How KDP Royalties Work
When you publish a Kindle eBook on Amazon, you choose between two royalty options: 35% or 70%. The right choice depends on your pricing, your goals, and which markets you're selling into. Understanding the rules of each plan is essential to maximizing your income as a self-publisher.
The 70% Royalty Plan
The 70% plan sounds like the obvious choice — and for most books, it is. But it comes with specific eligibility requirements:
- Price range: Your eBook must be priced between $2.99 and $9.99 (USD).
- Territory restrictions: The 70% rate applies to sales in select countries, including the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and most major markets. Some territories default to 35% regardless of your plan.
- Delivery fee deduction: Amazon deducts a small delivery fee based on the file size of your book (approximately $0.15 per MB). For most text-based eBooks, this is negligible.
So on a $4.99 eBook with a 0.3 MB file size, you'd earn roughly: ($4.99 × 70%) − $0.05 = ~$3.44 per sale.
The 35% Royalty Plan
The 35% plan has fewer restrictions and is the only option when your pricing falls outside the $2.99–$9.99 window. Key points:
- Applies to books priced below $2.99 or above $9.99.
- No delivery fee deduction.
- Available in all KDP territories.
- Required for books enrolled in certain promotional pricing scenarios outside the eligible range.
On a $0.99 eBook at 35% royalty, you'd earn approximately $0.35 per sale — which is why many authors use $0.99 pricing for limited-time promotions rather than as a permanent price.
Choosing the Right Price Point
Your pricing strategy should reflect your goals — whether that's maximum revenue per sale, volume of sales, or readership growth. Here's how common price points break down:
| Price | Royalty Rate | Approx. Royalty per Sale | Best Used For |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0.99 | 35% | ~$0.35 | Series starters, promos, permafree follow-up |
| $2.99 | 70% | ~$2.09 | Entry-level fiction, short novellas |
| $4.99 | 70% | ~$3.44 | Full-length fiction, mid-range non-fiction |
| $9.99 | 70% | ~$6.99 | Premium non-fiction, comprehensive guides |
| $14.99+ | 35% | ~$5.25 | Textbooks, specialized professional content |
Paperback Royalties: How They Differ
For KDP paperbacks, royalties work differently. KDP pays a fixed 60% royalty on the list price, minus the printing cost. Printing costs vary by page count, trim size, ink type (black & white vs. color), and marketplace.
Formula: Royalty = (List Price × 60%) − Printing Cost
KDP provides a royalty calculator on the pricing page so you can see exact earnings before publishing. Note that color interior books have significantly higher printing costs, which can substantially reduce margins.
International Pricing and Currency Considerations
KDP allows you to set prices in each marketplace individually, or use the auto-set feature that converts your US price using Amazon's exchange rate. It's worth manually checking your international prices, as auto-conversion can result in awkward price points. Many authors set slightly rounded prices in each market (e.g., £3.99 in the UK rather than the auto-converted £3.82).
Maximizing Your Royalty Income
- Price within the $2.99–$9.99 window to qualify for 70% whenever possible.
- Use $0.99 pricing strategically for promotions, not permanently (unless it's a permafree lead magnet).
- For non-fiction, don't underprice — a $9.99 book often converts just as well as a $4.99 book in specialist categories.
- Monitor your KDP Reports to see which price points drive the best revenue per unit.
- Consider your Kindle Unlimited KENP earnings separately from retail sales if enrolled in KDP Select.