With FBA you send the product to Amazon's warehouse and picking, packing, shipping and returns pass to Amazon. With FBM all of that stays with you. FBA gives an advantage in visibility and delivery speed but creates storage fees, long-term stock penalties and a return burden. FBM protects margin, in exchange for operational discipline.
Side by side on the same criteria.
| Criterion | Amazon FBA | Amazon FBM |
|---|---|---|
| Cost line items | Fulfillment fees are charged by product size and weight band, storage fees by monthly volume; storage gets more expensive in peak season. | Shipping and storage costs are on you; as volume grows your shipping contract gets cheaper in line with your negotiating power. |
| Visibility | Prime eligibility and delivery speed increase the chance of winning the buy box. | Winning the buy box requires strong delivery times and seller metrics; harder, but not impossible. |
| Return management | Returns are processed automatically; assessing the condition of returned items is left to Amazon, and damaged returns become losses. | You handle the returns yourself and can inspect the item and put it back on sale. |
| Stock risk | Stock sitting in the warehouse for a long time incurs extra fees; slow-turning products burn money here. | Stock stays with you and no extra fees accrue, but your capital is tied up in your warehouse. |
| Operational load | Daily packing and shipping work disappears; the job shrinks to planning inbound shipments. | Every order requires picking, packing, labeling and delivery time tracking; it consumes team hours. |
| Flexibility | Changing prices and listings is easy, but you have no access to the physical product; a labeling error requires a recall. | You have full access to the product; bundling, relabeling and custom packaging can be done immediately. |
FBA is right for small, light, fast-moving products with predictable sales. Move to FBA if you are in a category where the Prime badge and delivery speed decide the sale, especially if you want to sell in foreign markets without building your own logistics.
FBM makes more sense for bulky, heavy, fragile, slow-turning products or ones that need custom packaging. If you have your own warehouse or a 3PL agreement and want to control your stock risk, FBM protects margin.
FBA for small, light, fast-moving products; FBM for heavy, slow-moving products or ones that need custom packaging.
FBA is right for small, light, fast-moving products with predictable sales. Move to FBA if you are in a category where the Prime badge and delivery speed decide the sale, especially if you want to sell in foreign markets without building your own logistics.
FBM makes more sense for bulky, heavy, fragile, slow-turning products or ones that need custom packaging. If you have your own warehouse or a 3PL agreement and want to control your stock risk, FBM protects margin.
FBA for small, light, fast-moving products; FBM for heavy, slow-moving products or ones that need custom packaging.
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