Chapter 5.1: The fees on every sale
What you'll learn: the two main fees Amazon charges on every FBA sale, how your product's size and weight decide the fulfilment fee, and the extra charges added on top.
The two main fees
Every time a unit sells through FBA, Amazon takes two main fees from the sale price:
- The referral fee: a percentage of the sale price, which depends on the product's category. This is Amazon's charge for selling on its marketplace.
- The FBA fulfilment fee: a fixed amount per unit, which depends on the product's size and weight. This pays for picking, packing and delivering the order, plus customer service.
On top of these come a few smaller charges (below), monthly storage (5.2) and, for most beginners, VAT on all of it (Chapter 6).
Referral fees
The referral fee is worked out on the total price the customer pays, including VAT and any delivery charge. Most categories charge 15%, but several have a lower rate for cheaper items. A few common examples:
| Category | Referral fee | Minimum per unit |
|---|---|---|
| Toys and Games | 15% | £0.25 |
| Home Products | 8% if the price is £20 or less; 15% above £20 | £0.25 |
| Kitchen | 15% (Kitchen is a separate category from Home Products) | £0.25 |
| Beauty, Health and Personal Care | 8% if the price is £10 or less; 15% above £10 | £0.25 |
| Grocery and Gourmet | 5% if the price is £10 or less; 15% above £10 | None |
| Video Games and Gaming Accessories | 15% (consoles 8%) | None |
| Clothing and Accessories | 5% up to £15; 10% from £15 to £20; 15% above £20 | £0.25 |
Source and the full list: Amazon UK pricing. Check the category on the live page before you buy, because the bands are updated from time to time.
"Home" and "Kitchen" sound similar but have different rates. The category that counts is the one the Amazon listing sits in, which ArbiSource shows at the bottom of each result panel.
FBA fulfilment fees
The fulfilment fee depends on the product's size tier and its weight. The size tier is set by the packaged dimensions, from small envelopes up to oversize items. Most arbitrage products fall into the envelope and parcel tiers.
| Size tier | Maximum dimensions | Maximum unit weight |
|---|---|---|
| Small parcel | 35 × 25 × 12 cm | 3.9 kg |
| Standard parcel | 45 × 34 × 26 cm | 11.9 kg |
Items smaller and lighter than a small parcel fall into the envelope tiers; larger ones are oversize.
Dimensional weight. For parcels and most oversize items, Amazon charges on whichever is greater: the item's actual weight or its dimensional weight. Dimensional weight is length × width × height in centimetres, divided by 5,000, giving a figure in kilograms.
a boxed toy measures 38 × 20 × 5 cm and weighs 600 g. Its longest side is over 35 cm, so it's a standard parcel. Its dimensional weight is 38 × 20 × 5 ÷ 5,000 = 0.76 kg, which is more than its 600 g actual weight, so Amazon charges on 0.76 kg.
Dimensional weight isn't used for envelopes, Low-Price FBA items, or clothing, accessories and bags in parcel tiers. These are charged on unit weight only.
Some typical fees (standard non-peak rates, excluding VAT, before the surcharge below):
| Size tier and weight | Fulfilment fee |
|---|---|
| Light envelope, up to 100 g | £2.08 |
| Standard envelope, up to 460 g | £2.16 |
| Small parcel, up to 400 g | £3.00 |
| Standard parcel, up to 900 g | £3.06 |
| Standard parcel, up to 1.9 kg | £3.48 |
| Standard parcel, up to 3.9 kg | £3.54 |
Our boxed toy (standard parcel, 0.76 kg) pays £3.06. Full rate tables, including oversize: FBA fulfilment fees (Seller Central), plus the rate card linked from Amazon UK pricing.
Low-Price FBA
Small, light, low-priced products get a reduced fulfilment fee automatically. A product qualifies when:
- its price is £20 or less including VAT in most categories, or £10 or less in Beauty, Health and Personal Care; Business, Industrial and Scientific; Office; Grocery and Gourmet; Books; Amazon Device Accessories; and Kitchen, and
- it's no bigger than a small parcel weighing up to 400 g.
For example, a small parcel up to 400 g pays £2.70 instead of £3.00, and a standard envelope up to 210 g pays £1.73 instead of £2.10. Low-Price FBA (Seller Central)
Extra charges added on top
| Charge | What it is |
|---|---|
| Fuel and logistics surcharge | 1.5% added to FBA fulfilment fees (including peak fees). Details |
| Digital services fee | 2% for UK-established sellers, charged on the referral fee and the FBA fulfilment fee. It's not charged on storage or your monthly plan. Details |
| VAT on Amazon's fees | UK-established sellers are charged VAT on Amazon's fees. If you're not VAT registered, that's a real cost. See Chapter 6 |
| Peak fulfilment fee | During Amazon's busy season (usually mid-October to mid-January, based on delivery date), small and standard parcels cost about 11p to 13p more, and large and extra-large envelopes 7p more. Light and standard envelopes, oversize items and Low-Price FBA are unchanged. Check the current dates and rates on the fulfilment fees page |
Putting it together: our boxed toy
Selling at £24.99 in Toys and Games, outside peak season:
| Fee | Amount (excluding VAT) |
|---|---|
| Referral fee (15% of £24.99) | £3.75 |
| FBA fulfilment fee (standard parcel, up to 900 g) | £3.06 |
| Fuel and logistics surcharge (1.5% of £3.06) | £0.05 |
| Digital services fee (2% of referral and fulfilment fees) | £0.14 |
| Total per sale | £7.00 |
Add a little storage (5.2) and, if you're not VAT registered, 20% VAT on the lot (Chapter 6). We follow this toy all the way to a profit figure in Chapter 7.
In ArbiSource
You don't need to work any of this out by hand. ArbiSource calculates the referral fee, fulfilment fee, surcharges and digital services fee on every result, using the product's category, size and weight.
- Hover over the Fees figure (under the Buy and Sell prices) to see the breakdown: Referral Fee, Fulfillment Fee, Digital Services Fee and, if you're not VAT registered, VAT on Fees.
- Fees shown in red mean Amazon hasn't provided all the fee data, so the profit isn't fully reliable. It can also mean the product has never been sold through FBA. Check it on Amazon's Revenue Calculator (free to use) before buying.
- Check the category. If a product's category looks wrong, the referral fee may be too.
Checklist
- I know the difference between the referral fee and the FBA fulfilment fee
- I can explain dimensional weight and why a big, light box can cost more
- I know Low-Price FBA applies automatically to small, light, low-priced items
- I know where to see the fee breakdown in ArbiSource, and what red fees mean