izharshah.com/tools/amazon-seller-fees-uk · The Parallel Operator · Amazon seller fees UK · Rates checked against Amazon 3 October 2026
Amazon seller fees UK: what a sale really leaves you
The referral percentage is the part everyone quotes, and it is charged on the delivery you charge as well as the item. Then there is the plan fee, FBA if Amazon ships it, a 2% digital services fee on all of those, and 20% VAT on the lot, which you pay whether or not you are VAT registered. Enter a sale and see what actually reaches your account.
Your full breakdown
Every fee line with what it is charged on, your effective percentage against the headline referral rate, what the same sale costs under FBA versus shipping it yourself, and what the festive peak period does to the fulfilment fee.
| Fee | Charged on | Amount |
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How this calculator works
The referral fee is charged on the delivery you charge, not just the item. Amazon calls it the total sales price, and it means the item plus delivery plus any gift wrap. So raising your postage to cover costs raises the fee too. Most categories sit at 15%, but several do not: Consumer Electronics is 7%, and Home Products, Beauty and Clothing all charge a lower rate on cheaper items and flip to 15% above a price line. There is also a minimum referral fee of 25p per item in most categories, so on very cheap goods the percentage is not what you pay.
Some categories step, and one is genuinely marginal. Home Products is 8% at or under £20 and 15% above, and that flip applies to the whole price, not just the part over £20. So a £20 item is charged 8% and a £21 item is charged 15% on all of it, which is a real cliff worth knowing about when you set a price. Electronic Accessories works the other way and is properly marginal: 15% on the portion up to £100 and 8% on the portion above. Treating one like the other gives the wrong answer in both directions.
VAT on Amazon’s fees depends on where you are, not on whether you are VAT registered. This is where Amazon differs from Etsy. Amazon charges VAT on seller fees to any seller established in the UK, and handing over a VAT number does not remove it. A VAT registered seller reclaims it from HMRC instead, which is a cash-flow difference rather than a saving. That is why this page has no "VAT registered" tick: adding one would be wrong. Note also that both plan fees are quoted before VAT, so the Professional plan really costs £30 a month and the Individual plan 90p an item.
There is a fourth line most sellers never notice: the digital services fee. Amazon adds 2% to the fees it charges a UK seller, which means the referral fee, the per-item and closing fees and the FBA fulfilment fee, to recover the UK digital services tax. It is calculated on the sum of those fees, rounded to the penny, and then VAT is charged on it too. It does not appear on the rate card or the public pricing page, only on the invoice and in Amazon’s own calculator, which is why so many fee guides miss it. It is what turns a 15% referral fee into 18.4% after VAT rather than 18%.
FBA is a flat fee per unit, set by size tier first and then weight. For parcels Amazon uses the greater of the actual weight and the volumetric weight, so a light but bulky item is charged as though it were heavier. Since 17 April 2026 Amazon has also added a 1.5% fuel and logistics surcharge to the fulfilment fee. Its rate card prints the fees without it, so the calculator shows it as a line of its own, and it is charged on the festive rate as well. Fulfilment fees also rise for the festive period, from 15 October to 14 January, on parcels and the two larger envelope sizes. The calculator knows which side of that date you are on and shows you the other figure as well, so a quote you take in September still makes sense in November. Two refinements are built in. Items of 400g or less priced at £20 or under (£10 for Beauty, Kitchen and Books) get Amazon’s cheaper Low-Price FBA rates automatically, £1.70 for a light envelope and £2.70 for a small parcel, with no festive rise. And clothing parcels are priced from Amazon’s separate table for that category, which charges by 100g step, so a clothing parcel to 400g is £2.97 rather than £3.00 and one to 1.4kg is £4.36 rather than £3.26.
What is not in here. Advertising, which you set yourself; monthly storage, which is charged per cubic foot in the UK and roughly doubles from October to December; long-term storage and removal fees; returns processing; the low-inventory fee; and any category surcharge. Parcels are priced from the standard table for every category offered here except clothing; fifteen other categories, such as footwear, luggage and mattresses, have the same kind of separate table and are not on the page. Amazon’s schedule is the largest and most frequently revised of the marketplaces, and this page covers the common case rather than pretending to cover all of it. If you sell on more than one platform, the eBay and Etsy calculators do the same job there, and neither headline percentage is what you actually pay either.
Questions people ask about Amazon seller fees
What are Amazon seller fees in the UK?
Three or four things. A referral fee on every sale, usually 15% but 7% for consumer electronics and lower for cheap items in some categories. A selling plan fee: either 75p per item on the Individual plan or £25 a month on the Professional plan, both before VAT. An FBA fulfilment fee if Amazon ships it, which since April 2026 carries a 1.5% fuel and logistics surcharge. A digital services fee of 2% on top of all of those. And 20% VAT on the lot for a UK seller.
What is the Amazon digital services fee?
A 2% charge Amazon adds to the fees it bills a UK seller, to recover the UK digital services tax. It applies to the referral fee, the per-item and closing fees and the FBA fulfilment fee, is worked out on the total of those and rounded to the penny, and VAT is then charged on it as well. It is set out in Seller Central rather than on the rate card, so most fee guides leave it out. On a £25 sale in a 15% category it adds 8p before VAT, and with FBA about 14p.
Is the Amazon referral fee charged on postage?
Yes. It is charged on the total sales price, which Amazon defines as the item price plus the delivery you charge plus any gift wrap. Raising your postage to cover rising courier costs also raises the referral fee, so the two do not cancel out.
Is the Amazon Professional plan worth it?
It depends on volume. The Individual plan costs 75p per item with no monthly fee; the Professional plan costs £25 a month regardless. Ignoring everything else, the two cost the same at about 34 items a month, so beyond roughly 35 sales the Professional plan is cheaper. It also unlocks setting your own delivery rates and some restricted categories.
Does Amazon charge VAT on seller fees?
Yes, for sellers established in the UK, and unlike some marketplaces it is not removed by giving Amazon a VAT number. The trigger is where your business is established, not whether you are registered. A VAT registered seller reclaims the VAT from HMRC, so it becomes a timing difference rather than a cost, but it is still charged.
How much does FBA cost per item?
It depends on size tier and weight, and Amazon uses the greater of actual and volumetric weight for parcels. As a guide, a light envelope up to 100g is £2.08, a small parcel up to 400g is £3.00, and a standard parcel up to 1.4kg is £3.26, all before VAT. Since 17 April 2026 Amazon has added a 1.5% fuel and logistics surcharge on top, which takes those to £2.11, £3.05 and £3.31. Fees on parcels and the two larger envelope sizes rise during the festive period, from 15 October to 14 January. Items of 400g or less priced at £20 or under in most categories get the cheaper Low-Price FBA rates instead, £1.70 for the envelope and £2.70 for the small parcel, and clothing parcels have a table of their own.
Is there a closing fee on Amazon books?
Yes. Media items, which means books, DVDs, music and video games, carry a closing fee of 50p per item sold on top of the referral fee. Media categories also have no minimum referral fee, unlike most other categories where a 25p minimum applies.
What is the minimum Amazon referral fee?
25p per item in most categories. On very cheap goods that minimum bites before the percentage does, so a £1 item in a 15% category costs 25p in referral fee rather than 15p. Media categories and Grocery and Gourmet are the exceptions and have no minimum.
Which marketplace has the lowest fees, Amazon, eBay or Etsy?
It depends entirely on the category and what you sell, and none of the three headline percentages is what you actually pay once fixed fees and VAT are counted. Run the same sale through all three calculators rather than comparing the advertised rates, because the gap between the headline and the real figure is different on each.
Related tools
General information, not financial advice. Amazon publishes a large and frequently revised fee schedule and this page covers the common case only: it excludes advertising, storage, long-term storage, removals, returns processing, the low-inventory fee and any category-specific surcharge, and it prices parcels from the standard table for every category except clothing. Your Amazon payments report is the figure that counts. It is a fee calculator, not a tax calculator.
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