Overview

On January 15 2026 Amazon replaced its temporary holiday peak‑season surcharges with a new set of baseline FBA fees that sit above the 2025 non‑peak rates. The shift means most sellers will see higher fulfillment costs even though the seasonal add‑ons have disappeared, and it also introduces steeper inbound defect penalties and a fee for non‑compliant packaging. Sellers need to recalculate margins, tighten inbound quality, and consider packaging changes to protect profitability.

Key Points

• Holiday surcharges eliminated — The Q4 2025 peak fees of $0.30‑$0.70 per unit are no longer charged after January 14 2026.
• Baseline fees rise — Standard‑size items now cost about $0.08 more per unit on average; items priced $10‑$50 increase by $0.25, and those over $50 jump $0.51.
• Inbound defect penalties surge — Fees for defective inbound units climbed from $0.02‑$0.07 to a range of $0.32‑$5.72 per unit.
• SIPP packaging charge added — Products that are not enrolled in Ships in Product Packaging incur a $2.07 fee for each bulky unit.
• Margin pressure on thin‑profit SKUs — A $35 standard‑size product’s fulfillment cost rose from $3.20 to $3.45, a 7.8 % increase that translates to $250 extra per 1,000 units sold.
• Granular size‑price bands introduced — The new structure rewards compact, lightweight items while penalizing larger or heavier inventory.

What's Changing

1. Removal of peak‑season surcharges — During Q4 2025 Amazon added $0.30‑$0.70 per unit to cover higher labor and transportation costs. Starting January 15 2026 those extra charges disappear, so the base fee is the only cost applied to each unit.
2. Increase to baseline fulfillment fees — Amazon raised the standard‑size fee by roughly $0.08 per unit. For example, a small item priced at $12 that previously cost $2.50 in fulfillment now costs $2.78. Larger price brackets see steeper hikes: a $25 item moves from $3.10 to $3.35, and a $60 item jumps from $4.20 to $4.71.
3. Escalation of inbound defect fees — The penalty for each unit that fails Amazon’s inbound quality checks grew from a few cents to a minimum of $0.32 and can reach $5.72 for severe defects. If a shipment of 500 units contains 10 defective pieces, the cost could rise from $0.50 under the old system to $32 – $57 under the new one.