FBA or FBM: which is better in 2026?
With FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) you send stock to Amazon, and Amazon stores, packs, ships and handles returns for a fee. With FBM (Fulfilled by Merchant) you keep the stock and ship each order yourself. Neither is always cheaper: small, light products that sell fast usually make more with FBA, while heavy, bulky or slow sellers often make more with FBM. This FBA vs FBM calculator works out both for your product, using the 2026 US fees.
What each one costs
| Cost | FBA | FBM |
|---|---|---|
| Referral fee | Yes — % of the item price, by category | Yes — same category rates, charged on the item price plus any shipping you charge the buyer |
| Shipping each order | FBA fulfillment fee by price band (under $10, $10–$50, over $50), size tier and weight, plus a 3.5% fuel & logistics surcharge | Your shipping label |
| Getting stock in | Freight to Amazon, inbound placement fee (unless you qualify for Amazon-optimized splits), prep and FNSKU labels | Freight to you only |
| Storage | $0.78 per cu ft a month Jan–Sep, $2.40 Oct–Dec (standard size) | Your own space |
| Low stock | Low-inventory-level fee when both 30- and 90-day supply are under 28 days | None |
| Packing | Included | Boxes, tape and your time |
| Returns | Amazon handles the return, but you lose the outbound FBA fee and pay the refund admin fee (plus return processing or removal fees where they apply) | You lose the outbound label and packing, pay the return label and the refund admin fee |
Rates: Amazon 2026 US rate card (from January 15, 2026), 3.5% fuel & logistics surcharge from April 17, 2026, holiday peak fulfillment fees October 15 – January 14. The refund administration fee is 20% of the referral fee, up to $5.00 per unit ($0 for Media).
Example: a $19.99 coffee mug
A mug packed at 6 × 5 × 5 in and 1.1 lb is large standard size. Using January–September fees, a 3% return rate and 80% of returns resold: With FBA it pays a $3.00 referral fee and a $5.22 fulfillment fee (including the surcharge), plus $0.80 freight to Amazon, $0.25 prep, $0.07 storage and about $0.44 for returns. After the $3.50 product cost it leaves $6.71 per unit.
With FBM the same mug pays the $3.00 referral fee, a $5.50 shipping label, $0.40 packaging, 4 minutes of packing time at $15 an hour ($1.00), $0.10 storage and about $0.59 for returns — $5.90 per unit. FBA wins by $0.81 a unit, or $162 a month at 200 sales. With a label of $4.68 or less, FBM would come out ahead ($4.69 is a tie). Click the ☕ Coffee mug example in the calculator to see these numbers.
When FBA usually wins
- Small and light products, where the FBA fee is lower than a retail shipping label.
- Fast sellers that don’t sit in storage, especially outside October–December.
- Products where the Prime badge clearly brings more sales — enter a higher monthly sales number for FBA to see the effect.
- When your own time is better spent sourcing and marketing than packing.
When FBM usually wins
- Bulky or heavy products, where FBA fees and storage cost much more.
- Slow sellers that would stay in Amazon storage for months.
- Low-volume or one-off items where sending stock in costs more than it saves.
- Products with cheap shipping you can buy at a good rate, or items you can sell on several channels from one stock.
FBA changes to know about in 2026
- Fulfillment fees went up on January 15, 2026 for most standard-size items, and a 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge was added from April 17, 2026.
- Amazon stopped prep and labeling services in the US from January 1, 2026 — units must arrive prepped and labeled. Use our FNSKU label generator to print labels.
- Inbound placement: sending to one warehouse (minimal split) costs roughly $0.14–$1.90 per unit for standard-size items and $1.10–$6.50 for bulky items, depending on size, weight and region. Amazon-optimized splits are free if the shipment has at least 5 identical boxes or pallets per item; extra-large items are exempt.
- Low-inventory-level fee: from $0.32 to $2.09 per unit when both your 30-day and 90-day supply are under 28 days. SKUs selling fewer than 20 units a week, new SKUs and extra-large items are exempt.
For a single product’s full FBA breakdown, use the Amazon FBA fee calculator or the Amazon profit calculator.