How is KDP printing cost calculated?
Printing cost is what KDP charges to print each copy of a paperback or hardcover, taken out of your royalty. It's a fixed fee plus a per-page rate that depends on ink, paper, trim size and marketplace, with a flat fee for short books. On Amazon.com a black-and-white paperback on a regular trim costs $1.00 + $0.012 per page: $4.60 at 300 pages.
Printing cost calculator
Regular trim.
For a 6 × 9 in, 200-page black & white paperback on white paper:
KDP deducts the printing cost from your royalty on every copy. Below the minimum list price your royalty would be negative, so KDP won’t let you publish at that price.
| Marketplace | Currency | Printing cost | Minimum list price |
|---|---|---|---|
| amazon.com Fixed + per page | USD | $3.40 | $6.80 |
| amazon.ca Fixed + per page | CAD | CA$4.46 | CA$8.92 |
| amazon.co.uk Fixed + per page | GBP | £2.85 | £5.70 |
| amazon.de Fixed + per page | EUR | €3.15 | €6.30 |
| amazon.fr Fixed + per page | EUR | €3.15 | €6.30 |
| amazon.es Fixed + per page | EUR | €3.15 | €6.30 |
| amazon.it Fixed + per page | EUR | €3.15 | €6.30 |
| amazon.nl Fixed + per page | EUR | €3.15 | €6.30 |
| amazon.ie Fixed + per page | EUR | €3.15 | €6.30 |
| amazon.com.be Fixed + per page | EUR | €3.15 | €6.30 |
| amazon.pl Fixed + per page | PLN | PLN 14.71 | PLN 29.42 |
| amazon.se Fixed + per page | SEK | SEK 35.17 | SEK 70.34 |
| amazon.com.au Fixed + per page | AUD | A$6.82 | A$13.64 |
| amazon.co.jp Fixed + per page | JPY | ¥606 | ¥1,010 |
In depth: KDP printing cost calculator →
Also called: print cost, KDP printing fee
By kdpbook.io editorialUpdated ✓ Checked against KDP Help on
The numbers
| Binding and ink | Regular trim | Large trim |
|---|---|---|
| Paperback, black and white (white or cream) | $2.30 flat for 24–108 pages, then $1.00 + $0.012 per page | $2.84 flat for 24–108 pages, then $1.00 + $0.017 per page |
| Paperback, black and white on groundwood | $2.23 flat for 24–108 pages, then $1.00 + $0.0114 per page | $2.75 flat for 24–108 pages, then $1.00 + $0.0162 per page |
| Paperback, standard color | $1.00 + $0.0255 per page | $1.00 + $0.0402 per page |
| Paperback, premium color | $3.60 flat for 24–40 pages, then $1.00 + $0.065 per page | $4.20 flat for 24–40 pages, then $1.00 + $0.08 per page |
| Hardcover, black and white | $6.80 flat for 75–108 pages, then $5.65 + $0.012 per page | $7.49 flat for 75–108 pages, then $5.65 + $0.017 per page |
| Hardcover, premium color | $5.65 + $0.065 per page | $5.65 + $0.08 per page |
Large trim: wider than 6.12 in or taller than 9 in. Flat-fee page ranges as applied by KDP's printing cost calculator.
What changes the cost
- Ink: black and white is cheapest, then standard color, then premium color.
- Trim: large trims pay a higher rate per page and a higher flat fee.
- Page count: past the flat-fee range, every page adds the per-page rate. Odd counts are rounded up to even.
- Marketplace: KDP publishes rates for each of its 14 print marketplaces, in the local currency.
- Binding: a hardcover's fixed fee is $5.65 on Amazon.com, against $1.00 for a paperback.
Where it shows up
The printing cost is subtracted from every print royalty, and it sets the minimum list price: the price at which your royalty covers it (see list price).
The same book in other marketplaces
Each marketplace has its own table, so the same file costs different amounts to print. A 200-page, 6 × 9 in black-and-white paperback costs $3.40 on Amazon.com, £2.85 on Amazon.co.uk, €3.15 on the European stores and 4.46 CAD on Amazon.ca. Set each marketplace's list price with its own printing cost in mind.
Example: a 120-page, 8.5 × 11 in workbook
On Amazon.com, the same 120-page, 8.5 × 11 in paperback (a large trim) costs $3.04 in black and white, $5.82 in standard color and $10.60 in premium color. For black and white that is $1.00 + 120 × $0.017.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting that most picture book and workbook sizes are large trims.
- Comparing costs between marketplaces without converting currencies.
- Choosing premium color for a text-heavy book where standard color would do.
- Counting only the content pages: blank pages and front matter are printed and charged too.