KDP royalty calculator
Free Amazon KDP royalty calculator for ebooks, paperbacks and hardcovers. Enter your list price, file size or page count, and see what you'll actually earn per sale after Amazon's print costs and delivery fees.
Note: prices and formulas are correct as of April 2026, based on Amazon KDP's published US (Amazon.com) rates.
How KDP royalties are calculated
Amazon KDP pays authors a share of each sale, but the calculation depends on the format. Ebooks use a flat percentage on list price minus a delivery fee based on file size. Print books use a percentage on list price minus a fixed print cost that depends on page count and interior type.
Ebook royalties
KDP offers two ebook royalty plans. The 70% plan pays 70% of list price minus a delivery cost of $0.15 per MB on Amazon.com, but only if your book is priced between $2.99 and $9.99. The 35% plan pays 35% of list price with no delivery fee and wider price flexibility (minimum list price depends on file size: $0.99 under 3 MB, $1.99 for 3–10 MB, $2.99 for 10 MB and above).
Most ebooks under $9.99 earn more on the 70% plan, but very large files can swing the economics back toward the 35% plan. Use the calculator above to check both.
Paperback royalties
KDP pays 60% of list price minus a fixed print cost per copy. Print cost depends on page count and interior type. These are the US (Amazon.com) rates as of April 2026:
| Interior | Pages | Fixed | Per page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black ink | 24–108 | $2.30 | — |
| Black ink | 110–828 | $1.00 | $0.012 |
| Standard colour | 72–600 | $1.00 | $0.0255 |
| Premium colour | 24–40 | $3.60 | — |
| Premium colour | 42–828 | $1.00 | $0.065 |
A 250-page black-ink paperback has a print cost of $1.00 + (250 × $0.012) = $4.00. On a $14.99 list price, the royalty works out to (60% × $14.99) − $4.00 ≈ $4.99 per copy.
Hardcover royalties
Hardcovers follow the same 60% rule but with a higher fixed print cost that reflects case binding. US (Amazon.com) rates for regular trim sizes as of April 2026:
| Interior | Pages | Fixed | Per page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black ink | 75–108 | $6.80 | — |
| Black ink | 110–550 | $5.65 | $0.012 |
| Premium colour | 75–550 | $5.65 | $0.065 |
Large trim sizes carry slightly higher per-page rates ($0.017 for black ink, $0.080 for premium colour). The calculator assumes regular trim; adjust manually for large trim if needed.
Why KDP authors end up looking for royalty software
KDP is a great starting point, but serious authors and small presses quickly outgrow it. Multi-title catalogues, co-author splits, advances across books, reserves against returns, and income from non-Amazon channels (IngramSpark, Draft2Digital, direct sales) all push royalty tracking beyond what KDP's own reports can handle. That's the point at which publishers look for book royalty management software that can import KDP sales alongside everything else, handle splits between contributors, and generate per-author statements automatically.
If that sounds like you, have a look at how Royalties HQ works or how we import KDP sales reports.
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