The most profitable price for your book is the one where (copies sold × royalty per copy) is highest. You can’t know it in advance, but you can narrow it down fast. For most self-published ebooks on Amazon, that means pricing between US$2.99 and US$9.99 so you earn the 70% royalty. Then match the range that comparable books in your sub-genre actually charge, and test from there. Price paperbacks from the print cost upwards, never from a round number.

This guide includes a few product links near the end. As an Amazon Associate, Freyja Publishing earns from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.

This guide shows how royalty rates shape your options on each platform, works through real royalty sums (including the delivery fee most examples leave out), and covers series, Kindle Unlimited and wide distribution. It finishes with a simple test plan, so your price rests on your own data instead of guesswork.

At a glance

• On Amazon, US$2.99–US$9.99 is the 70% zone for ebooks on Amazon.com. Outside it you earn 35%, so a US$10.99 ebook earns less per copy than a US$5.99 one.
• The 70% royalty is calculated after a delivery fee based on file size, which is US$0.15 per MB on Amazon.com, so real royalties are a little lower than “70% of the price”.
• Compare books like yours, not your genre as a whole. Look at recent, similar-length books in your exact sub-genre, from both indie and traditional publishers.
• Price paperbacks from the print cost. Stay at or above the local threshold where KDP pays 60% (US$9.99 on Amazon.com).
• Test one change at a time and judge it on total royalty over a few weeks, not on rank or unit sales.

How royalty rates shape your price

Amazon Kindle ebooks

KDP offers two ebook royalty options. The 35% option is 35% of the list price (excluding VAT). The 70% option is 70% of the list price minus delivery costs, and it applies only to sales in eligible territories. On Amazon.com the list price must be between US$2.99 and US$9.99 to qualify. Other marketplaces have their own local ranges, which KDP lists on its pricing page.

KDP’s help pages give the delivery cost as US$0.15 per MB on Amazon.com, £0.10 per MB on Amazon.co.uk, €0.12 per MB on Amazon.de and A$0.15 per MB on Amazon.com.au. In Brazil, Japan, Mexico and India, an ebook must be enrolled in KDP Select to earn 70%.

KDP’s terms also allow Amazon to match a lower price it finds elsewhere, including a lower price for a physical edition of the same book. If it does, your royalty is based on the matched price, so keep your ebook priced below your paperback.

Paperbacks

KDP pays 60% of the list price minus the print cost on Amazon marketplaces, once you are at or above a threshold (US$9.99, £7.99, €9.99, A$13.99 or C$13.99). Below the threshold it pays 50%, and for Expanded Distribution it pays 40%. The full maths, with print cost tables, is in how much money print-on-demand earns.

Other ebook retailers

Apple Books, Kobo and Google Play Books generally pay around 70% when you publish direct. Some apply their own price thresholds, so check each platform’s current terms. Aggregators such as Draft2Digital keep a share of each sale in return for distributing to many stores at once. The Draft2Digital vs PublishDrive comparison explains how those fees work.

What each ebook price really earns

These figures use Amazon.com and a 1 MB ebook file, which means a US$0.15 delivery fee on 70% sales. A larger file, such as one with many images, lowers the 70% figures a little more.

List price	Royalty option	Royalty per sale	Sales needed for US$1,000
US$0.99	35%	US$0.35	about 2,860
US$2.99	70%	US$1.99	about 503
US$3.99	70%	US$2.69	about 372
US$4.99	70%	US$3.39	about 295
US$6.99	70%	US$4.79	about 209
US$9.99	70%	US$6.89	about 145
US$10.99	35%	US$3.85	about 260
US$12.99	35%	US$4.55	about 220

Two points stand out. First, US$9.99 earns almost twice as much per sale as US$10.99, so pricing just above the top of the 70% band rarely makes sense for a Kindle ebook. Second, a US$0.99 ebook has to sell almost six times as many copies as a US$2.99 one to earn the same, which is why authors usually keep US$0.99 for short promotions, not as a permanent price.

The break-even question

Before you lower a price, divide the new royalty by the old one. Moving from US$4.99 (US$3.39) to US$2.99 (US$1.99) means you need about 70% more sales just to stand still. Moving from US$3.99 to US$4.99 means you can lose about one sale in five and still earn the same. Asking “how many sales can I afford to lose?” is a far better guide than any rule of thumb.

How to find your starting price: step by step

1. Define your comparison set. Pick 15–20 books in your exact sub-genre that were published in the last two years, are of similar length and are selling well in your main marketplace.
2. Note each book’s price, format and publisher type. Traditionally published ebooks are often priced higher than indie ones in the same category.
3. Find the cluster. Most categories have a clear range where indie books sit. That range, not the single most common price, is your starting band.
4. Check where your book sits. A debut with no reviews usually starts in the lower half of the band. A long book, a book in a series readers already like, or specialist non-fiction can justify the upper half.
5. Check the royalty band. Make sure your Kindle price sits inside the 70% range for each key marketplace, and your paperback sits at or above the 60% threshold.
6. Set marketplace prices by hand. Automatic conversion from US dollars can produce odd prices, or prices that fall outside the local 70% range.
7. Write down your break-even numbers for any price change you might test later.

Pricing by situation

Situation	Typical starting approach	Why	Watch out for
Debut standalone, fiction	Lower half of your sub-genre’s indie range, inside 70%	Reduces the risk of trying an unknown author	Going so low it looks like a short or rushed book
Book 1 of a series	Lower price, or a short-term free or US$0.99 promotion	Readers who like book 1 move on to the later books	Only works if the later books are already out
Later books in a series	Mid to upper part of the range	Committed readers are less sensitive to price	Big jumps from book 1 can stall read-through
Practical or specialist non-fiction	Upper part of the range, often at or near US$9.99 on Kindle	Readers judge on usefulness, not price	Going above US$9.99 drops you to 35% on Amazon
Mainly Kindle Unlimited readers	A price that reads as fair value next to its category	Page-read income does not depend on list price	A very low price can signal low quality to buyers
Wide (many retailers)	The same price everywhere	Avoids Amazon price-matching to a lower store	Aggregator fees reduce what you earn per sale

Kindle Unlimited and KDP Select

If your ebook is in KDP Select, KU readers borrow it and you are paid for pages read from a monthly fund. The amount per page changes each month. Your list price does not change what you earn from page reads, but it still matters for sales and for how your book looks next to others in the category. Select also lets you run either free days or a Kindle Countdown Deal each 90-day term. Countdown Deals run on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk and keep the 70% royalty at the discounted price. For the exclusivity trade-off, see the Kindle Unlimited deep dive.

Series pricing

Series pricing works because readers who finish book 1 and enjoyed it are likely to buy book 2. A common pattern is a lower price on book 1, regular prices on the later books, and a box set once three or more books are out. Check the royalty band for box sets: a bundle priced above US$9.99 on Amazon.com earns only 35%. A US$9.99 box set at 70% (about US$6.89 for a 1 MB file) can pay more per sale than a US$12.99 one at 35% (about US$4.55). Planning a series that builds loyal readers covers the writing side.

Promotions and temporary discounts

Short, well-planned price drops can bring in new readers, especially when you pair them with a newsletter or a promotion site. They are a tool to use deliberately, not a permanent strategy. Budget for any paid promotion before you book it, cap what you will spend, and test small first. For a paid deal site, see whether a BookBub Featured Deal is worth it. Discounts also help when readers can actually find the book, so make sure your keywords and categories are working first.

A simple price test plan

1. Keep everything else steady: no new ads, no promotions and no cover change during the test.
2. Record a baseline of at least three to four weeks at the current price, covering units, page reads and total royalty.
3. Change the price in one marketplace only, by one step (for example US$3.99 to US$4.99).
4. Run it for the same length of time as the baseline.
5. Compare total royalty, not rank or units. Allow for normal ups and downs, and for seasonal patterns such as holidays.
6. Keep the winner, or test the next step. Change one thing at a time.

Who this approach suits, and who it doesn’t

It suits self-published authors who sell mostly through Amazon and the main ebook stores, who can see their own sales data and who are willing to adjust over time.

It suits less well books sold mainly through bookshops, where the wholesale discount and the cover price printed on the book matter more. It also suits less well very specialist professional books, where the market may accept prices well above typical retail ranges and the right channel may not be Kindle at all.

Common mistakes

• Pricing an ebook at US$10.99 or more on Amazon without realising it drops to the 35% royalty.
• Forgetting the delivery fee. Image-heavy ebooks can lose a meaningful slice of the 70% royalty.
• Copying genre-wide price lists. Sub-genres, book lengths and formats vary too much for a single “standard” price.
• Leaving prices on automatic conversion, which can push some marketplaces outside the 70% band.
• Pricing the paperback just under US$9.99, which can cut the print royalty sharply.
• Judging a test on sales rank. Rank reflects units, not income.
• Changing price, cover and ads at once, so you can’t tell what worked.
• Setting a lower price at another retailer when you are also on Amazon, which can trigger price-matching.

Pre-publish pricing checklist

• A comparison set of 15–20 recent, similar books recorded
• Kindle price inside the 70% range in each key marketplace
• Ebook file size checked so the delivery fee is reasonable
• Paperback at or above the local 60% threshold and above the ebook price
• Break-even sales numbers written down for likely price changes
• Series and box set prices checked against royalty bands
• Promotion budget and spending cap set before any paid promotion
• A date booked to review prices with real data

For the tools that make this easier, see the author toolkit hub. For where pricing fits in the whole process, see the guide to self-publishing your first book.

Sources this guide draws on: KDP Help pages on eBook royalties, the 70% royalty option and delivery costs, paperback royalties and KDP Select; platform terms published by Apple Books, Kobo Writing Life and Google Play Books for direct publishers.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good price for a self-published ebook?

There’s no single answer, but on Amazon most self-published ebooks sit between US$2.99 and US$9.99, because that range earns the 70% royalty. Within it, match recent, similar books in your sub-genre. Then test against your own sales data.

Why do so many indie ebooks cost US$0.99 or US$2.99?

US$2.99 is the lowest Amazon.com price that earns 70%, so it is a common entry price. US$0.99 earns only 35% and is mostly used for short promotions or for the first book in a series. It rarely works as a long-term price for a single book.

Should my ebook cost less than the paperback?

Yes. Readers expect it, and Amazon may match your ebook to a cheaper physical edition, which lowers your royalty. The paperback also has a print cost to cover, so its price is set from that cost upwards.

Does price affect Kindle Unlimited earnings?

Not directly. KU pays per page read from a monthly fund, whatever the list price. Price still affects how many readers buy the book outright and how it compares with others in its category.

How often should I change my book’s price?

Only as often as you can measure the change properly. Give each test several weeks, change one thing at a time, and judge the result on total royalty. Re-check whenever a platform changes its royalty terms.

Can I price differently on different retailers?

You can, but if a lower price elsewhere is spotted, Amazon may match it, and your Amazon royalty is then based on that lower price. Most wide authors keep the same price everywhere to avoid surprises.

The right price is the one your own numbers prove. Start inside the royalty bands, anchor to real comparable books, and let careful tests do the rest.