Overview

Amazon is urging sellers in the EU marketplace to configure their accounts for same-day handling time, a setting that shortens the delivery date displayed to customers at the point of purchase. According to Amazon's own data, EU sellers currently set handling times that are roughly 30% longer than the actual time they need to prepare and ship products, meaning many sellers are already shipping faster than their listings suggest but missing out on the conversion benefits of showing that speed to buyers.

What's Changing

• Same-day handling time configuration — Sellers can now set their default account-level handling time to same-day, which means orders must be shipped and confirmed on the same day they are received, provided they come in before the designated cut-off hour.
• Shorter delivery promises — Enabling this setting reduces the estimated delivery date shown to customers during the buying process, which Amazon says increases the likelihood of a purchase.
• Cut-off time flexibility — The default cut-off hour is set at 2:00 p.m. local time, but sellers can adjust this window through their shipping settings to match their operational capacity.
• ASIN-level overrides — Sellers can still assign longer handling times to specific ASINs that require more preparation, while the majority of their catalog benefits from the faster same-day promise.
• Order handling capacity limits — Sellers can set a daily order limit for same-day handling. Any orders exceeding that threshold automatically receive an additional day of handling time to prevent late shipments.

How Same-Day Handling Time Works

The same-day handling time feature is designed to align a seller's listed handling speed with their actual operational performance. When enabled, all orders received before the cut-off hour must be shipped and confirmed within the same business day. Orders that arrive after the cut-off time roll over to the next business day, giving sellers a full day to process those later orders. This structure is intended to keep the commitment realistic while still providing buyers with an earlier delivery estimate.

The default cut-off hour of 2:00 p.m. local time provides a reasonable window for most fulfillment operations, but Amazon recognizes that different sellers have different workflows. The ability to customize this cut-off in shipping settings means that sellers who process orders in the morning can set an earlier deadline, while those with afternoon fulfillment runs can push it later. The key requirement is that once the cut-off is set, sellers must consistently meet it to avoid late shipment metrics.