Q4 is when Amazon sellers make the most sales, and when it's easiest to make less money per sale without noticing. Several extra costs stack up at the same time, and none of them show up as one obvious line on your dashboard.
Here's what's changed for the 2026 holiday season, and a checklist to protect your margin.
What applies this year
These figures come from Amazon's 2026 holiday announcement for US sellers:
- Peak fulfilment fees run from October 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027. They apply to FBA, Remote Fulfillment with FBA, Multi-Channel Fulfillment and Buy with Prime. The increase averages about $0.32 per unit over normal rates, but varies by size tier and weight.
- A 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge applies on top of the peak fees.
- Deal fees for Best Deals, Lightning Deals and Prime Exclusive Discounts: $100 upfront per promotion, plus 1.5% of promotional sales, capped at $5,000.
- If you use AWD with automatic replenishment to FBA, Amazon says you keep paying the off-peak monthly storage rate through October 31, 2026.
Amazon says the fee levels are the same as last year. That's good news, but "the same as last year" still means your Q4 margin is lower than your Q3 margin.
1. Recalculate profit per SKU, not per account
Averages hide problems. Use the Fee Preview report in Seller Central to see the fees Amazon expects to charge on each product, then recalculate profit per unit with the peak fee and surcharge included. Flag any product where the margin drops below what you're comfortable with.
2. Reset your break-even ACoS
If your profit per unit drops, the amount you can afford to spend on ads to win a sale drops too. Recalculate break-even ACoS (advertising cost of sale) for your top products with Q4 fees included, and update bids and targets so campaigns don't quietly run at a loss.
3. Check sizes and weights
Fulfilment fees depend on the size tier and weight Amazon has on file. If a product has been measured wrong, you'll pay too much on every unit, and peak season multiplies that. Spot-check your bestsellers' dimensions in Seller Central and request a re-measurement where they look wrong.
4. Do the maths on deals before you submit them
A deal costs $100 upfront plus 1.5% of the sales it makes, on top of the discount itself. Before running one, check:
- The profit per unit at the deal price, after Q4 fees
- How many extra units it needs to sell to cover the upfront fee
- Whether you have enough stock to support it without running out
Some products simply don't need a deal to sell well in November.
5. Watch storage and inventory fees
Monthly storage fees are higher in the October to December period. Clear aged and slow-moving stock before it costs you more, and check your inventory health reports for products where you're holding too much, or too little. Amazon also charges some inventory-related fees when stock levels are out of balance, so look at any that apply to your account.
6. Claim what you're owed
Busy warehouses mean more lost and damaged units. Review your inventory reconciliation and reimbursement reports regularly through Q4, and open cases for anything Amazon hasn't reimbursed automatically.
“In Q4, the sellers who win aren't always the ones who sell the most. They're the ones who know their margin on every unit.”
Your Amazon Q4 margin checklist
0 / 7 DONEThe short version
Q4 fees are the same as last year, but they still squeeze your margin in your busiest season. Check fees per product, reset your ad targets, be selective with deals, and keep an eye on storage and reimbursements.
If you'd like someone to run these numbers across your whole catalogue, and on every channel you sell on, that's part of what I do for the brands I manage. Book a free call.
Source: Amazon Seller Central: Holiday 2026 fees, eligibility and deadlines. Figures are for US sellers; Amazon UK and other marketplaces publish their own peak fees, so check your own Seller Central.
