Overview

Amazon has tightened the criteria that promotions, discounts, and coupons must satisfy before they can go live. The new rules revolve around a 30‑day price history check, competitive pricing outside Amazon, minimum review thresholds, and a return‑rate filter, with especially strict enforcement during high‑traffic events such as Prime Day and Black Friday. Sellers who ignore these standards risk having their deals rejected or pulled at the last minute.

Key Points

• 30‑day price floor — The deal price must be equal to or lower than the lowest price the SKU posted in the previous 30 days, including any coupons or Lightning Deal prices.
• Cross‑platform price check — Amazon compares the proposed price with prices listed by reputable retailers on other sites; a lower external price blocks the promotion.
• Review baseline — A product generally needs at least a 2.5‑star average and five customer reviews to qualify for most promotions.
• Return‑rate gate — Items with return rates above Amazon’s internal threshold are automatically excluded from deals, regardless of rating.
• Content compliance — Listings flagged for safety, offensiveness, or policy violations cannot participate in any promotion.
• Benchmark ripple effect — Today’s promotional price becomes part of the next 30‑day benchmark, making future discounts harder to qualify for without deeper cuts.

How the 30‑Day Pricing Rule Works

1. Submit the deal price — When a seller proposes a Lightning Deal, the price entered is captured in Seller Central. Example: A seller lists a Bluetooth speaker at $29.99 for a Lightning Deal.
2. Amazon pulls the last‑month price history — The system scans every price the SKU carried in the prior 30 days, including regular list price, coupon‑adjusted price, and any previous Lightning Deal price. Example: The speaker’s prices over the past month were $34.99 (regular), $31.99 (coupon), and $30.49 (previous Lightning Deal).
3. — If the new deal price is higher than any of those historic lows, the submission is rejected.