Is There a Monthly Fee to Sell Books on Amazon?

You want to publish your book and reach millions of potential readers. That’s a great step. Your financial planning needs clarity right now. Understanding the costs associated with selling on Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is simple. Amazon KDP does not charge authors a monthly fee to list their books. This is a powerful, free entry point for all new authors. Instead of monthly charges, Amazon takes a percentage of your book’s sale price, which is your chosen royalty rate.

You select between the 35% and 70% royalty options, based on your book’s price and distribution choices. This setup means you only pay Amazon when you sell a book. You keep your money until the sales roll in. This structure is a huge advantage for authors exploring different genres and building their audience without upfront financial pressure.

What is Amazon Book Selling Fees?

Getting started with Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) means you need to clearly define your budget and profit expectations. As you consider the best genre for your book, you must also understand how KDP’s fees work. Amazon does not charge listing fees or monthly fees. They take a cut from your sales through a royalty structure. For eBooks, you choose between the 35% and 70% royalty options. Selecting the 70% rate gives you a much larger share, but it comes with a small delivery cost based on your book’s file size, and requires specific pricing. 

For print books like paperbacks and hardcovers, the process is different. Amazon calculates a printing cost based on page count, ink type, and where the book is sold. You typically receive a 60% royalty on the list price, and KDP subtracts the printing cost directly from that amount. Lincoln Book Publishing ensures you grasp these details so you set the right price and maximize your return on every sale.

Amazon Seller Account Fee in 2025

Thinking about the financial side of publishing is smart, as you choose your perfect genre and prepare to upload your book. New authors often confuse the Amazon KDP platform with the general Amazon Seller Central account. Understanding the difference here is key to managing your costs. Amazon KDP does not charge a monthly account fee. KDP is Amazon’s self-publishing arm specifically for authors selling eBooks and print-on-demand books.

You pay nothing up front to publish your work. Amazon simply deducts its share of your book’s price, the royalty, and printing costs after a sale. A separate Amazon Seller Account, designed for selling physical products like pre-printed inventory or merchandise, does have monthly fees. 

That account offers two plans: the Individual plan with no monthly fee but a small charge per item sold, and the Professional plan with a monthly subscription fee but no per-item charge. As your best book publishing company, Lincoln Book Publishing guides authors to use the free KDP platform for the simplest and most cost-effective path into the market. This free entry keeps your author costs low.

Do You Need a Paid Account to Sell Books on Amazon?

Thinking about taking your completed manuscript and making it available to millions of readers is a milestone. You have chosen your niche genre, polished your cover, and now you face the final hurdle the logistics of selling. A critical question for every new author is Do I need a paid account to sell books on Amazon?

The short answer is a resounding no. Lincoln Book Publishing guides countless authors, and we confirm that the standard route for self-publishers is through Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). This platform is the ultimate free entry point into the book market. KDP requires zero upfront payment to create an account, upload your book, and list it for sale as an eBook or a print-on-demand paperback or hardcover. Amazon’s system is built to make publishing accessible. 

This free structure removes a significant financial barrier for new writers. It lets you focus purely on writing and marketing your book. You only share revenue with Amazon after a book sells, through their established royalty structure. This cost-free approach allows you to experiment with different genres and titles until you find your audience. You retain full control over your work while leveraging Amazon’s massive reach.

Is Amazon KDP Free for Authors?

Moving forward with your publishing journey requires you to understand the cost structure clearly. You have found your target genre, now you need a platform that lets you sell without financial risk. Many authors starting out ask a simple yet important question: Is Amazon KDP free for authors?

The answer is yes, publishing on Amazon KDP is fundamentally free. You pay zero dollars to create your account. You pay zero dollars to upload your manuscript and cover files. Amazon provides a powerful, global sales channel without charging setup fees or monthly subscription fees. This free entry allows new authors, especially those who are still testing the market or building a backlist, to publish their work with absolute minimal financial commitment.

However, “”free”” does not mean you keep 100% of the sale price. Amazon operates on a royalty model. For every book sale, Amazon deducts its share. For eBooks, you select a royalty rate, either 35% or 70%. For printed books, they deduct the printing cost from your royalty share. This structure ensures you only pay when your book makes money. 

Lincoln Book Publishing, the best book publishing company, shows authors how to manage these post-sale costs effectively. We help you use KDP’s free tools to get your book live and earning royalties with confidence.

What is Difference Between Individual and Professional Amazon Seller Accounts?

Getting a solid grasp of Amazon’s broader sales ecosystem helps you navigate the platform effectively, especially as you narrow down your ideal book genre. Many authors hear about Individual and Professional Amazon Seller Accounts and wonder how they relate to Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). Here is the essential difference. KDP is completely separate and is the free platform authors use to publish print-on-demand books and eBooks without any monthly fee.

The Individual and Professional accounts are part of the main Amazon Seller Central for selling physical goods, such as pre-printed books, merchandise, or other items you hold inventory of. The choice between these two seller accounts depends entirely on your volume of sales. The Individual account charges no monthly subscription fee but makes you pay a $0.99 per-item fee for every single sale. This works well for low-volume sellers, perhaps selling fewer than forty items a month.

The Professional account charges a flat monthly subscription fee but removes that per-item charge. If you plan to sell more than forty items each month, the Professional plan quickly becomes more cost-effective. Lincoln Book Publishing advises KDP authors who plan to sell their own inventory of physical books through Amazon’s marketplace to choose the Professional plan once their sales volume justifies it.

Conclusion

The core answer remains clear: No, there is no monthly fee to sell books on Amazon through the KDP platform. This free access makes amazon book publishing services the optimal starting point for new authors. KDP only takes a share of the sale via a royalty model. By understanding the royalty percentages and print costs, you keep your publishing expenses at zero. Focus on writing and marketing your great book, KDP handles the global sales channel.