Build unit economics before launch

Turn price, landed cost, Amazon fees, ads and returns into a decision you can revisit.

Editorial status: AI-assisted draft; no human subject-matter review has been completed. Use the primary source linked below as the current authority.

On this pageSteps Example Common mistakes Checklist Sources and next steps

A practical sequence

Choose a marketplace and currency.
Enter product cost, freight, duty, prep and inbound costs per sellable unit.
Use Amazon’s Revenue Calculator for referral and fulfilment estimates.
Add advertising, expected returns and variable support costs.
Calculate contribution before fixed costs, then stress-test price, ad cost and sell-through.
Set a launch loss limit and reorder trigger.

Work through an example

Teaching example only: at $30 US price, $8 landed cost, $5 estimated fulfilment and $4 ads, $13 remains before overhead, tax and returns. Replace every estimate with current SKU-specific values.

Common mistakes

Calling sales profit.
using one fee rate across categories.
omitting coupons, storage, returns or tax..

Before you move on

Marketplace and currency explicit.
current fee estimate checked.
base and downside cases meet your threshold..

Sources and next steps

Primary source: Official Amazon source. Marketplace scope: business-planning steps are general. Amazon.com and Seller Central US sources apply to the US store; use your target store’s local help pages and fee tools for UK or other marketplaces. Confirm current rules before acting. Next: continue to the learning path or use the economics calculator.