Overview

Sending inventory to Amazon's fulfillment centers is one of the most fundamental processes for any FBA seller. The process revolves around creating a shipping plan in Seller Central, which guides you through selecting products, setting quantities, choosing prep and labeling preferences, and arranging carrier details. Understanding each step helps sellers avoid common mistakes that can lead to shipment delays, additional fees, or inventory discrepancies.

Key Points / What Sellers Need to Know

• Shipping plans are required - Every FBA shipment begins with a shipping plan that specifies which products you're sending, the quantity of each item, your shipping method, and carrier information.
• SKUs must be FBA-enabled - Before you can include a product in a shipping plan, its SKU must be converted from seller-fulfilled to Fulfilled by Amazon. You can change fulfillment methods through your listing settings in Seller Central.
• Two packing types exist - Amazon distinguishes between individual products (varying quantities and conditions in a shipment) and case-packed products (multiples of the same item packaged by the manufacturer with identical quantity and condition per case).
• Ship-from address matters - Your ship-from address is the pickup location for your shipment, whether that's your home, business, or a supplier's warehouse. This can be changed during plan creation.
• Multi-part ASINs must ship together - If a product listing includes multiple components, all parts must be packaged and shipped in a single box.

The Six-Step Shipment Creation Process

Amazon's shipment workflow is structured as a six-step process that begins with setting quantities. After selecting the products you want to send from your FBA inventory page, you specify exactly how many units of each SKU to include in the shipment. From there, you move through preparation requirements, labeling preferences, shipment review, carrier selection, and final confirmation. Each step builds on the previous one, so it's important to have accurate information ready before you begin. Sellers can also add products to an existing open shipping plan rather than creating a new one each time, which is useful when consolidating inventory sends.