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KDP Royalty Calculator

Enter your marketplace, trim size, page count and list price to see what a paperback earns per sale. Switch to ebook for the 35% and 70% options with their delivery cost.

KDP Royalty Calculator

Book format
Ink and paper

Enter the list price you set in KDP, before VAT or other sales tax. Amazon adds the tax on top for the reader and it does not change your royalty.

$4.39

On Amazon.com: 60% of the list price $14.99 minus a printing cost of $4.60.

Printing cost
$4.60
Royalty rate
60%
Expanded Distribution royalty
$1.40
Minimum list price
$9.20
Maximum list price
$250.00

Expanded Distribution sells your paperback through other stores and libraries and pays 40% of the list price minus printing cost. Here it uses the printing cost of the marketplace above. Paperbacks published in Japanese cannot join it.

Royalty per sale for a 300 page black ink paperback, 6 x 9 in, on Amazon.com

List priceRateRoyalty per saleExpanded Distribution
$7.9950%-$0.61-$1.40
$9.9960%$1.39-$0.60
$12.9960%$3.19$0.60
$14.9960%$4.39$1.40
$19.9960%$7.39$3.40

Black ink on white or cream paper, regular trim, printing cost $4.60 per copy. A negative royalty means the price is below the minimum list price and KDP would not accept it.

Figures from: Amazon KDP: Paperback Royalty (read 29 October 2026), Amazon KDP: Paperback Printing Cost (read 29 October 2026), Amazon KDP: Digital Book Pricing Page (read 29 October 2026), Amazon KDP: eBook List Price Requirements (read 29 October 2026)

How a KDP paperback royalty is worked out

KDP pays you a share of the list price and subtracts what it costs to print the copy: royalty rate x list price, minus printing cost. The list price here is the price before VAT or other sales tax, which Amazon adds on top for the reader.

The rate depends on the price. On Amazon.com it is 50% for list prices up to 9.98 USD and 60% from 9.99 USD. Other marketplaces have their own thresholds: 7.98 and 7.99 GBP, 9.98 and 9.99 EUR, 13.98 and 13.99 CAD or AUD, 999 and 1000 JPY, 39 and 40 PLN, 109 and 110 SEK.

The step between the two rates is large. A 300 page black ink paperback costs 4.60 USD to print on Amazon.com, so a list price of 9.99 USD pays 1.39 USD per sale and 9.98 USD pays 0.39 USD. One cent of price is worth a full dollar.

Expanded Distribution and the minimum list price

If you turn on Expanded Distribution, copies sold through other stores and libraries pay 40% of the list price minus printing cost, at any price. At 14.99 USD with a printing cost of 4.60 USD that is 1.40 USD, against 4.39 USD on Amazon.com. Paperbacks published in Japanese cannot join Expanded Distribution. The calculator uses the printing cost of the marketplace you pick for this estimate.

KDP will not accept a list price whose royalty does not cover the printing cost. The minimum is the printing cost divided by 0.5 below the threshold or by 0.6 from it, rounded up to the cent: 9.20 USD for the 300 page book above. The highest price you can set on Amazon.com is 250 USD.

Ebook royalties: 35% or 70%

You choose one of two options for each ebook. The 35% option pays 35% of the price after VAT and accepts list prices from 0.99 USD to 200 USD on Amazon.com, with a higher minimum for larger files: 1.99 USD from 3 MB and 2.99 USD from 10 MB.

The 70% option pays 70% of the price after VAT and after a delivery cost of 0.15 USD per megabyte on Amazon.com. It applies to list prices from 2.99 USD to 12.99 USD (the top of the band rose from 9.99 USD on 7 July 2026) and to readers in a list of countries. In Brazil, Japan, Mexico and India the book must also be in KDP Select. A book that does not meet the conditions earns 35%.

A 4.99 USD ebook with a 2 MB file pays 3.28 USD on the 70% option and 1.75 USD on the 35% option. The 70% option pays less than the 35% option only when the delivery cost passes half the price, which takes a very large file.

Questions about KDP Royalty Calculator

How much royalty does KDP pay on a paperback?

60% of the list price on Amazon.com from 9.99 USD and 50% below it, minus the printing cost. A 300 page black ink 6 x 9 in paperback at 14.99 USD pays 4.39 USD per sale.

How much royalty do I earn on a 4.99 ebook?

On Amazon.com with a 2 MB file the 70% option pays 3.28 USD per sale and the 35% option pays 1.75 USD.

Why does a price of 9.99 pay so much more than 9.98?

9.99 USD is the first price on Amazon.com with the 60% rate. For a 300 page black ink paperback that is 1.39 USD per sale, against 0.39 USD at 9.98 USD.

How much does Expanded Distribution pay?

40% of the list price minus printing cost. At 14.99 USD with a printing cost of 4.60 USD that is 1.40 USD per copy.

What is the lowest price I can set for my paperback?

The printing cost divided by the royalty rate, rounded up to the cent. For a 300 page black ink 6 x 9 in paperback on Amazon.com that is 9.20 USD. A 400 page book costs 5.80 USD to print and needs a list price of at least 9.99 USD.

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