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Royalty rate

Costs & royalties

The share of the list price you keep before printing costs are deducted. KDP print books pay 60% at or above a per-marketplace price threshold and 50% below it.

For print books KDP applies a rate to your list price, then subtracts the printing cost. On Amazon.com the rate is 60% at list prices of $9.99 and above and 50% below that, and each marketplace has its own threshold in its own currency.

Because the printing cost is subtracted after the rate is applied, the two interact in a way that surprises people. Pricing just under the 60% threshold can leave you with less money per copy than pricing just over it, even though the book is cheaper for the reader — the rate drop outweighs the price cut.

Ebooks work on a different system entirely: a 35% plan with no delivery fee and a 70% plan that carries one, with the 70% option only available inside a published price band.

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SmartKDP is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Amazon. Amazon, Kindle, and Kindle Direct Publishing are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

Related terms

  • Printing cost

    What Amazon charges to manufacture one copy, deducted from every sale before your royalty. It is a fixed amount plus a per-page amount, set by marketplace, ink type, and trim category.

  • List price

    The price you set for your book in each marketplace. It drives both your royalty rate and your royalty amount, and KDP enforces a floor and a ceiling on it.

  • Minimum list price

    The lowest price KDP will let you set, derived from your printing cost and royalty rate so that a sale never produces a negative royalty.

  • Expanded Distribution

    An opt-in channel that makes a paperback available to bookstores, libraries, and other online retailers. It pays a flat 40% of list price instead of the standard rate.