2 lb

Size Tier	Unit Orders
Medium oversize	$15.30 + $0.39/lb above first 2 lb
Large oversize	$78.30 + $0.80/lb above first 90 lb
Special oversize	$143.30 + $0.92/lb above first 90 lb

Priority Shipping

Size tier	Unit Order
Medium oversize	$31.30 + $0.39/lb above first 2 lb
Large oversize	$78.30 + $0.80/lb above first 90 lb
Special oversize	$143.30 + $0.92/lb above first 90 lb

There will be an extra $0.11 per-unit fulfillment fee for lithium batteries or items containing them. Based on the above costs, it’s clear that the more things you sell on your website, the less expensive off-site FBA will be. 

Amazon FBA Monthly Storage Fee

“Dependiing on the product amazon FBA storage fees may vary” – (Source: Canva)

Amazon charges monthly inventory fees between the 7th and 15th of the month for the previous month. Furthermore, the charge varies depending on the product size tier and the time of year. The cost is calculated per cubic foot. As a result, storage rates for standard-size objects may be less than those for oversize products.

Storage Month	Standard-Size	Oversize
January – September	$0.75 per cubic foot	$0.48 per cubic foot
October – December	$2.40 per cubic foot	$1.20 per cubic foot

Monthly Storage Fees for Dangerous Goods Dangerous goods (also called hazmat) are regulated substances or materials that may pose a risk during storing, handling, or transporting because they contain flammable, pressurized, corrosive, or otherwise harmful substances. “Dangerous goods” also refers to consumer products such as laptops, smartphones, household cleaners, spray paints, and cosmetics.

Month	Standard-size	Oversize
January – September	$0.99 per cubic foot	$0.78 per cubic foot
October – December	$3.63 per cubic foot	$2.43 per cubic foot

Amazon FBA Long Term Storage Fees

Amazon imposes a monthly long-term storage fee (LTSF) of $6.90 per cubic foot or $0.15 per item if the inventory is at the fulfillment center for more than 365 days. On the 15th of each month, Amazon calculates long-term storage fees.

Conclusion

Fulfillment by Amazon is a fantastic program that can help you significantly increase your sales and market share. Prices are highly competitive, and they often become less expensive than using a third-party logistics partner. Amazon FBA is a solid option whether you’re selling your products on Amazon or through another channel. However, to guarantee your profits, you should double-check and re-check your figures. Additionally, you can contact Amazon’s customer service representatives for assistance.