The Quick Answer
Amazon FBA charges three main fees on every sale:
- Referral fee — a percentage of the sale price (usually 15%)
- Fulfillment fee — a flat fee per unit based on size and weight ($3.22–$9.73+)
- Storage fee — a monthly charge per cubic foot of warehouse space ($0.56–$2.40)
For a typical $25 product in a standard category, total Amazon fees are roughly $9–$12 per unit, or about 35–48% of the sale price.
How Each Fee Works
1. Referral Fee
The referral fee is Amazon's commission for listing your product on their marketplace. It's calculated as a percentage of the total sale price (including any shipping the buyer pays).
Referral fee rates by category:
- 8% — Consumer Electronics
- 10% — Computers, Video Games
- 12% — Camera & Photo, Cell Phone Devices
- 15% — Most categories (Home, Kitchen, Toys, Clothing, Health, Sports, Books)
- 17% — Jewelry (items over $250: 5% on the portion above $250)
- 20% — Amazon Device Accessories
Amazon also enforces a minimum referral fee of $0.30 per item in most categories. If the percentage-based fee comes out lower than $0.30, you pay $0.30 instead. This mainly affects very low-priced items.
Example: A kitchen gadget sells for $24.99. The referral fee is 15% × $24.99 = $3.75.
2. FBA Fulfillment Fee
This is what Amazon charges to pick, pack, and ship your product to the customer. The fee depends on the product's size tier and shipping weight.
Standard-size fulfillment fees:
| Size Tier | Weight Limit | Fee per Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Small Standard | ≤15 oz | $3.22 |
| Large Standard | ≤1 lb | $4.75 |
| Large Standard | 1–2 lb | $5.79 |
| Large Standard | 2–3 lb | $6.91 |
| Large Standard | 3+ lb | $7.35 + $0.42/lb over 3 lb |
Oversize fulfillment fees:
| Size Tier | Weight Limit | Fee per Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Small Oversize | ≤70 lb | $9.73 + $0.42/lb over 1 lb |
| Medium Oversize | ≤150 lb | $19.05 + $0.42/lb over 1 lb |
| Large Oversize | ≤150 lb | $89.98 + $0.83/lb over 90 lb |
| Special Oversize | >150 lb | $158.49 + $0.83/lb over 90 lb |
Amazon determines the size tier by measuring the product's longest side, median side, shortest side, and weight in its packaging. If a product is close to a tier boundary, small changes in packaging can push it into a cheaper tier — a detail worth optimizing.
Example: A product weighing 14 oz with dimensions that fit within 15" × 12" × 0.75" qualifies as Small Standard: fulfillment fee = $3.22.
3. Monthly Storage Fee
Amazon charges for the warehouse space your inventory occupies, measured in cubic feet.
| Period | Standard-Size | Oversize |
|---|---|---|
| January – September | $0.87 per cubic foot | $0.56 per cubic foot |
| October – December (Peak) | $2.40 per cubic foot | $1.40 per cubic foot |
Storage fees are charged on the 15th of each month based on the average daily volume your inventory occupies.
How to estimate per-unit storage cost:
- Calculate your product's volume in cubic feet: (length × width × height in inches) ÷ 1,728
- Multiply by the storage rate for the current period
Example: A product that measures 10" × 6" × 4" = 240 cubic inches = 0.139 cubic feet.
- January–September: 0.139 × $0.87 = $0.12 per unit per month
- October–December: 0.139 × $2.40 = $0.33 per unit per month
Storage costs per unit are usually small — unless your product is bulky or turns slowly.
4. Long-Term Storage Fees
Inventory stored at Amazon for more than 365 days incurs an additional long-term storage surcharge. This is designed to discourage sellers from using Amazon's warehouses as cheap storage.
The long-term fee is assessed on the 15th of each month at a rate of approximately $6.90 per cubic foot or $0.15 per unit, whichever is greater.
Avoiding it: Manage inventory turnover. If a product isn't selling, create a removal order before it hits 365 days.
Worked Example: Full Fee Calculation
Product: Silicone kitchen spatula set
- Sale price: $18.99
- Category: Kitchen (15% referral fee)
- Weight: 12 oz → Small Standard tier
- Dimensions: 12" × 4" × 1.5" (0.042 cubic feet)
- Product cost from supplier: $4.50
- Shipping to Amazon: $0.80 per unit
Fee calculation:
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Sale price | $18.99 |
| Referral fee (15%) | −$2.85 |
| Fulfillment fee (Small Standard) | −$3.22 |
| Storage fee ($0.87 × 0.042) | −$0.04 |
| Total Amazon fees | −$6.11 |
| Product cost | −$4.50 |
| Inbound shipping | −$0.80 |
| Net profit per unit | $7.58 |
| Profit margin | 39.9% |
At 200 units per month, that's $1,516 monthly profit before advertising and other business costs.
The Fee Percentages Most Sellers Miss
When you add up all fees, the total Amazon take is usually 30–45% of the sale price for standard-size products. Here's how it typically breaks down:
- Referral fee: 15% of sale price (in most categories)
- Fulfillment fee: 12–25% of sale price (depends heavily on price point)
- Storage: 0.5–2% of sale price
The fulfillment fee as a percentage of your price is the most variable factor. On a $10 item, a $3.22 fulfillment fee is 32% of revenue. On a $40 item, that same $3.22 is just 8%. This is why higher-priced products tend to have better margins — the fixed fulfillment fee becomes a smaller percentage.
Common Mistakes
1. Ignoring the Fulfillment Fee in Early Calculations
Many new sellers focus only on the referral fee (15%) and assume they'll keep 85% of revenue minus product cost. In reality, the fulfillment fee alone often adds another 10–25% of the sale price in costs. Always include it from the start.
2. Underestimating Shipping to Amazon
Getting your products into Amazon's warehouses has a cost. Whether you're shipping from a domestic supplier or importing from overseas, inbound shipping per unit can range from $0.50 to $3.00+ depending on weight, origin, and shipping method. This cost is real and recurring.
3. Not Accounting for Returns
Amazon's return policy is buyer-friendly. Return rates vary by category — clothing can be 20–30%, electronics 5–10%, home goods 3–8%. When a product is returned, you lose the referral fee, pay a return processing fee, and the item may not be resellable. Build a return rate assumption into your profitability model.
4. Pricing Too Low
Products priced under $10 are almost impossible to profit from on FBA because the fixed fulfillment fee ($3.22 minimum) plus the referral fee consume too much of the revenue. Most FBA profitability guides suggest a minimum sale price of $15, with a sweet spot of $20–$50.
5. Forgetting Q4 Storage Spikes
Storage fees nearly triple in October through December. If you stock up for holiday sales (which you should), budget for the higher rate. A product that costs $0.04/unit/month in storage during summer costs $0.11/unit/month in Q4.
How to Improve Your FBA Margins
Optimize Product Size and Packaging
Packaging directly affects your size tier and therefore your fulfillment fee. If you can reduce your product's dimensions to fit into a smaller tier, you save on every unit sold. The boundary between Small Standard and Large Standard is a common optimization target.
Negotiate Supplier Pricing
Even small reductions in product cost compound at scale. A $0.50 reduction per unit across 500 monthly sales is $250/month — $3,000/year. Request volume pricing, and compare multiple suppliers.
Use the Right Shipping Method to Amazon
- Small Parcel Delivery (SPD): Ship individual boxes via UPS/FedEx. Simple but expensive per unit.
- Less Than Truckload (LTL): Palletized shipments for larger quantities. Significantly cheaper per unit.
- Full Truckload (FTL): For very large shipments. Lowest per-unit cost.
The break-even point between SPD and LTL is typically around 10–15 boxes.
Monitor and Adjust Pricing
Amazon is a competitive marketplace. Use the profit-per-unit number from your fee calculation as a floor, and test price points to find the revenue-maximizing price. A $2 price increase that doesn't reduce sales volume goes straight to profit.
FBA vs. FBM: When to Use Each
| Factor | FBA | FBM |
|---|---|---|
| Prime badge | Yes | Only with Seller Fulfilled Prime |
| Fulfillment fees | Higher (Amazon's rates) | Lower (your own shipping costs) |
| Storage costs | Amazon's storage rates | Your own warehouse costs |
| Buy Box advantage | Strong | Moderate |
| Customer service | Amazon handles it | You handle it |
| Best for | Small/medium items, high volume | Large/heavy items, low volume |
Rule of thumb: Use FBA when the Prime badge and Amazon's logistics network add more value than they cost. Use FBM when your products are heavy, slow-moving, or when you have efficient fulfillment already set up.
Frequently Asked Questions
What percentage does Amazon take from FBA sellers?
Total Amazon fees (referral + fulfillment + storage) typically consume 30–45% of the sale price for standard-size products. The exact percentage depends on your product category, size, weight, and sale price.
Is Amazon FBA still profitable?
Yes, but margins are tighter than they were years ago. Successful FBA sellers focus on product selection (small, lightweight, $15–50 price range), cost control (supplier negotiation, packaging optimization), and marketing efficiency (targeted advertising with clear ROI targets).
How much does it cost to start selling on Amazon FBA?
The Professional Seller account costs $39.99/month. Beyond that, your costs are inventory (product sourcing + shipping to Amazon) and any advertising spend. Most sellers start with $2,000–$5,000 in initial inventory investment, though amounts vary widely.
What is the minimum referral fee?
The minimum referral fee is $0.30 per item in most categories. This only applies when the percentage-based fee is less than $0.30 — mainly relevant for items priced under $2.
Do I pay FBA fees on returned items?
When a buyer returns an item, Amazon refunds the buyer and deducts the refund from your account. Amazon keeps the referral fee in most cases and charges a return processing fee. If the returned item is in sellable condition, it goes back to your inventory. If not, you can have it returned to you or disposed of.
How often does Amazon change FBA fees?
Amazon typically adjusts FBA fee schedules once or twice per year, usually in January and sometimes mid-year. Changes are announced several weeks in advance in Seller Central. Fee increases of 2–5% per year have been common.
Can I calculate FBA fees before listing a product?
Yes. Amazon provides an FBA Revenue Calculator in Seller Central, and third-party tools (including the FBA fee calculator on this site) let you estimate fees by entering product details, sale price, and costs. Always run these numbers before committing to a product.
Amazon FBA Fee Calculator
Enter your product price, cost, and size tier to see your exact profit breakdown — referral fees, fulfillment fees, storage costs, and net margin per unit.
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