Amazon (US): the $0.30 case
On a $1 item Amazon charges $0.30 in referral fee for electronics — but $0.08 for grocery, because the minimum is not universal.
Short answer
On a $1 item Amazon charges $0.30 in referral fee for electronics — but $0.08 for grocery, because the minimum is not universal. The referral fee on that $1 electronics sale is $0.30; the same $1 sale in grocery is $0.08 — same price, nearly four times apart. Amazon publishes a $0.30 minimum referral fee, but its own rate card prints "--" instead for grocery, media, video games, consoles, gift cards and fine art. So an $1 electronics item is floored to $0.30 in referral fee, while an $1 grocery item is charged 8% = $0.08 — the same $1 price, a nearly four-times difference, decided entirely by category.
Your numbers
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Net payout
$0.30
- Total fees
- $0.70
- Effective fee rate
- 70.0%
- Net profit
- $0.30
- Buyer pays
- $1.00
Fee breakdown
- Referral fee · Consumer electronics & computers · minimum fee
$0.30−$0.30 - Selling plan fee · Professional plan · $39.99 ÷ 100 orders a month
$0.40−$0.40
What $0.30 actually costs
On the default sale above, the referral fee is $0.30 against a computed $0.30 — the floor, not the percentage, is what gets charged.
Amazon publishes a $0.30 minimum referral fee, but its own rate card prints "--" instead for grocery, media, video games, consoles, gift cards and fine art. So an $1 electronics item is floored to $0.30 in referral fee, while an $1 grocery item is charged 8% = $0.08 — the same $1 price, a nearly four-times difference, decided entirely by category.
Every line is itemised below with the arithmetic that produced it, so each figure can be checked against the published rate card.
The $0.30 floor, and the categories that do not have it
Read the referral line on its own here. On a $1 electronics item Amazon computes 8% = $0.08, then charges $0.30 because that category carries the published minimum. The same $1 item in grocery is charged 8% and nothing more, because the official rate card prints "--" in the minimum column for grocery, media, video games, consoles, gift cards and fine art.
The floor is not a rounding rule, it is a per-unit charge. It only disappears once the percentage overtakes it — at 8% that happens at $3.75, so everything below that price pays $0.30 in referral fee no matter how low the percentage would be.
Professional selling plan, with the $39.99 monthly fee spread over 100 orders ($0.40 per order). On a $1 item that plan fee is larger than the referral fee, which is exactly why a sub-$2 sale is not viable on this plan.
The same price on every other platform
This is what makes the $0.30 figure unusual: at $1.00, the platforms rank like this.
Poshmark: $2.95 (295.0%).
Etsy: $0.55 (55.0%).
Depop (US): $0.48 (48.0%).
eBay (US): $0.44 (44.0%).
Mercari: $0.10 (10.0%).
Rates last verified 2026-10-14.
Rate table
| Most categories | 15% |
|---|---|
| Home & kitchen | 15% |
| Consumer electronics & computers | 8% |
| Electronics accessories | 15% up to $100.00, then 8% |
| Clothing & accessories | 5% up to $15.00, 10% to $20.00, then 17% |
| Beauty, health & personal care | 8% up to $10.00, then 15% |
| Baby products | 8% up to $10.00, then 15% |
| Grocery & gourmet food | 8% up to $15.00, then 15% |
| Toys & games | 15% |
| Sports & outdoors | 15% |
| Pet supplies | 15% |
| Books | 15% |
| Jewelry | 20% up to $250.00, then 5% |
| Compact appliances | 15% up to $300.00, then 8% |
| Full-size appliances | 8% |
| Automotive & powersports | 12% |
| Amazon device accessories | 45% |
| Minimum referral feeper item — charged whenever the category percentage rounds below it. Grocery, media and video games print "--" instead: they carry no minimum | $0.30 |
| Media closing feebooks, DVD, music, software, video and video games only — charged on top of the referral fee, whether Amazon or you ship the order | $1.80 per item |
| Individual selling planno monthly fee; no Buy Box or advertising access | $0.99 per item sold |
| Professional selling planbecomes the cheaper plan at roughly 40 sales a month | $39.99 per month |
| FBA fulfilmentthe fee you actually pay is the one in your Seller Central fee preview | by size tier and weight |
| FBA fuel & logistics surchargein effect since 17 April 2026 | 3.5% of the fulfilment fee |
| FBA storageroughly $0.87 per cubic foot in Jan–Sep, $2.40 in Oct–Dec | monthly, by volume |
| AdvertisingSponsored Products is a budget you set; many sellers spend 10–15% of revenue on it | not a published fee |
- Rates last verified
Formula
5%–45% referral fee by category — applied to this case it comes to $0.70 on $1.00What each term means
referral fee- $0.30
subscriptionFee- $0.40
Assumptions
- Amazon (US) US marketplace, USD, one third-party seller.
- Professional selling plan where the platform has one, with the monthly fee spread over 100 orders so the per-order figures stay visible.
- The buyer pays no shipping, so the fee base is the item price alone.
- Postage, item cost and packaging are excluded from the fee and shown only in the profit line.
- Advertising is a budget the seller sets, not a published fee, so it is not included.
Worked examples
The same item listed at $1
- Buyer pays
- $1.00
- Total fees
- $0.70
- Effective rate
- 70.0%
- Net profit
- $0.30
Fee breakdown
- Referral fee · Consumer electronics & computers · minimum fee
$0.30−$0.30 - Selling plan fee · Professional plan · $39.99 ÷ 100 orders a month
$0.40−$0.40
$0.70 in fees — 70.0% of the sale. electronics: 8% works out to $0.08 and is floored to $0.30.
The same item listed at $2
- Buyer pays
- $2.00
- Total fees
- $0.70
- Effective rate
- 35.0%
- Net profit
- $1.30
Fee breakdown
- Referral fee · Consumer electronics & computers · minimum fee
$0.30−$0.30 - Selling plan fee · Professional plan · $39.99 ÷ 100 orders a month
$0.40−$0.40
$0.70 in fees — 35.0% of the sale. the floor still applies at $2.
The same item listed at $3.75
- Buyer pays
- $3.75
- Total fees
- $0.70
- Effective rate
- 18.7%
- Net profit
- $3.05
Fee breakdown
- Referral fee · Consumer electronics & computers
8% × $3.75−$0.30 - Selling plan fee · Professional plan · $39.99 ÷ 100 orders a month
$0.40−$0.40
$0.70 in fees — 18.7% of the sale. where 8% and the $0.30 floor meet exactly.
The same item listed at $4
- Buyer pays
- $4.00
- Total fees
- $0.72
- Effective rate
- 18.0%
- Net profit
- $3.28
Fee breakdown
- Referral fee · Consumer electronics & computers
8% × $4.00−$0.32 - Selling plan fee · Professional plan · $39.99 ÷ 100 orders a month
$0.40−$0.40
$0.72 in fees — 18.0% of the sale. above it the percentage takes over again.
Every figure above is computed from the rate schedule on this page for Amazon (US), using the same engine as the calculator — not typed in by hand.
Common mistakes
Assuming the headline rate applies at $0.30
Amazon publishes a $0.30 minimum referral fee, but its own rate card prints "--" instead for grocery, media, video games, consoles, gift cards and fine art. So an $1 electronics item is floored to $0.30 in referral fee, while an $1 grocery item is charged 8% = $0.08 — the same $1 price, a nearly four-times difference, decided entirely by category.
Reading a percentage when the fee has a fixed component
A flat charge does not scale down with the sale. It is why the effective rate on a cheap sale can be several times the published percentage, and why quoting the percentage alone understates the cost badly.
Questions
- Why does Amazon (US) charge $0.30 here?
- Amazon publishes a $0.30 minimum referral fee, but its own rate card prints "--" instead for grocery, media, video games, consoles, gift cards and fine art. So an $1 electronics item is floored to $0.30 in referral fee, while an $1 grocery item is charged 8% = $0.08 — the same $1 price, a nearly four-times difference, decided entirely by category. The figure is taken from the current published rate card, verified 2026-10-14.
- What does Amazon (US) charge on a $1.00 sale?
- $0.70, which is 70.0% of the sale, leaving $0.30. Every fee is listed separately above with the formula behind it.
- How do the fees change as the sale price rises?
- $1 → $0.70 (70.0%); $2 → $0.70 (35.0%); $3.75 → $0.70 (18.7%); $4 → $0.72 (18.0%).
Related calculators
These calculators apply published marketplace fee schedules. They are general information tools, not tax, legal, accounting or financial advice — check your own payout statement and speak to a qualified professional where it matters.
Amazon (US) — 5%–45% referral fee by category. Rates last verified: . the marketplace's own fee page.