Free KDP tool
Kindle ebook royalty calculator
See exactly what Amazon pays you per ebook sale. The calculator applies KDP's official formula — (list price − delivery fee) × 70% — enforces the $2.99–$9.99 eligibility window, handles VAT marketplaces, and compares both royalty plans side by side so you can pick the price that actually earns more.
Kindle eBook Royalty Calculator
Calculate your Kindle eBook earnings at 35% or 70% royalty rates
70% vs 35% Royalty
The 70% royalty option has price restrictions ($2.99-$9.99) and delivery fees, while 35% has no restrictions but lower earnings.
70% eligible: $2.99 - $9.99
Delivery Cost: $0.15 per MB
Your eBook Royalties
Royalty Per Sale
$3.28
Amazon's Share
$1.41
Delivery Cost
$0.30
Break-Even ACOS
65.8%
Recommended: 70% royalty option
Tips for Maximizing eBook Royalties
- •70% royalty is only available for prices between $2.99-$9.99 (or local equivalent)
- •Delivery costs only apply to 70% royalty option
- •Keep file size small by optimizing images to reduce delivery costs
- •Consider pricing at $4.99 or $9.99 for optimal perceived value
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How the Kindle royalty formula works (July 2026)
Both formulas come straight from Amazon KDP's pricing pages. The 35% plan is a flat percentage of list price (after any VAT in tax-inclusive marketplaces). The 70% plan subtracts the delivery fee first, then applies the rate:
35% plan: royalty = list price × 0.35
70% plan: royalty = (list price − delivery fee) × 0.70
Delivery fee (US) = file size in MB × $0.15
Example 1: $2.99 novel, 1 MB
At 70%: (2.99 − 0.15) × 0.70 = $1.99 per sale. At 35% the same book earns $1.05 — the 70% plan pays almost double at the entry price.
Example 2: $9.99 nonfiction, 1 MB
At 70%: (9.99 − 0.15) × 0.70 = $6.89 per sale — the highest royalty available inside the eligibility window. At 35% it would earn $3.50.
Example 3: $14.99 premium guide
$14.99 sits outside the 70% window, so the sale pays 35%: 14.99 × 0.35 = $5.25. Note that $9.99 at 70% ($6.89) still beats it.
Kindle 70% vs 35% royalty: the eligibility rules
The 70% option is not automatic. Your list price must sit between $2.99 and $9.99 in the US store (with local-currency equivalents elsewhere), the sale must occur in an eligible territory, and your price has to respect KDP's list-price requirements, including not exceeding the book's price on other storefronts. Sales in Brazil, India, Japan and Mexico only earn 70% when the title is enrolled in KDP Select, Amazon's 90-day digital exclusivity program. Everything else — a $0.99 promo, a $199 technical manual — pays 35% with no delivery fee. The calculator flags eligibility automatically as you change price and marketplace.
Delivery fees: why file size eats royalties
On the 70% plan, Amazon charges $0.15 per megabyte (US) of your converted file per sale. A clean, text-only novel is typically under 1 MB — about $0.15 per sale, barely noticeable. An image-heavy children's book or cookbook at 20 MB gives up $3.00 of every sale before the percentage is applied, which at a $4.99 price point flips the math in favor of the fee-free 35% plan. Compress images, export lean files, and check the converted size KDP reports on the pricing page — it is often smaller than your upload.
Kindle ebook pricing strategy in practice
Royalty math sets the boundaries; conversion sets the winner. $2.99 maximizes impulse buys for series starters, $4.99–$6.99 is the workhorse range for full-length fiction, and $7.99–$9.99 suits nonfiction with clear outcomes. Above $9.99, you sacrifice half the rate — worth it only when your audience expects premium pricing and you clear more per sale at 35% than any in-window price would pay. Pair sale royalties with Kindle Unlimited page-read income if you enroll in KDP Select, and re-run the numbers whenever you change price, since your break-even ad cost (ACOS) moves with the royalty.
FAQ
Kindle royalty questions, answered
What royalty does Amazon pay on Kindle ebooks in 2026?
Amazon KDP offers two options. The 70% royalty applies to ebooks listed between $2.99 and $9.99 (US) sold in eligible territories, with a per-megabyte delivery fee deducted first. The 35% royalty applies at any allowed list price — $0.99 up to $200 in the US — with no delivery fee. These rules are unchanged as of July 2026.
How is the 70% Kindle royalty actually calculated?
The official KDP formula is (list price − applicable taxes − delivery costs) × 70%. For a $4.99 ebook with a 1 MB file sold in the US, that is (4.99 − 0.15) × 0.70 = $3.39. Note that the delivery fee is subtracted before the percentage is applied, not after.
What is the KDP delivery fee and who pays it?
The delivery fee is a per-megabyte charge on the converted file size of your ebook — $0.15 per MB for US sales, with local equivalents in other marketplaces. It only applies to the 70% royalty option; books on the 35% plan pay no delivery fee regardless of file size.
Which prices qualify for the 70% royalty option?
In the US store, the list price must be between $2.99 and $9.99 inclusive. Other marketplaces have equivalent local-currency windows. Price outside that band and the sale automatically pays 35%. This price window is why so many indie ebooks cluster between $2.99 and $9.99.
Can I price my Kindle ebook below $2.99?
Yes — KDP allows list prices from $0.99, but anything under $2.99 earns the 35% rate. A $0.99 ebook pays about $0.35 per sale, which authors typically use as a limited-time promotional price or a series starter rather than a permanent price.
When is the 35% royalty better than 70%?
Two cases. First, when your price sits outside the $2.99–$9.99 window — premium nonfiction at $14.99 earns $5.25 at 35%, which no 70%-eligible price can match. Second, very large files: because the 70% plan deducts delivery fees, a heavily illustrated book with a 40 MB file can occasionally net more on the fee-free 35% plan at the same price.
Do I need KDP Select to get the 70% royalty?
Not in most marketplaces. However, for sales to customers in Brazil, India, Japan and Mexico, the 70% rate only applies if the book is enrolled in KDP Select, which requires 90-day digital exclusivity to Amazon. Without Select, sales in those four marketplaces pay 35%.
How can I reduce my Kindle delivery fee?
Delivery fees are based on the converted file size shown on your KDP pricing page, and images are almost always the culprit. Compress images before upload, resize them to sensible dimensions, and avoid embedding fonts you do not need. Text-only novels are usually under 1 MB, so the fee stays around $0.15 or less.
How does VAT affect Kindle royalties in Europe?
In VAT-inclusive marketplaces like the UK and EU, Amazon subtracts the applicable VAT from your list price before applying the 35% or 70% rate. The calculator handles this when you toggle a VAT marketplace, which is why a €4.99 book earns less than a $4.99 book at the same rate.
Do Kindle Unlimited page reads pay the same as sales?
No. Kindle Unlimited borrows pay per page read from the monthly KDP Select Global Fund — roughly $0.0042 to $0.0049 per KENP page over the past year — completely separate from the 35%/70% sale royalties. A full read of a 300-page book earns about $1.40; use our KENP calculator to model it.
What is the best price for a Kindle ebook?
For royalty efficiency, the $2.99–$9.99 window dominates: $4.99 earns $3.39 per sale (1 MB file) while $1.99 earns just $0.70. Most full-length indie novels launch between $3.99 and $5.99, and nonfiction sustains $6.99–$9.99. Test price points and watch conversion, not just per-unit royalty.
Are royalty rules the same in every Amazon marketplace?
The 35%/70% structure is global, but each marketplace has its own currency window for 70% eligibility, its own delivery fee rate, and tax treatment. Amazon also requires your Kindle list price to respect its list-price requirements — including not exceeding your book’s price on other sales channels — so keep prices consistent store to store.
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