---
title: "KDP Delivery Cost: The Per-MB Ebook Fee"
description: "What KDP's ebook delivery cost is, how it is worked out per megabyte on Amazon.com, which royalty option pays it, and how to keep files small."
url: "https://www.superebook.ai/glossary/delivery-cost"
updated: "2026-10-20"
---

# Delivery cost

**Definition.** Delivery cost is the charge KDP deducts from each ebook sale under the 70% royalty option, based on the size of the book's file. On Amazon.com it is $0.15 per megabyte, with file sizes rounded up to the next kilobyte and a minimum of $0.01 a copy. Sales under the 35% option carry no delivery cost.

Sources checked October 20, 2026. Figures: KDP's Amazon.com ebook royalty, list-price and delivery figures, as of October 11, 2026.

## How it works

KDP multiplies the number of megabytes it determines your file contains by the marketplace's rate, rounding the cost to the cent, and takes it off the list price before applying the 70% rate. Text is light; images are what make a file heavy, so a novel and an illustrated guide at the same price can pay very different royalties. The rate differs from one marketplace to another.

## An example

A text-only ebook of 0.5 MB, listed at $4.99, is charged $0.08 for delivery and pays $3.44 per Amazon.com sale. The same book with 20 MB of photos is charged $3.00, leaving $1.39 at 70%, less than the $1.75 it would pay under 35%.

## Common mistakes

Uploading full-resolution photos when screen-sized images would look the same on a Kindle. Judging the cost from the manuscript on your computer: KDP charges by the megabytes it determines the book's file contains, so check the delivery cost it gives for your book before settling on a price. And forgetting that the delivery cost is charged on every sale, so a heavy file costs you on every copy.

## Questions

**Do I pay delivery cost on the 35% option?** No. KDP deducts delivery cost only under the 70% option. Under 35% the royalty is a share of the list price without VAT, with no delivery cost.

**How do I lower my ebook's delivery cost?** Make the file smaller, mainly by resizing and compressing images. Text adds very little; full-resolution photos add the most.

## Sources

- [KDP: eBook Pricing Page](https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/G200634500): Delivery cost per megabyte by marketplace, rounding file sizes up to the kilobyte, the minimum, rounding to two decimals, and no delivery cost under 35%.
- [KDP: eBook Royalties](https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/G200644210): Delivery costs deducted under the 70% option and varying by file size.

## Related terms

- [70% royalty option](https://www.superebook.ai/glossary/70-percent-royalty-option.md)
- [35% royalty option](https://www.superebook.ai/glossary/35-percent-royalty-option.md)
- [List price](https://www.superebook.ai/glossary/list-price.md)

## Read next

- [Kindle royalty calculator](https://www.superebook.ai/tools/kindle-royalty-calculator.md)
- [Kindle ebook cover size and requirements](https://www.superebook.ai/guides/kindle-ebook-cover-size.md)
- [All glossary terms](https://www.superebook.ai/glossary.md)