What do I need to set up an Amazon Seller account?
Making your products available on Amazon can help you grow your business and drive brand awareness. In order to start selling on Amazon, you will need to supply your business info for the account setup. This includes the following items:
- Business Information: Your legal business name, address and contact information.
- Email Address: An email address that can be used for this company account.
- Credit Card: An internationally chargeable credit card with a valid billing address. If the credit card number isn’t valid, Amazon will cancel your registration.
- Phone Number: A phone number where you can be reached during this registration process.
- Tax ID: Your tax identity information, including your Social Security number or your company’s Federal Tax ID number.
- State Tax ID: State tax ID information for states in which you have tax nexus. This physical presence is typically impacted by company offices, warehouses/3PLs, and call centers.
What are the commission rates and fees on Amazon?
Commissions on Amazon are called Referral Fees. They are a percentage of the total sale price, not including any calculated tax, and they vary by the category of the item sold. The total sale price also includes the cost of shipping and gift wrapping. Referral Fee percentages range from 8% to 17% for most categories.
To find the referral fee for your category of products, please refer to Selling on Amazon Fee Schedule on Amazon. If you’d like to know more about how Amazon’s fees work, take a look at Understanding Amazon’s Fees for Sellers.
What are the image requirements on Amazon?
Amazon accepts four types of files for product images: TIFF, JPEG, GIF and PNG. Amazon applies additional compression to images when displaying them on its website.
For non-Clothing categories, the smallest your file can be is 500 pixels on its longest side. Images must not exceed 10,000 pixels on the longest side. Amazon prefers images that are 1,000 pixels or larger in either height or width (mandatory for Clothing categories). Images with dimensions of 1,000 pixels or larger will enable the zoom function on the website. Zoom has been shown to improve sales.
Do I need approval to list products in certain categories on Amazon?
Yes, Amazon requires sellers to have a Professional selling plan and obtain approval before listing certain products in these categories:
- Collectible Coins
- Personal Safety and Household products
- Entertainment Collectibles
- Fine Art
- Jewelry
- Join Amazon Subscription Boxes
- Made in Italy
- Music & DVD
- Automotive & Powersports
- Services
- Sports Collectibles
- Streaming Media Players
- Video, DVD, & Blu-ray
- Watches
Please refer to Specific products and categories that require approval on Amazon Seller Central for the latest information.
Are UPCs or GTINs required to sell on Amazon?
For the most part, yes. Amazon verifies the authenticity of product UPCs by checking the GS1 database. UPCs that do not match the information provided by GS1 will be considered invalid.
However, brand owners may be eligible to request a GTIN exemption. Please note that simply being approved for the Amazon Brand Registry does not automatically remove the need for a GTIN exemption. You should register for both, if applicable.
Brian Roizen is the Cofounder and Chief Architect of Feedonomics, a full-service feed optimization platform that optimizes product data for hundreds of channels. He has been featured on numerous podcasts and eCommerce webinars, and regularly contributes to Search Engine Land and other industry-leading blogs. Brian graduated summa cum laude from UCLA with both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.
