Understanding FBA Export Fees: What It Costs to Fulfill International Orders Through Amazon
Explains the fee structure for Amazon's FBA Export program, covering costs for international order fulfillment through both Amazon.com and external channels, including per-shipment, per-item, and weight-based charges.
Overview
Amazon's FBA Export program allows sellers to reach international customers by making their U.S.-based Fulfillment by Amazon inventory available for purchase by buyers outside the United States. While this opens up significant new revenue opportunities, sellers need to understand the fee structure that applies to these cross-border orders so they can price their products appropriately and maintain healthy margins.
Key Points / What Sellers Need to Know
- Two export pathways exist — FBA Export handles international orders placed directly on Amazon.com, while a separate fulfillment channel covers orders from other websites. Each pathway has its own fee structure.
- No additional fees on Amazon.com exports — When international buyers purchase your FBA inventory through Amazon.com, standard domestic order fulfillment fees apply with no export surcharge.
- Non-Amazon channel exports carry extra costs — Orders fulfilled through external websites incur additional per-shipment, per-item, and weight-based handling fees on top of standard fulfillment costs.
- Only standard-size items qualify — Products must weigh 20 pounds or less and meet specific dimension requirements (longest side 18 inches or less, shortest side 8 inches or less, median side 14 inches or less) to be eligible for export.
- Oversize items cannot be exported — Any product exceeding the standard-size thresholds is ineligible for the FBA Export program.
- Weight calculations include a dunnage factor — Amazon adds 10 percent to the combined weight of items in a shipment to account for packaging materials, then rounds up to the nearest pound.
How FBA Export Fees Are Structured
For international orders fulfilled through non-Amazon channels, the fee calculation involves several components. First, there is a flat per-shipment charge of $13.65 that applies regardless of order size. Second, each item in the shipment incurs a per-unit handling fee of $0.60. Third, a weight-based handling fee is assessed on the total shipment weight after the dunnage adjustment. For the first 15 pounds of shipment weight, the per-pound rate ranges from $2.20 to $3.60 depending on the destination region. Any additional weight from 16 to 20 pounds is charged at a flat $0.50 per pound across all regions. These fees are layered on top of one another, so sellers should calculate the total cost carefully before committing to international fulfillment through external channels.
Analysis & Recommendations
Why This Matters
Understanding FBA Export fees is essential for sellers looking to expand internationally. Miscalculating these costs can erode margins, especially on heavier items fulfilled through non-Amazon channels.
Key Takeaways
- International orders on Amazon.com incur no additional export fees beyond standard FBA fulfillment costs
- Non-Amazon channel exports carry per-shipment ($13.65), per-item ($0.60), and weight-based fees that can add up quickly
- Only standard-size items (20 lb or less, within dimension limits) are eligible for FBA Export
- Amazon adds a 10% dunnage factor to shipment weight before calculating fees
Recommended Actions
- →Calculate all-in export costs for your top-selling products before enabling FBA Export to ensure margins remain healthy
- →Prioritize selling through Amazon.com for international orders to avoid the additional non-Amazon channel export surcharges
- →Review your catalog for oversize items that will be ineligible for FBA Export and plan alternative fulfillment for those products
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