Every one of the 18 Amazon businesses we track pays a 15% referral fee, and together they paid an estimated $2.65 million in referral fees in their latest month. One of them, Kajun Loaded Tea, pays 15% only because its $15.95 box is 95 cents above the line where Amazon's Grocery rate drops to 8%. This page has every 2026 US referral fee category, the minimums, how the tiered categories work, and the category each of our businesses actually sells in.
For the other Amazon fees (fulfilment, storage, returns and the rest), see the full 2026 FBA fee schedule. To see what the referral fee and FBA fee leave on your own product, use the Amazon FBA fee and profit calculator.
How the Amazon referral fee is calculated
The referral fee is Amazon's commission on each unit sold. It is charged when the order ships, on FBA and seller-fulfilled orders alike. Four rules from Amazon's referral fee page decide what you pay:
- It is a percentage of the total sales price, not the item price. The total includes any delivery charge you collect and any gift-wrap charge, but not sales tax. Amazon's own example is a $25.00 toy with $4.50 delivery and $3.50 gift wrap: the fee is 15% of $33.00, or $4.95, not 15% of $25.
- You pay the percentage or the per-item minimum, whichever is greater. In most categories the minimum is $0.30.
- The fee category is not always the category shown to shoppers. Amazon says so outright, and its Fee Preview report shows the fee category for each of your ASINs. If you think a product is in the wrong fee category, you can file a dispute under Amazon's referral fee reimbursement policy.
- Media is the one category with an extra per-item charge: a $1.80 closing fee on every book, DVD, music, software or video sale, on top of the 15%.
Amazon referral fees by category: the full 2026 table
All 36 fee categories Amazon lists for sellers, as Amazon's US pages state them, read on 10 November 2026. "Up to" means that price is included in the lower rate.
| Fee category | Referral fee | Minimum per item |
|---|---|---|
| 3D Printers | 12% on the first $200, 5% on the part above $200 | $0.30 |
| Amazon Device Accessories | 45% | $0.30 |
| Automotive and Powersports | 12% | $0.30 |
| Baby Products | 8% up to $10, 15% above $10 | $0.30 |
| Backpacks, Handbags, and Luggage | 15% | $0.30 |
| Base Equipment Power Tools | 12% | $0.30 |
| Beauty, Health and Personal Care | 8% up to $10, 15% above $10 | $0.30 |
| Business, Industrial, and Scientific Supplies | 12% | $0.30 |
| Clothing and Accessories | 5% up to $15, 10% above $15 up to $20, 17% above $20 | $0.30 |
| Compact Appliances | 15% on the first $300, 8% on the part above $300 | $0.30 |
| Computers | 8% | $0.30 |
| Consumer Electronics | 8% | $0.30 |
| Electronics Accessories | 15% on the first $100, 8% on the part above $100 | $0.30 |
| Everything Else | 15% | $0.30 |
| Eyewear | 15% | $0.30 |
| Footwear | 15% | $0.30 |
| Full-Size Appliances | 8% | $0.30 |
| Furniture | 15% on the first $200, 10% on the part above $200 | $0.30 |
| Grocery and Gourmet | 8% up to $15, 15% above $15 | None |
| Home and Kitchen | 15% | $0.30 |
| Jewelry | 20% on the first $250, 5% on the part above $250 | $0.30 |
| Lawn and Garden | 15% | $0.30 |
| Lawn Mowers and Snow Throwers | 15% up to $500, 8% above $500 | $0.30 |
| Mattresses | 15% | $0.30 |
| Media: Books, DVD, Music, Software, Video | 15%, plus a $1.80 closing fee per item | None |
| Musical Instruments and AV Production | 15% | $0.30 |
| Office Products | 15% | $0.30 |
| Pet Products | 15% | $0.30 |
| Pet Products: veterinary diets | 22% | $0.30 |
| Sports and Outdoors | 15% | $0.30 |
| Tires | 10% | $0.30 |
| Tools and Home Improvement | 15% | $0.30 |
| Toys and Games | 15% | $0.30 |
| Video Game Consoles | 8% | None |
| Video Games and Gaming Accessories | 15% | None |
| Watches | 16% on the first $1,500, 3% on the part above $1,500 | $0.30 |
Amazon's page also lists three specialist categories that most sellers never meet: Gift Cards at 20% with no minimum; Fine Art at 20% on the first $100, 15% from $100 to $1,000, 10% from $1,000 to $5,000 and 5% above that, with no minimum; and services sold through Amazon Local Selling at 20% with a $0.30 minimum.
The spread runs from 8% to 45%, but most of the table is 15%. The 8% categories are big-ticket electronics and appliances (Computers, Consumer Electronics, Full-Size Appliances, Video Game Consoles). The 12% group is Automotive, Base Equipment Power Tools, and Business, Industrial and Scientific Supplies. The outliers at the top are veterinary diets at 22% and Amazon Device Accessories at 45%, where a $25 case pays $11.25.
Three ways a referral rate is applied
The table hides the detail that matters most for pricing. Amazon uses three different structures, and two of them have cliffs.
Flat rate
One percentage of the whole price, at any price: Toys and Games, Home and Kitchen, Pet Products, Sports and Outdoors, Office Products and most of the table. A $10 toy pays $1.50 and a $500 toy pays $75.
Whole-price bands: the cliff categories
In Baby Products, Beauty, Health and Personal Care, Grocery, Clothing, and Lawn Mowers, the whole price takes the rate of the band it lands in. Crossing a threshold by one cent re-prices the entire sale:
| Category | At the threshold | One cent over | Extra fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beauty, Health and Personal Care | $10.00 pays $0.80 (8%) | $10.01 pays $1.50 (15%) | +$0.70 |
| Grocery and Gourmet | $15.00 pays $1.20 (8%) | $15.01 pays $2.25 (15%) | +$1.05 |
| Clothing and Accessories | $20.00 pays $2.00 (10%) | $20.01 pays $3.40 (17%) | +$1.40 |
| Lawn Mowers and Snow Throwers | $500.00 pays $75.00 (15%) | $501.00 pays $40.08 (8%) | −$34.92 |
The lawn mower line runs the other way: a mower at $501 pays almost $35 less than one at $500, because the whole price drops to 8%. In the other four, a price just above the line is the most expensive place to sit. Because the threshold is tested on the total sales price, a seller who charges for delivery can be pushed over it by the shipping charge alone.
Tiered portions
In 3D Printers, Compact Appliances, Electronics Accessories, Furniture, Jewelry and Watches, only the part of the price above the threshold gets the second rate, the way income tax brackets work. There is no cliff; the effective rate just falls as the price rises.
- A $500 sofa (Furniture): 15% of $200 plus 10% of $300 = $60, an effective 12%.
- A $400 necklace (Jewelry): 20% of $250 plus 5% of $150 = $57.50, 14.4%.
- A $150 charger (Electronics Accessories): 15% of $100 plus 8% of $50 = $19, 12.7%.
- A $2,000 watch: 16% of $1,500 plus 3% of $500 = $255, 12.75%.
- A $400 compact appliance: 15% of $300 plus 8% of $100 = $53, 13.25%.
- A $500 3D printer: 12% of $200 plus 5% of $300 = $39, 7.8%.
When the $0.30 minimum applies
The minimum only bites on cheap items. At 15% it applies below $2.00; at 8% (Beauty or Baby under $10), below $3.75. A $1.50 toy pays $0.30, which is 20% of its price. Grocery, Media, Video Games and Video Game Consoles have no minimum, so a $3.50 grocery item pays 8%, or $0.28.
What the businesses we track pay
Each business's main fee category, a typical product and its price from our data, the referral fee on one unit, and an estimate of the month's referral fees (15% of the month's Amazon revenue unless noted). Every figure is an estimate built from public data.
| Business | Fee category | Product and price | Referral per unit | Est. referral fees, latest month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MaryRuth's | Beauty, Health and Personal Care | Liquid vitamins, above $10 | 15% | $2,254,960 |
| White Mountain Puzzles | Toys and Games | Jigsaw puzzle, $19.99 | $3.00 | $95,597 |
| Kajun Loaded Tea | Grocery and Gourmet | 5-packet box, $15.95 | $2.39 | $70,531 |
| Doctor Jupiter | Toys and Games | Preschool science kit, $26.99 | $4.05 | $69,165 |
| OTOTO | Home and Kitchen | Character kitchen gadgets | 15% | $31,706 (August) |
| Virora Mahjong | Toys and Games | 160-tile set, $229 | $34.35 | $25,598 |
| KALOTOYS | Toys and Games, some under Handmade | Personalised name puzzle, $34.96 | $5.24 | $23,504 |
| Draft Top | Home and Kitchen | Can opener, $25.99 | $3.90 | $15,654 |
| Spite House Games | Toys and Games | Card deck, $12.99 | $1.95 | $13,498 |
| WOODLANDS USA | Home and Kitchen | 6-piece bamboo utensil set, $8.99 | $1.35 | $11,652 |
| Highmark Collective | Baby Products, Office Products, Home and Kitchen | Baptism gift set, $36.99 | $5.55 | $7,722 |
| LIGHTEN LIFE | Home and Kitchen | Birthday glasses in gift boxes | 15% | $7,646 |
| Mount Cleverest | Toys and Games | Trivia card deck, $16.99 | $2.55 | $5,857 |
| Restoration Games | Toys and Games | Board games | 15% | $5,194 |
| Songbird Specialties | Home and Kitchen | Wine pourer, $29.99 | $4.50 | $4,948 |
| Bizzikins | Toys and Games | Activity doll, $37.50 | $5.63 | $3,094 |
| Wet Noses | Pet Products | Organic dog treats | 15% | $2,991 |
| Gamblin' Golf | Sports and Outdoors | Scratch & Swing game, $24.00 | $3.60 | $1,800 |
September 2026 unless noted. Notes on the estimates: White Mountain Puzzles' figure is its model's 13.2% referral line on revenue across all its channels, since part of what it sells never touches Amazon; Virora Mahjong, LIGHTEN LIFE and Restoration Games are the referral lines from their own margin models; Mount Cleverest's is on its Amazon sales only, not its TikTok Shop sales. MaryRuth's, OTOTO and WOODLANDS USA are measured across every seller on their listings, resellers included, so part of that fee is paid by other sellers. For MaryRuth's, the referral fee alone is larger than the whole monthly revenue of every other business in the table.
Kajun Loaded Tea's 95 cents
Kajun's boxes are in Grocery and Gourmet, one of the cliff categories. At $15.95 the whole price takes 15%, so Amazon keeps $2.39 a box and Kajun keeps $13.56. At $14.99 the whole price would take 8%: a $1.20 fee, and Kajun would keep $13.79. Cutting the price by 96 cents would leave Kajun 23 cents more per box, before any change in how many it sells. The FBA fee would not move, because both prices sit in the same $10 to $50 band. We do not know whether Kajun has tested this; it is the arithmetic of Amazon's own schedule.
The referral fee follows a discount down; FBA does not
Spite House Games' card deck usually sells at $12.99 and pays $1.95. In September 2026 it was discounted to $6.97 and paid $1.05. The referral fee is always the same share of the price, so a discount never makes it worse. The fulfilment fee is a flat dollar amount, which is why cheap items lose so much more to Amazon in total; that is worked through in how much Amazon takes from sellers.
Seller-fulfilled orders pay on the delivery charge too
Gamblin' Golf ships its own orders rather than using FBA. It pays no fulfilment fee, but the referral fee is still charged, and on any order where it charges delivery, the 15% applies to the delivery charge as well as the $24.00 game.
One business, three fee categories
Highmark Collective lists in Baby Products (its baptism sets), Office Products (its journals) and Home and Kitchen (its verse jar). All three come out at 15% because every product is priced above $10. If it ever launched a baby item at $9.99, that item would pay 8%, or $0.80.
The pattern across our data: none of these businesses is in an 8% or 12% category, and all but one of the products we price are well clear of any threshold. For brands like these, the referral fee is a fixed 15% of revenue, and the room to cut Amazon's take is in the fulfilment fee: package size, weight and price band.
FAQ
What is Amazon's referral fee?
A commission Amazon takes on every sale, set as a percentage of the total sales price by fee category, with a per-item minimum (usually $0.30). For most categories it is 15%. It is separate from the FBA fulfilment fee and from the $39.99 monthly Professional plan.
Is the referral fee charged on shipping?
Yes. Amazon calculates it on the total the customer pays, including any delivery and gift-wrap charges, but excluding sales tax.
Does the referral fee change if I use FBA?
No. The rate is the same whether Amazon or you ship the order. FBA adds a separate fulfilment fee per unit.
Which Amazon category has the lowest referral fee?
The 8% categories: Computers, Consumer Electronics, Full-Size Appliances and Video Game Consoles. Beauty, Health and Personal Care and Baby Products also drop to 8% at $10 or less, Grocery at $15 or less, and Clothing to 5% at $15 or less. The portion above the threshold in Watches is 3%.
Can I choose my referral fee category?
Not freely. The fee category follows Amazon's fee category guidelines for what the product is, which may differ from where it appears in the store. You can check each ASIN's fee category in the Fee Preview report and dispute one you believe is wrong.
How do I work out the referral fee on my product?
Find the fee category, apply the rate to your price plus any delivery charge, and compare with the minimum. Or enter your price and category in our FBA calculator, which uses the same table as this page and adds the fulfilment fee.
Where these figures come from
Referral rates, minimums and Amazon's worked example are from Amazon's US referral fees help page, read 10 November 2026; the $1.80 media closing fee is from Amazon's selling fees page. Each business's fee category, product price and monthly revenue are from its profile in our data, built from Keepa listing records and each business's margin model; the monthly referral figures are our estimates. Amazon changes these pages, so check the date before relying on a rate.