Hey there! Let‘s talk Amazon and eBay fees for 2023

Selling online is an exciting venture, but choosing the right marketplace can be tricky with so many options out there nowadays. As an experienced ecommerce seller myself, I‘m often asked – should I sell on Amazon or eBay?

I‘m William and I‘ve been selling on both these platforms for over 5 years now. In this post, we‘ll take an in-depth look at the fees and cost structure of each marketplace. My goal is to help you, as a new or growing seller, understand the key differences in fees so you can make an informed decision for your business.

Here‘s a quick rundown of what we‘ll cover:

• How Amazon‘s referral fees and selling plans compare
• eBay‘s final value and insertion fee structure
• Pros and cons of Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA)
• Examples of fees for sample products
• When each marketplace makes more financial sense
• Optimization tips to help maximize sales and offset fees
• Common pitfalls to avoid around account suspensions and restrictions

Let‘s get to it! Getting a good grasp of the fee structure is crucial because platform costs directly impact your bottom line.

Breaking Down Amazon‘s Seller Fees

Amazon uses a tiered fee structure based on your selected selling plan and sales volume. There are two main plans available for sellers to choose from:

The Individual Plan

This plan works for new sellers just starting out and doing less than 40 sales per month. Here are the key fees:

• $0.99 per item sold – This is the referral fee charged on each transaction. Some categories are lower at $0.30 per item.

• Variable referral fees – These range from 8-15% of your total sales price depending on the product category. For example, Amazon charges 15% referral fees for electronics but only 8% for books. The more competitive categories have higher fees.

• Fulfillment fees – If using Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) these range from $2.35 per order to over $150 depending on size and weight. We‘ll discuss FBA more in a bit!

• $1.80 per sale closing fee applies to books, videos, music and other media items.

Pro tip: I don‘t recommend the Individual plan if you‘re doing more than 40 sales per month. The monthly referral fees will quickly exceed the Professional plan flat rate. Opt for that one instead for better value.

The Professional Plan

This plan is suited for established sellers making more than 40 sales per month. The fees include:

• $39.99 per month – This is the flat monthly fee regardless of sales volume. It‘s quite affordable even at low volumes.

• Variable referral fees – Still range from 8-15% of your total sales price depending on product category, same as the Individual plan.

• $1.80 per sale media closing fee still applies here.

The key advantage of the Professional plan is you get access to powerful selling tools and customization options:

• Quantity discounts and premium placement options to better highlight your products
• Improved reporting and order tracking to optimize your listings
• Promotions and coupons to boost sales
• Super useful repricing tools to help you manage variable fees

Insider tip: High volume Professional sellers can negotiate customized contracts with Amazon to lower fees further. But you need to be doing at least $10k/month for this option.

Common Fees Across All Selling Plans

Some other fees that apply to both Individual and Professional sellers include:

• FBA inventory storage fees – About $0.50 per cubic foot per month if using Amazon‘s warehouses. Adds up if you have a lot of inventory.

• Subscription fees – Amazon collects 15% on any subscription items you sell after any free trial period.

• Refund administration fees – Issuing refunds costs $10 per return to offset Amazon‘s processing costs.

eBay‘s Simpler Fee Structure

eBay uses a simpler fee model compared to Amazon, with no monthly subscription plan. Their fees include:

• Final value fees – This fee is 12.9% of the total sales price plus $0.30 per order. Applies to most items under $7500.

• Insertion fees – Listing an item costs $0.35 after the first 250 free listings per month.

• Optional feature fees – Upgrading visibility with Buy It Now, highlighting, or reserves costs extra. These range from $1 to $50+ depending on options.

• Final value fee discounts – High volume sellers can get up to an 8% discount on final value fees based on performance. Saves good money once you reach 5,000+ sales per month.

• Store subscription – If you open an eBay Store, costs start at $27.95 per month for 100 free listings. Higher tier stores offer more free listings for an increased monthly fee.

Pro tip: I don‘t recommend paying for an eBay store until you‘re doing steady sales volume. The free option works fine when starting out. Just be aware of the 250 free listings per month limit.

Fulfillment Fees – Amazon FBA vs. Self Shipping

One big difference between Amazon and eBay relates to fulfillment and shipping.

Amazon offers Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) which means they pick, pack and ship your orders for you from their warehouses. It‘s convenient but adds more fees:

• FBA prep fees – Getting items shelf-ready can cost $0.40 to $1 per unit
• FBA pick & pack fees – Around $2.35 to $7 per order depending on size
• FBA weight handling fees – Varies by product weight from $0.38/lb up to $150+

The benefit of FBA is it‘s completely hands-off for you as the seller. But the fees do cut into margins, so weigh this option carefully before committing inventory.

With eBay, you as the seller are responsible for handling fulfillment and shipping yourself. The costs are on you but it gives you control over the margins.

Pro tip: Consider FBA for inventory you want to scale up in volume. For one-off specialty items, self shipping may be more cost effective.

Estimating Fees for Sample Products

To make things more concrete, let‘s estimate fees for a sample product listed on both Amazon and eBay:

Product: A luxury scented candle
Sales Price: $25
Monthly volume: 75 units

eBay fees:

• 12.9% final value fee on $25 sale price = $3.23
• $0.30 per order = $0.30
• 75 orders x $3.53 fees per order = $265/month

Amazon fees:

• 15% referral fee on $25 sale price = $3.75
• FBA fees around $4 per order average = $4
• 75 orders x $7.75 fees per order = $581/month

For this example, eBay comes out over $300/month cheaper on fees selling at 75 unit volume. The savings are mainly from lower final value fees and avoiding FBA costs.

Let‘s try one more higher volume example:

Product: Pack of plastic toy dinosaurs
Price: $8
Volume: 500 units

eBay fees:

• 12.9% of $8 sale price = $1.03
• $0.30 per order = $0.30
• 500 sales x $1.33 fees = $665/month

Amazon fees:

• 15% category referral fee = $1.20
• Estimated FBA fees of $3 per order = $3
• 500 sales x $4.20 fees = $2100/month

Here the savings of over $1400/month on eBay are even more substantial thanks to volume discounts built into Amazon‘s fee structure.

Let me know in the comments if you‘d like me to estimate fees for your specific products!

Which Platform Makes More Financial Sense?

Based on the fee structures and some example products, you may be wondering – when does it make more sense financially to sell on Amazon vs eBay?

Here are my guidelines:

• Lower volume sellers – eBay tends to work better thanks to no monthly fees and free listings. Can list just a few specialty or higher priced items profitably.

• Leveraging Amazon FBA – The fees add up but can be worth it if you want hands-off fulfillment and are shipping a high volume of smaller, easier to handle products.

• Heavy focus on books/media – eBay‘s final value fees are better here as Amazon charges the additional $1.80 closing fee per sale.

• High quantity commodities – Amazon‘s volume tiered pricing and focus on scalability make it ideal for selling thousands of inexpensive impulse buy products per month.

• Cross-listing – Many sellers list their products across both Amazon and eBay to maximize exposure. I typically focus on having the bulk of my inventory where fees are lowest.

My personal strategy is to use eBay for specialty vintage and handmade products that I sell less than 50 units of per month. I send these from my home workshop.

For my private label toy line, I leverage Amazon FBA to scale up to 500+ units per month. The volume discounts really help improve margins on these products.

That‘s what works for my business – but think through your own specific products, volumes and fulfillment capabilities as you evaluate the platforms.

Tips to Offset Fees and Maximize Profitability

Here are some parting tips I‘ve learned from my years of selling on Amazon and eBay to help maximize sales and offset those platform fees:

• Cross-list popular products across both sites to improve exposure. But focus your volume where fees are lowest.

• Offer free shipping on eBay using calculated shipping rates – this provides a perceived discount over Amazon while covering your costs.

• Run promotions and coupons on both platforms to incentivize buying from your store. Helps increase sales volume.

• Price competitively taking fees into account. Match or beat Amazon‘s landed price after their fees using repricing tools.

• Get ungated in restricted categories like electronics and luxury beauty on Amazon. More categories, more sales options. But it takes work and time to get approved.

• Optimize listings thoroughly – great photos, titles, and descriptions translate directly to more sales. I can‘t emphasize this enough!

• Consider adding Amazon advertising and eBay promoted listings. The fees can pay off in increased visibility and sales.

• Track analytics like your sales velocity, best selling items, margins by product and referrers to optimize where to focus your efforts and inventory.

Watch Out for Account Suspensions!

One final word of caution – make sure you understand each sites‘ selling policies thoroughly. You want to avoid sudden account suspensions. Here are some things that can trigger a suspension:

• High return rates or negative feedback
• Listing in prohibited categories you haven‘t been approved for
• Inaccurate handling times or shipping promises
• Trademark violations – don‘t sell branded knockoffs!
• Fulfillment issues like items out of stock or shipped late

Read the fine print, sell legitimate products, and provide top notch customer service. This helps avoid most issues! Feel free to reach out if you have any other selling questions.

So there you have it! I hope this breakdown gives you clarity on the Amazon vs eBay fee situation. Choose wisely based on your specific products and selling preferences. And let me know if you have any other questions – I‘m always happy to help new sellers get started on the right foot.

All the best,
William