asinIQSay you found a product that sells fast, so you bought 60 units, sent them in, and they were gone in under two weeks. Then you opened the fee breakdown on one of those orders, and inside the FBA fulfillment fee was a charge you didn't expect: the low-inventory-level fee. You sold out quickly, which felt like the goal. Amazon charged you for it anyway.
The short answer
Amazon charges the low-inventory-level fee on each FBA unit it ships when that product's stock covered less than 28 days of your sales over both the last 30 days and the last 90 days. On Amazon.com it runs $0.32 to $1.11 a unit for standard sizes in 2026. On Amazon.ca it is CAD 0.43 to 2.09. Products that sold fewer than 20 units in the past week (10 on Amazon.ca) are exempt.
- The fee applies only when both the 30-day and the 90-day historical days of supply are under 28 days, so raising the 30-day number to 28 or more is enough to stop it.
- Historical days of supply is your average sellable units on hand divided by your average units shipped a day. On Amazon.com, units still on their way to Amazon do not count.
- On Amazon.com a product that sold fewer than 20 units in the past 7 days is exempt; on Amazon.ca the cutoff is 10, so the same product can pay in Canada and not in the US.
- New Professional sellers on both marketplaces are exempt for 365 days after their first inventory is received.
- A product selling 5 units a day needs about 140 units on hand on average to stay at 28 days.
What is the low-inventory-level fee?
The low-inventory-level fee is a per-unit charge Amazon adds to the FBA fulfillment fee when a product's stock has been low compared with how fast it sells. It is charged when the customer's order ships, on every unit shipped while the product qualifies.
Amazon's low-inventory-level fee page for Amazon.com says low stock relative to sales stops it from spreading a product across its network, which slows delivery and raises its shipping costs. So the fee falls on products that sell steadily while their stock stays thin. Products that sold fewer than 20 units in the past 7 days on Amazon.com, or 10 on Amazon.ca, are exempt.
On an order, it is added to the FBA fulfillment fee. FBA Inventory and the SKU Economics report show it in its own column.
What is historical days of supply, and when does the 28-day rule apply?
Historical days of supply is how many days of your recent sales your FBA stock covered: your average daily sellable units on hand divided by your average daily units shipped. Amazon works it out twice, over the last 30 days and over the last 90 days, and charges the fee only when both are below 28.
Amazon's own example: 243.6 units on hand a day against 5.8 shipped is 42.0 days over 90 days, and 220.5 against 12.6 is 17.5 days over 30 days. The 30-day number is low, but the 90-day number is not, so there is no fee. The larger of the two is the figure Seller Central shows, and it also sets which rate band you pay in.
A few details that change the result:
- Units on their way in don't count. Amazon.com's page says average daily inventory is sellable units available, units moving between fulfillment centers and units in fulfillment center processing, and leaves out units still being inbounded and unsellable units. Amazon.ca counts sellable units in its Canadian network.
- It is your number, per product. Amazon counts only your units and your sales, and works it out for each FNSKU, so each variation has its own figure.
- It updates weekly, and the latest figure sets the rate for units shipped that week.
- No sales in the last 30 or 90 days means no fee. Seller Central shows the figure as "--".
- Stock you hold and ship yourself is not counted as inventory. Only FBA stock in Amazon's network is. On the sales side, Amazon.com counts every unit shipped from its US network, including Multi-Channel Fulfillment orders.
How much is the low-inventory-level fee on Amazon.com in 2026?
On Amazon.com, from January 15, 2026, the fee runs from $0.32 to $1.11 a unit for standard-size products and up to $2.09 for Bulky ones. The lower your historical days of supply, the higher the band.
| Size tier and shipping weight | Under 14 days | 14 to under 21 | 21 to under 28 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small standard, up to 16 oz | $0.89 | $0.63 | $0.32 |
| Large standard, up to 3 lb | $0.97 | $0.70 | $0.36 |
| Large standard, 3+ to 20 lb | $1.11 | $0.87 | $0.47 |
| Small Bulky, up to 50 lb | $1.85 | $1.02 | $0.51 |
| Large Bulky, up to 50 lb | $2.09 | $1.15 | $0.57 |
Small standard items are rated on unit weight. Large standard items use the greater of unit weight and dimensional weight, so a light item in a big box can land in the heavier row.
Three things changed on January 15, 2026, according to Amazon's 2026 US fee changes summary. The figure is worked out per FNSKU instead of per parent ASIN, Small Bulky and Large Bulky products pay it from that date, and Grocery products are exempt.
Amazon's example on its low-inventory-level fee page for Amazon.com: a large standard item of 4 to 8 oz with 24 days of supply pays its $3.95 fulfillment fee plus $0.36, for $4.31 a unit.
How much is the low-inventory-level fee on Amazon.ca?
On Amazon.ca the fee runs from CAD 0.43 to 2.09 a unit, and it applies only to envelope and standard-size products. The rates on Amazon's Amazon.ca low-inventory-level fee page have applied since April 1, 2024, and were the same when we checked on November 2, 2026.
| Size tier and shipping weight | Under 14 days | 14 to under 21 | 21 to under 28 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Envelope, up to 500 g | 1.21 | 0.72 | 0.43 |
| Standard, up to 300 g | 1.42 | 0.83 | 0.47 |
| Standard, 300+ to 1,000 g | 1.57 | 0.89 | 0.49 |
| Standard, 1,000+ to 1,500 g | 1.73 | 1.10 | 0.56 |
| Standard, 1,500+ to 9,000 g | 2.09 | 1.41 | 0.73 |
The 28-day rule and the 30 and 90-day test are the same as on Amazon.com, but it is counted on Canada alone: only sellable units in the Canadian fulfillment network and units shipped from it. Your US stock does nothing for your Canadian figure.
Amazon.ca also lists different exemptions. Its cutoff for slow sellers is 10 units a week, not 20, and meltable and renewed products are exempt. Amazon.ca says it is temporarily waiving the fee for dangerous goods and will give 30 days' notice before the waiver ends.
Which products don't pay the low-inventory-level fee?
Slow sellers, new sellers and new products are the main exemptions, and the list differs between Amazon.com and Amazon.ca. A product that sold fewer than 20 units in the past 7 days on Amazon.com, or fewer than 10 on Amazon.ca, pays no fee that week.
| Exemption | Amazon.com | Amazon.ca |
|---|---|---|
| Sold fewer than this many units in the past 7 days | 20 | 10 |
| New Professional sellers, first 365 days after first inventory received | Yes | Yes |
| New-to-FBA parent products, first 180 days, if enrolled in FBA New Selection | Yes | Yes |
| 70% or more auto-replenished through Amazon Warehousing and Distribution over 90 days | Yes | Not listed |
| Grocery | Yes | Not listed |
| Meltable and renewed products | Not listed | Yes |
| Dangerous goods | Not listed | Waived, 30 days' notice before it ends |
| Small and Large Bulky products | Pay the fee | Not charged (envelope and standard only) |
The 365-day exemption for new Professional sellers is on both pages and is easy to miss. If you started FBA less than a year ago and still see the fee, check the date your first inventory was received.
How many units do I need on hand to avoid the fee?
To stay clear, your average sellable stock at Amazon over the last 30 days needs to be at least 28 times what you sold a day. Amazon's suggested fix is to send more units so the 30-day figure goes over 28. One figure at 28 or more is enough.
This is why buying small and selling out fast can cost you. Because the figure is an average, how you restock matters as much as how much you buy. If one box sells down to zero before the next is received, your average stock is roughly half of that box. For example, a box of 140 units selling 5 a day runs out in 28 days. Over that time you hold about 70 on average, which is 14 days and the $0.63 band for a small standard item. To average 28 days, send about eight weeks of sales at a time (280 units here). Or time each box to be received while the current one still has about four weeks left (about 140 units here), which keeps you above the line. Count your check-in time, because a box in transit is not stock yet.
Where do I see the low-inventory-level fee in Seller Central?
FBA Inventory shows each product's historical days of supply and a Low-inventory-level fee column, so you can see which products are at risk before they ship. For fees already charged, use the SKU Economics report or an order's fee breakdown.
- Before it's charged: open FBA Inventory and look at the Low-inventory-level fee column. The same page shows products with low stock and a recommended number of units to send.
- For each product: in the SKU Economics report, the low-inventory-level fee column shows what each product was charged (by FNSKU on Amazon.com, by ASIN on Amazon.ca).
- For one order: in Payments, Transaction View, search the order ID, open the total, then the FBA Pick & Pack Fee, and read the Calculation tab in the fee explainer.
Can I get the low-inventory-level fee refunded?
Amazon's fee pages describe one refund: when Amazon or an Amazon-managed service caused an excessive inbound delay, Amazon reimburses the fee automatically.
To qualify, a shipment using Amazon-managed transport must be ready for its pickup on time, and one sent with your own carrier needs accurate tracking. The credit shows in Transaction View.
Should the low-inventory-level fee stop me from buying a product?
Rarely on its own. The fee changes how many units you buy and how often you restock. It becomes a reason to skip only when you can't keep about four weeks of stock at Amazon and the fee would take most of a thin margin.
Before buying a product that sells well, check how many units it sells a month and how many sellers share those sales. If you can't keep four weeks of your part of them at Amazon, add the fee for your size tier to your fulfillment cost. In the example above, $0.89 on a $4.00 margin is about 22% of your profit.
In asinIQ, paste the ASIN or product link from Amazon.com or Amazon.ca and you'll see estimated monthly sales, competing sellers and estimated profit at your own costs before you choose a quantity.
Common questions
Why was I charged a low-inventory-level fee when I had stock?
Amazon looks at your average stock over the last 30 and 90 days, not on a single day. If your sellable stock covered less than 28 days of your sales over both periods, the fee applies even if you have units on hand when the order ships. On Amazon.com, units still on their way to Amazon don't count, so a box in transit does not help until it is received.
Does the low-inventory-level fee apply on Amazon.ca?
Yes. Amazon.ca charges it on envelope and standard-size products, from CAD 0.43 to 2.09 a unit, under the same 28-day rule as Amazon.com. Its low-volume cutoff is 10 units sold in the past 7 days instead of 20, meltable and renewed products are exempt, and the fee is waived for dangerous goods, with 30 days' notice before that ends.
Is the low-inventory-level fee charged on every unit?
It is charged on each unit shipped while the product qualifies, added to that unit's FBA fulfillment fee. Amazon updates historical days of supply weekly, and the latest figure sets the rate for that week's units. When the product's figure reaches 28 days, units shipped after that update pay nothing.
Do new sellers pay the low-inventory-level fee?
Not at first. On both Amazon.com and Amazon.ca, new Professional sellers are exempt for 365 days after their first inventory is received. Separately, a new-to-FBA parent product is exempt for 180 days after its first inventory is received if it is enrolled in FBA New Selection.
Does the low-inventory-level fee apply to merchant-fulfilled orders?
No. The fee is added to the FBA fulfillment fee, and Amazon's page says seller-fulfilled stock is not counted in historical days of supply. Units you hold yourself do not raise your figure until Amazon receives them.
Sources
Checked November 2, 2026. Amazon changes fees and rules often, so check the page for your own marketplace before you buy.
- Low-inventory-level fee (United States)Amazon Seller Central (US)
- Low-inventory-level fee (Canada)Amazon Seller Central (Canada)
- 2026 US Referral and FBA fee changes summaryAmazon Seller Central (US)