We’re very happy to have reached out to a great deal of novice sellers with our Amazon Selling Fees series. To address some of the most pressing issues our readers have come across since then, we’ve compiled some of their questions in this FAQ post.
We’ve discussed how much it costs to sell on Amazon. We’ve also had a sequel on our blog post, which focused on the cost of selling on FBA. To help our readers find their answers faster, we’ve made a list of 20 of the most popular questions we’ve been receiving recently. To help you sift through them, we also classified them by topic. We hope this helps!
Signing up for an Amazon Seller Account
1. Am I eligible to sell on Amazon?
You can check out your eligibility to sell on Amazon here. You will need to be a resident of the eligible country, have a local phone number and an internationally chargeable credit card.
2. How do I get paid?
You will need to have a local bank account opened in the country you’re selling to or where you’re running your Amazon account from. For the U.S.A., you’ll need to open a local bank account, where you would be paid in US currency. You will then be able to repatriate your money to your home bank account and in your local currency.
3. Can you help me open my international bank account?
We work with Payoneer for this part of the process. They are approved by Amazon and they can help you with setting up your bank account in the country where you want to open your Amazon business. You can check out more on their website here. Also, we have an in-house Coaching service and an International Expansion service where we help you set up your Amazon account.
4. Can I sell on multiple Amazon venues?
Yes, you can definitely sell your items on any or all of Amazon’s venues. You will need a seller account for US and one for Europe. In Europe, you have what we call a Unified Account option, meaning that you open just one seller account and you are enabled to list your items on all European venues. If you choose to sell on FBA, Amazon will store the items at a central warehouse, and they will be delivered from there to whichever region/country you get orders from.
Choosing your Amazon Plan
5. Can I avoid paying the $39.99 Professional monthly fee if I run a business?
Your Amazon account is one thing and your selling plan is another. You can set up your Seller Account on Amazon.com and start selling right away using the ‘Individual’ plan or the ‘Professional’ plan. Despite its name, the Individual ‘plan’ doesn’t involve paying a subscription fee, and you can use it even if you own a company. Your Seller Account will always stay the same, but you can switch between the two types of plans/subscriptions at any time.
6. What’s the difference between an Individual and a Professional Amazon account?
If you opt for the Individual plan, also called the Basic plan on other Amazon venues, the Amazon selling fees you pay depends on the product and its value. In short, the selling fee is either the Referral Fee or the Variable Closing Fee, whichever is larger – as explained in a previous post. For books and media items, the fee structure has changed recently, so read check this post for details. Note that you’ll pay a fixed $0.99 per item, on top of the selling fee.
When you sell more than 40 items per month on Amazon.com, you need to upgrade to a Professional selling plan, also called Pro Merchant plan on other venues. You’ll use the same account, but you’ll have more features and options, as mentioned here. What this means is that Amazon will charge you $39.99 per month, on top of the other selling fees, but it will waive the $0.99 per-item fee. In other words, having a Professional plan is cheaper if you sell more than 40 items a month.
7. What do I need to do to open a Pro Seller Account?
If you’ve registered a company, then opening a Pro seller account is easy. All you need is:
- an email address to use on your new Amazon seller account;
- a seller name and a password;
- your business information (company name, address, a phone number where you can be reached right away for the automated Amazon call);
- a valid credit card number at hand, along with its registered billing address and phone number.
Please remember to check regularly that your credit card is still valid and to keep extra funds on your registered credit card at all times. Amazon withdraws money from it automatically, and it can settle refunds and returns on your behalf at any time. Being in the red means that both you and your buyers may be inconvenienced. Your bank may be able to notify you when Amazon charges your credit card.
Product Issues
8. How about product bundles? Can I sell them on Amazon?
You most certainly can, and it can help bring down Amazon selling fees. We’ve written about this before because it’s a topic of great interest to novice sellers. Please read our blog post for details.
9. What does ‘gated’ mean?
Selling some products and brands on Amazon comes with certain restrictions, and the seller must ask for Amazon’s approval and/or meet various requirements. These brands and product categories are called ‘gated’ in seller lingo. You’ll probably also hear the term ‘ungating’ on seller forums, which refers to lifting these restrictions.
10. How do I know what items are restricted/prohibited?
A list of these categories is available here, along with the types of products allowed and the condition they must be sold in. You can also find the products and categories you need Amazon’s approval for here. As for restricted brands, this blog post can offer some pointers.
11. Should I sell used items on Amazon for extra cash?
It all depends on the type of item you had in mind, its condition, and whether or not there’s a market for it. To begin with, some brands and product categories on Amazon have selling restrictions, and some won’t even accept used items.
You should first check to see if the product is already in the catalog, and how many competing offers you can find. Then check to see if you’re allowed to sell this product right away. More in-depth information concerning listing restrictions and approval requirements are available in the Help section.
Amazon would charge until your item sells. If you don’t expect to sell more than 40 items a month, it’s best to opt for the Individual rather than the Professional plan. Ultimately, though, the easiest way to see if selling on Amazon is worth it is to use the Amazon fee calculator. Note: it takes all Amazon Selling Fees into account, but no VAT or other taxes.
Make sure you follow our blog for Part II of our Amazon Selling Fees Frequently asked questions list.
Meet the SellerEngine Team at the next Amazon focused event!
We’ll be exhibiting at IRCE, June 6 – 9 2017, in Chicago.
Melanie takes an active interest in all things Amazon. She keeps an eye on the latest developments and keeps Amazon sellers up to speed.