Compare FBA and FBM profit per order before choosing a fulfillment method
This is a planning comparison. It does not include Prime conversion lift, customer service time, inventory placement fees, returns policy differences, or account-specific Amazon adjustments.
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Use this fulfillment comparison tool when you need a clear cost view between fulfillment by Amazon and merchant fulfillment. Enter sale price, product cost, referral fee rate, FBA fulfillment fee, FBA storage cost, inbound shipping, FBM shipping cost, packaging, and labor to compare profit and margin side by side. The tool is for sellers deciding whether to send inventory into FBA, keep items merchant fulfilled, test bulky products, handle seasonal inventory, or compare a product that has thin margin under one fulfillment model. It focuses on per-order unit economics, not every business factor. Prime conversion, Buy Box impact, delivery speed, customer service workload, returns handling, and inventory capacity still matter, but this calculator helps you see the cost floor before those strategic decisions. Use the result as a first-pass decision screen, then review operational limits such as storage capacity, shipping reliability, prep requirements, and whether you can consistently meet customer delivery expectations.
If a product sells for $40, has $14 product cost, a 15% referral fee, $5 FBA fulfillment, $0.50 storage, and $1.25 inbound shipping, FBA profit is about $13.25 before ads.
If the same order costs $7.50 to ship by FBM plus $0.75 packaging and $1.50 handling, FBM profit is about $10.25. In that scenario FBA is roughly $3 higher per unit before considering Prime conversion.
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FBA and FBM can both work, but they shift costs into different places. FBA often replaces seller shipping and handling with fulfillment, storage, and inbound costs. FBM keeps fulfillment under your control but adds shipping, packaging, and labor.
Start with the price buyers pay and your product cost per unit. Use landed cost if inbound freight, duty, or prep costs are already known. This gives both fulfillment models the same revenue and product-cost base.
Referral fee applies to both FBA and FBM because it is a marketplace selling fee, not a fulfillment fee. Use the rate from your category or estimate it with the Amazon Referral Fee Calculator before comparing fulfillment options.
Add the FBA fulfillment fee from Seller Central or the FBA Fee Calculator, plus estimated storage cost per unit. Storage matters most for bulky, seasonal, slow-moving, or overstocked products.
FBA inventory still needs to reach Amazon. Enter the per-unit inbound shipping or prep-center-to-Amazon cost so the FBA side does not look artificially cheaper.
For FBM, include what you pay the carrier, packaging materials, and a realistic handling or labor cost. If you ship from home, labor may be your own time; if a 3PL ships for you, use its pick-pack and postage cost.
The result shows FBA profit, FBM profit, margin, total cost, and the profit difference. Use the higher-profit option as a starting point, then consider Prime eligibility, delivery speed, workload, returns, and inventory control before making the final decision.
Use the same sale price, product cost, and referral fee for both models. Then compare FBA fulfillment, storage, and inbound shipping against FBM shipping, packaging, and labor. The higher per-order profit is the better cost model before considering strategic factors like Prime eligibility and workload.
No. FBA may be better for fast-moving products where Prime conversion, fulfillment speed, and hands-off operations matter. FBM may be better for bulky, slow-moving, fragile, customized, or low-margin products where storage and fulfillment fees hurt profit.
Include product cost, referral fee, FBA fulfillment fee, storage fee per unit, inbound shipping to Amazon, prep cost, and any other per-unit charges you expect. This page keeps the core comparison simple, but you can add extra FBA costs into storage or fulfillment fields if needed.
Include product cost, referral fee, carrier postage, packaging, handling labor, 3PL pick-pack cost, and any shipping discount you absorb. If you do the work yourself, include a labor estimate so FBM does not look cheaper just because your time is unpriced.
No. This calculator compares per-order economics. Prime eligibility, Buy Box behavior, conversion rate, shipping speed, customer service burden, and return handling are strategic factors that can change the decision after you know the cost difference.
Consider FBM when products are oversized, slow-moving, seasonal, low-margin, fragile, customized, or expensive to store. FBM can also be useful when FBA inventory limits, placement fees, stockouts, or storage charges make Amazon fulfillment less attractive.
Learn how landed cost, markup, margin, fees, and shipping affect product pricing in our product pricing guide.
