Kindle eBook Royalties: 70% vs. 35% And 6 Essential Things You Need To Know

Do you want to start a business with your book? Have you finished the manuscript of your novel and are looking for a book publisher? As a self-publishing platform, Amazon KDP has tremendous potential for you to grow as a freelance writer. Through its leading self-publishing system, you sell your book worldwide without having to deal with traditional publishers or printers, and all the profits go to you. In addition, you can collect royalties for books published on Amazon KDP in different ways, depending on the country you are in.

We tell you all the options available to collect royalties from Amazon, whether you are in the USA, Europe, or other continents.

How to receive payments from Amazon?

There are two factors to take into account to collect money for the sales of your book on Amazon:

• The place where you are.
• The available payment method.

We analyze all the alternatives one by one and help you choose the best option to collect royalties from Amazon in the United States and other parts of the world.

Collect royalties from Amazon by bank transfer

Without a doubt, this is the best method to collect profits from the sale of your book on Amazon. The money is transferred directly to the account you indicate, and you do not have to wait until you reach a minimum profit to collect.

Collect royalties from Amazon by bank check

In most countries in the Americas, you collect your Amazon KDP royalties by bank check. A particularity of this payment system is that Amazon issues your check only once you have reached a minimum income of 100 USD or € for your book sales.

Your Amazon book royalties’ bank check can take up to 30 days to reach your door. If the delay is longer, check if you have entered your address information correctly before venting on social media! You will be surprised how many authors have their payments withheld for not paying attention to this crucial detail.

Collect royalties from Amazon by Payoneer

In some countries, collecting Amazon KDP publishing royalties by bank check can be difficult due to financial issues such as exchange rate fluctuations or high foreign currency collection fees. One way to overcome these drawbacks is to use the Payoneer platform to collect your Amazon royalties. Payoneer is a company that allows you to receive transfers in dollars as if you had a bank account in the United States. This guide clearly explains how you can create and use an account. Collecting royalties from Amazon through Payoneer is an excellent option for writers who want to get paid before reaching the minimum threshold.

Can I receive payments from Amazon through PayPal?

Many authors ask this question because they have active PayPal accounts and want to receive the proceeds from Amazon KDP book sales there. Unfortunately, this is not currently possible. So, PayPal is not an option to collect royalties from Amazon KDP.

When Does Amazon Pay Royalties?

If you choose a check as your payment method, the answer is simple: you will get paid when you reach $100. Remember that the check is issued once you reach this earnings threshold after the corresponding tax deduction.

If you use another system, remember that Amazon pays royalties monthly, but the first payment arrives after an extended time. So when does Amazon pay royalties? Answer: Amazon pays royalties 60 days after the end of the calendar month in which you published. For example, if you publish your book on January 1, those 60 days start counting on February 1. So, you will get paid at the beginning of April. But if you post on the 10th or even January 31, you will also get paid at the beginning of April.

So, depending on the calendar day you published your book, you’ll collect royalties for it 60-90 days later. Taking this into account, if you want to shorten the waiting times to collect, you should publish closer to the end of the month.

If you are on day 5, you can take advantage of the time remaining until the end of the month to correct your book with a professional proofreader.

How Much Does Amazon Pay Per Book Sold?

It is one of the most frequently asked questions among freelance writers. Sometimes authors who do not want to publish on Amazon approach our editorial because someone has told them that this platform needs to pay better profits to the writer.

Nothing further from reality! The opposite is true: Amazon KDP’s profit goes to the author minus printing costs and a sales commission.

How much Amazon pays per e-book sold?

If your e-book costs between $0.89 and $2.69, you receive 35% of the retail price.

If it costs between $2.69 and $9.99, you can apply for both 35% or 70%. The processing fee is separately charged for the larger royalty.

If the price of your ebook exceeds $9.99 up to $215, you get 35%.

In the 35% option, this percentage is multiplied by the list price of the e-book without VAT.

35% x (list price – applicable VAT) = Royalty

In the 70% royalty option, this percentage is multiplied by the list price of the e-book, excluding

VAT minus digital shipping costs.

70% x (list price – applicable VAT – Shipping costs) = Royalty

Shipping (delivery) charges for the 70% Royalty Plan depend on the file size of the Kindle e-book. The 35% royalty plan does not incur shipping charges.

For example, if your e-book costs $5 (list price). Formula: 0.70 x (5 – 0.19 – 0.04) = 3.34

$3.34 (royalties) is 66.8% of the list price ($5).

How much Amazon pays per paper book sold?

Your royalties are 60% of the list price. From this amount, Amazon subtracts the printing costs, which depend on the page count, type of ink, and the Amazon store where the order was placed. So, how to calculate printing costs?

(Royalty Rate x List Price) – Printing Expenses = Royalty

For example, your list price is $10. Your paperback book costs $2.42 to print.

(0.60 x $10) – $2.42 = $3.58

$3.58 (royalties) is 35.8% of the list price ($10).

Remember the taxes

If you live in the US, Amazon will retain 0% of the royalties generated from you, so you should not worry about this. However, if you live in a country without a tax treaty with the US, you must subtract 30% from the royalties in the previous section for US withholding taxes.

Amazon KDP Royalties Vs. Traditional Publishing Royalties

If you decide to publish or co-publish with a traditional publisher, you will earn around 10%. In other words, for every dollar you earn from your dream book sales, they will only give you ten cents.

Does it seem sensible that a writer who has spent months or years of research, writing, and sleeplessness gets such little money and that third parties do a profitable business at his expense?

Never give up control of your book again. Self-publish on Amazon without hesitation. Remember that, in the worst case, you will collect 35% royalties (more than triple what traditional publishers pay).

Remember that if you choose an attractive price for your book, say $4.19, you will get more sales and receive 70% of the revenue.

Collect royalties from Amazon KDP

To collect the money for your book sales, you have two complementary options. A part of the royalties is collected by bank transfer, and another part is collected through a bank check, depending on the country where the sales have been made. This is a particular case. In no other country is this combination of means of payment.

6 Keys To Understanding How Amazon KDP Pays Royalties

1. How do Amazon royalties work?

You must inform your country of residence when you publish your book on Amazon. Based on this information, the platform assigns you a means of payment depending on the alternatives available in that territory.

2. How does Amazon KDP pay royalties?

To collect royalties for sales of your book on Amazon from the US, you have at your disposal the easiest method: bank transfer. Of course, you must provide your data to the platform and wait for the payment. In most American countries, writers who publish on Amazon collect their royalties by bank check. But there is also the alternative of doing it through Payoneer, which gives you a MasterCard card for 30 USD a year and an account to operate in dollars as if you were in the United States.

3. How to receive payments from Amazon KDP by bank transfer?

You can collect Amazon royalties per bank draft if you live in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, Australia, and New Zealand. If you don’t live in any of these countries, you can get paid by bank transfer using Payoneer.

4. How to receive payments from Amazon in Payoneer?

You have to enter the company’s site and create an account. Then, you can use the service from your computer or download the mobile application. It is available for Android and iOS.

5. How much does Amazon pay for each book sold?

For every sale of your ebook, Amazon KDP publishing pays you between 35 and 70%. The idea is to put a price between $3 and $5, with which you will earn up to $3.50 per sale. For each sale of your paper book, Amazon pays you 60% of the final price, minus the printing costs. Tip: If you hire book marketing service it can help to boost your book sales.

Royalties for sales on Amazon KDP differ from what a traditional publisher pays you, where authors always lose out.

6. When do I start getting paid for my book sales on Amazon KDP?

You start getting paid between 60 and 90 days after publishing.

As you may have noticed, publishing on Amazon KDP is convenient for you from a financial point of view. Although the system has its peculiarities, there are alternatives to improve your collection options and receive the money in the most comfortable way, not to mention that Amazon KDP pays you up to seven times more than a traditional publisher.

And remember the most significant advantage of this system: you have complete control over your book 100% of the time and decide everything.

Is It Worth Investing In Amazon Ads KDP?

Every day digital platforms open more doors to people who have a low budget; such is the case of Amazon Ads KDP. This represents an excellent opportunity for independent authors who must pay a publisher to distribute their books.

Indeed, many other platforms allow you to work in this way. For example, there are many ebooks present in online bookstores. However, the American company that is a leader in electronic commerce is the best option due to its popularity and reach.

If the idea of publishing your book through Amazon Ads KDP encourages you, then you need to know everything about this platform. You must first know what it is, how it works, what it offers, its pros and cons, investment cost, etc.

Learn more about Amazon Ads KDP

Amazon Ads KDP began in late 2019, officially allowing self-publishing authors to promote their books through the KDP Dashboard. This advertising is different from other products due to the structure of the product detail pages and the possible advertising formats.

KDP product detail pages differ from other product detail pages in that only the front and back of the book are displayed as images. Additionally, KDP advertisers may only display sponsored product ads and lock screen ads.

Another relevant aspect is that customers can “look inside” the books, although they are not always displayed. Amazon takes care of generating the previews automatically. But you can enter a book title, content description, and keywords for each product listed.

However, you should note that you cannot list any additional product attributes. You will also be unable to add images beyond the front cover, back cover, or preview of the “look inside” option.

 Benefits Of Amazon Ads KDP

How can Amazon Ads KDP benefit you? In this way, you will have a clearer vision of what you can get if you work with this type of advertising provided by the e-commerce platform:

● Publication of eBooks and pocketbooks

You have the opportunity to publish Kindle ebooks and paperbacks. If you decide on the latter, Amazon will print your book and send it to the customer for you. This is a great benefit since you will only need a small inventory ahead of time.

● Free of initial costs

One point to note is that Amazon does not charge any initial fee for publishing eBooks for sale on Amazon KDP; you will have to split the proceeds from the sale with Amazon. Remember that the share value will depend on the royalty option you choose and the file size of your eBook. Sometimes, it can be challenging to prepare your book, requiring ghostwriting service and book publishing services from credible firms.

● Unlimited publication of electronic books

Another great advantage of the Amazon Kindle Direct Program is that there are no publication limits. You can publish as many eBooks or paperbacks as you can write with one account. It is possible to do it under different pseudonyms and categories.

● Buy your own pocketbooks wholesale

In case you want to have some physical copies of your book to sell it personally or give away, you can make a wholesale order. This is done within your KDP control panel, and then Amazon will print the number of copies requested and send them to you. You only have to bear the cost of printing each book.

● Sales rank in the Kindle Store and Amazon.com

One of the great benefits for small authors is that they will have the same opportunity as larger and more well-known authors. Because you will have the opportunity to rank up and make sales, which can help you better position your book.

● Sales worldwide

You can access millions of Kindle users by working with desktop publishing on Amazon. Of course, you must have the rights to your book in each country it is sold, cataloged by the platform as “territories” in the KDP help pages. Plus, you can list it for sale on Amazon’s global marketplaces.

Know The Type Of Content You Can Publish With KDP

Is your goal to work with Amazon Ads KDP? If this is the case, more is needed to know what it is and the benefits it provides you. It is also essential that you are clear about the type of content allowed to be published on this platform. On the same help page, they indicate the following:

• Novels.
• Series Of Books.
• Children’s Books.
• Comic Books.
• Cookbooks.
• Journals.
• Poetry.
• Textbooks.

Kindle Direct Publishing Payments

There is one fundamental aspect that you should know before deciding to invest in Amazon Ads KDP.

By publishing eBooks on Amazon Ads KDP, you can receive a percentage of the revenue. We know there are two rates to select from, 35% and 70%. If you’re selling physical copies, the eBook’s price must be at least 20% below the list cost of the paperback.

You need the rights to the eBook, and if it is in the public domain, you cannot receive a 70% royalty.

Books must be enrolled in KDP Select to be eligible for 70% royalties on sales to customers in Brazil, Japan, Mexico, and India.

What does KDP Select offer?

As you already know, if you want to opt for the 70% royalties, you need to be registered with KDP Select. This will allow you to get your electronic book noticed on Amazon. It should be noted that it is an optional program and does not apply to pocket books.

But it is important that before making a decision, you know the pros and cons of this option:

What is “KDP Select”?

If you sign up for KDP Select, Kindle Unlimited users can download your ebook for free, and you earn commissions for the number of pages they read. Amazon creates a cash pool based on the revenue generated from Kindle Unlimited subscriptions. It distributes monthly among KDP Select-enrolled authors, proportional to the pages read by each author’s books. It may seem a bit complex, but it is not. You will receive between $0.004 and $0.005 for each page read by people who download your book. In return, Amazon has the exclusivity of publishing your ebook. You cannot offer it on other platforms.

Is it a good option to be in KDP Select?

We think so, especially if you are a new writer. KDP is firm and exciting. Thanks to Kindle Unlimited, you will gain visibility, and your book will start with a little more force. The income will be little, but many readers will have access to your copy, and you will have one more tool to measure whether your book arouses interest.

Enrollment in KDP select lasts three months and is extendable. Try and only keep signing up if there are downloads of your book. If you need help, you better bet on real sales.

Conclusion

Amazon KDP is a marvel for freelance writers. As we know and have seen above, publishing books on Amazon and generating income from them is possible. The entire process is quick and easy, with a lot of flexibility in payments and gaining royalties. The figures we have seen correspond to a single product. Multiply the income by 10, for example, and you will see that a good number of copies on the market can be a significant source of income.

So, are you excited to pop in and explore Amazon KDP? It surely is a pool with umpteen services and offers. But before you drop everything and write a bestseller in a house somewhere in the mountains, we want you to ensure to produce a book that matches Amazon standards and has the potential to entice readers. They have worked for many writers, and we hope they will allow you to propel your book to the top of the sales lists. So, join in to hand out your project today!