Small & Light Program Cancellation: Everything You Need to Know  

Amazon recently confirmed that its Small and Light Program will be coming to an end. This could be a major setback for sellers of small and light items, as their fulfilment fees could now drastically increase. Fortunately, Amazon has provided an alternative to their Small and Light Program in the form of the Low-Price FBA rates. The Low-Price FBA rates are designed to help sellers who sell light weight items remain competitive, enabling them to save money on their FBA fees while still making a reasonable profit. 

Reminder:  Small and Light Program will close on 08/29/2023  

What is the Difference Between Small and Light Program Fees and Low-Price FBA Rates? 

As small and light is being phased out, Amazon will soon introduce the new Low-Price FBA Rates that will lower the fees for products priced under $10.  Low-Price FBA enjoys the same delivery speeds as standard FBA. Low-Price FBA rates are $0.77 less than standard FBA rates. All Low-Price FBA rates are available with free shipping for Prime customers and standard shipping for non-Prime customers. Here is the sum up of the FBA fees for Apparel, Non-Apparel and Dangerous goods.  

Do the Differences Impact that Much your Business?

What Does it Really Change?

For all sellers who sell mostly small items that could be a huge setback and the announcement to lower the threshold price from $12 to $10 was met with considerable frustration from sellers on Seller Central forum. Many sellers commented that the removal of the small and light program and lowering the price cap for low-price items from $12 to $10 have rendered their businesses unprofitable. Discussions on Amazon Seller Central forums echoed this sentiment, with many sellers voicing their frustration about the sudden change.

“This is HORRIBLE. Look at the sellers who only did S&L [….] I agree with everyone, keep it at $12 ATLEAST. Don’t pull the rug out completely.”

Two other sellers wrote:

“well that is sad news since you just increased the price to 12 and now you are taking that away.”

“Why tf would the price threshold be going down? Inflation running crazy the threshold should increase if anything. This will negatively affect tons of sellers and will benefit no one. I guess the decal sellers might thrive but anyone with real products is crazy to entertain $10 items on this platform.” 

Another person is skeptical about the probability of selling low price products on Amazon:

“I dont understand how anyone can make money here at $10 (or even 11.99 frankly) with or without this program…I gave up on lower cost items years ago. It’s just not worth the time and effort.

Although there are some sellers who are enthusiastic about the change, like this person:

“I think its great ..never bothered with Small & Light …a 0.77 USD fee reduction is great for low priced items….I can though understand how active users of FBA Small & Light might be annoyed. BUT lots of Amazon sellers with wide inventories (aka lots of products) I suspect were not using. Small & Light especially as I dont think it was well supported by uploading software (at least not mine). SO WELL DONE AMAZON!”

What do You Need to Do?

Any eligible items will automatically receive the low-price rates and will not be subject to 2023 holiday peak fulfillment fees that will apply from October 15, 2023, through January 14, 2024. 

All the products that you have enrolled in the small and light program will automatically receive Low-Price FBA rates.  

This year Amazon has increased many of its fees, and FBA fees rise consequently compared to 2022. You can look at this article to get an overview of how much the Amazon fees have increased this year. If you find that FBA fees are cutting too far into your profits, there are still possibilities to explore, indeed, you can choose to become a fulfillment by merchant (FBM) seller, or outsource your logistics needs to an external prep center that has no connection with Amazon. This third-party service can provide helpful customer support as well as manage product delivery. 

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