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- January 15, 2026: New inbound placement fee rates effective for all FBA shipments
- Minimal Splits (single location): up to $0.40/unit standard, $2.30/unit extra-large
- Amazon-Optimized Splits: $0 placement fees (ship to multiple destinations)
- Large Bulky items see steepest increases, making split optimization critical
Nova surfaces every Amazon fee, refund, and margin shift in your live P&L, across 21 marketplaces. View it in Nova
What's Happening
Amazon raised inbound placement service fees on January 15, 2026. These are the fees you pay when shipping inventory to FBA fulfillment centers. The biggest increases hit sellers who ship everything to a single location using "Minimal Shipment Splits." Anything that moves the fee, fulfillment, or returns metrics gets pulled into our weekly cockpit review, and this fits. Anything that moves the fee, fulfillment, or returns metrics gets pulled into our weekly cockpit review, and this fits.
This is separate from the FBA fulfillment fee increases that took effect earlier. Inbound placement fees are specifically about how Amazon distributes your inventory across its network. If you send everything to one warehouse, Amazon has to redistribute it internally, and they're charging more for that convenience.
Sellers using Amazon-Optimized Shipment Splits (where you ship to multiple destinations as Amazon directs) pay significantly less. The fee gap between "ship to one place" and "ship where Amazon tells you" has widened considerably. Amazon is clearly incentivizing sellers to do the logistics work themselves.
Effective Date
Jan 15
2026 fee rates active
Highest Impact
Bulky
Large Bulky items hit hardest
Cost Reduction
$0
Amazon-Optimized splits
Key Dates & Deadlines
New Inbound Placement Fee Rates
Updated fee structure effective for all FBA inbound shipments
Shipment Split Options Available
Sellers can choose Minimal, Partial, or Amazon-Optimized splits to manage costs
Inbound Placement Fee Comparison
The fee structure rewards sellers who accept more shipment destinations. Here's how the three options compare:
| Shipment Option | Standard Size | Large Bulky | Extra-Large |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon-Optimized Splits | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Partial Splits | $0.27/unit | $0.68/unit | $1.15/unit |
| Minimal Splits (1 location) | $0.40/unit | $1.10/unit | $2.30/unit |
Note: Rates shown are approximate per-unit fees as of January 15, 2026. Actual rates vary by product weight and dimensions. Check Seller Central for exact pricing on your specific ASINs.
What This Actually Costs You
Let's put real numbers on it. Say you ship 5,000 standard-size units per month using Minimal Shipment Splits:
Minimal Splits Cost
5,000 units x $0.40/unit = $2,000/month
That's $24,000/year in placement fees alone, just for the convenience of shipping to one location.
Amazon-Optimized Cost
5,000 units x $0.00/unit = $0/month
You pay nothing in placement fees, but you handle shipping to 3-5 different fulfillment centers.
Pro Tip
The math changes for Large Bulky items. At $1.10/unit for Minimal Splits, a seller shipping 2,000 bulky units/month pays $2,200 in placement fees alone. Switching to Amazon-Optimized splits saves $26,400/year. The shipping logistics are more complex, but the savings are hard to ignore.
What You Should Do Now
- 1.
Check Your Current Shipment Split Setting
Go to Seller Central and review your inbound shipment settings. If you're using Minimal Splits, calculate the monthly cost at the new rates. The number might surprise you.
- 2.
Evaluate Amazon-Optimized Splits
Yes, shipping to multiple locations is more work. But at $0 in placement fees, the savings are significant. Compare the added shipping cost of multi-destination shipments against the placement fee savings.
- 3.
Consider a 3PL for Multi-Destination Shipping
Third-party logistics providers can handle splitting shipments for you. Their fee for the service is often less than what Amazon charges in placement fees for Minimal Splits.
- 4.
Factor Placement Fees Into Product Profitability
Many sellers overlook placement fees when calculating margins. Add them to your per-unit cost calculations alongside FBA fulfillment fees, referral fees, and storage fees. Our Amazon FBA profit & fee calculator Pulls all of these into a single per-unit view.
How Nova Helps
Track Every Fee at the Product Level
Nova's P&L Dashboard Breaks down all FBA fees including inbound placement fees at the product level. See exactly how much placement fees cost you per SKU and compare strategies.
Use Winners & Losers to identify which products are losing profitability due to placement fee increases. Prioritize shipment split changes for your highest-volume, most cost-impacted SKUs first.
Sources
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Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this topic
Verified Sources
- Amazon Seller Central: Inbound Placement Fee
- Seller Central Forums Discussion
- Jay Group: Placement Fee Analysis
- Sellify: Reducing Placement Fees
All information verified from official Amazon sources and trusted industry analysts as of publication date.
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