2023 Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) Fee Increases

In November 2022 Amazon announced what is becoming an annual increase in FBA fees for sellers, the impact of which will be staggered throughout 2023.

The sequence of which we have broken down for your convenience:

January 17, 2023

• Off-peak outbound FBA fees increase, $0.22 on average, for all categories. Refer to the 2023 non-peak rate chart, which includes the 5% Fuel & Inflation Surcharge fee.
• Removal and Disposal fees will increase by .45, and up, per unit depending on size tier. Refer to the rate card.

However, in some good news, New Small and Light eligibilities kick in: Items up to $12 (increased from $10) eligible + Size/Weight tiers become more granular, S&L fees may decrease for some previously enrolled items. Refer to the full rate card.

February 1, 2023

Off-Peak storage rates will be increased by $0.04 per cubic foot for standard-size products and $0.03 per cubic foot for oversize products (reflected on March billing and beyond).

January-September | $0.87 per cubic foot | $0.56 per cubic foot

February 16, 2023

Apparel size tiers will be changing, which could result in fee increases for select items.

Amazon will begin using the greater of unit weight or dimensional weight to calculate the shipping weight for all large standard-size and oversize units, except for special oversize.

Refer to Calculate The Shipping Weight Chart and use the 2023 rate chart on the same page to determine new size-tier and rate.

March 1, 2023

More good news! Increased 2023 FBA New Selection benefits begin including:

• an increase from 50 to 100 units of storage, liquidation, and rebate benefits (per parent),
• the expanded timeline from 90 to 120 days to claim,
• the increased rebate from 5-10% (average).

April 1, 2023

Storage utilisation surcharge will be introduced, starting at .46/cu ft (reflected on May billing):

• It will be based on the storage utilisation ratio (average daily inventory volume stored in cubic feet divided by the average daily shipped volume in cubic feet over the trailing 13 weeks).
• It will impact professional sellers with a storage utilisation ratio above 26 weeks.

Refer to the Off-peak period (Jan-Sep), starting April 1, 2023 chart

April 15, 2023

FBA Aged Inventory Surcharge (aka Long Term Storage/LTS Fee) will be expanded to include items stored 181-270 days (not previously subject to additional fees) as well as an increase in fees for items in 271-365+ tiers.

October 1, 2023

2023 increased Peak storage rates begin.

October-December | $2.40 per cubic foot | $1.40 per cubic foot

Peak Storage Utilisation Surcharge rates begin. Refer to Peak period (Oct-Dec), starting April 1, 2023 chart.

October 15, 2023

Peak FBA Outbound (Fulfilment) fees anticipated to apply.

Not confirmed, 2022 was the first year to feature Peak FBA Outbound fees.

What do we think are Amazon’s objectives?

Well firstly, yes, of course the intent is to offset the costs incurred through inflation and fuel price increases through the application of additional fees, which is something all sellers will need to model at product level to ensure continued profitability on the marketplace.

However there is also a clear indication that Amazon is intent on being more efficient with the storage of goods within their Fulfilment Centres. The expansion of Long Term Storage fees to include products that have been stored for 181 days means that tight inventory management is more critical than ever for Amazon FBA Sellers, while the introduction of additional constraints to storage capacity linked to the storage utilisation ratio on Seller Accounts will further impede sellers ability to ship goods to fulfilment centres with the freedom they used to.

The incentivisation of small and light products could also be viewed as an extension of this initiative. Further optimising the storage space Amazon has at their disposal.

The days of shipping as much stock as possible into Amazon and waiting for it to sell are long gone, we are all aware of that, but the introduction of further punitive measures by Amazon now gives inventory management equal importance to growth initiatives such as marketing and optimisation if brands are to succeed on Amazon in 2023.

Simon Ellicott, Marketplace Operations Director