Amazon Peak Fulfillment Fees 2026: What Q4 Costs You
Amazon's 2026 holiday peak fulfillment fees run Oct 15 to Jan 14, about 6% above standard rates, plus a 3.5% surcharge. Rates by size tier and what they cost.
Amazon's holiday peak fulfillment fees apply from October 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027. For standard-size items priced between $10 and $50, the peak card adds between $0.19 and $0.41 per unit over the rates in force from January to mid-October, which is roughly 6% of the fulfillment fee. Bulky and extra-large items pay more in dollars: $1.04 more for the bulky tiers and from $2.73 to $8.51 more for extra-large. On top of that, the 3.5% fuel and logistics-related surcharge that started in April is applied to the peak fees as well.
For a seller, the effect on any single unit is small. Across a quarter of heavy volume it is not, and for low-priced items it takes a visible share of the selling price. This guide puts the figures side by side so you can see which of your products carry the most.
Amazon applies holiday peak fulfillment fees from October 15, 2026 to January 14, 2027. The window covers FBA, Remote Fulfillment with FBA into Canada and Mexico, Multi-Channel Fulfillment, and Buy with Prime. Amazon states that, on average, the peak rate cards carry the same per-unit increase over non-peak rates as they did last year.
What moves is the fulfillment fee, the per-unit charge for picking, packing and shipping an order. The referral fee does not change with the season. The fulfillment fee is charged when the buyer's order ships and is based on the product type, the size tier and the shipping weight. Your own selling price matters as well, because the rate card is split into three price bands: under $10, from $10 to $50, and over $50.
Peak against non-peak, standard-size items
The table shows the rate for items in the $10 to $50 price band, before the surcharge. The "January 15 to October 14" column is the non-peak card for 2026, and the last column is the increase in dollars and as a share of the fee.
Size tier and shipping weight
Jan 15 to Oct 14, 2026
Oct 15, 2026 to Jan 14, 2027
Increase
Small standard, 2 oz or less
$3.32
$3.51
$0.19 (5.7%)
Small standard, 14+ to 16 oz
$3.96
$4.18
$0.22 (5.6%)
Large standard, 4 oz or less
$3.73
$3.97
$0.24 (6.4%)
Large standard, 12+ to 16 oz
$4.60
$4.89
$0.29 (6.3%)
Large standard, 1+ to 1.25 lb
$5.04
$5.34
$0.30 (6.0%)
Large standard, 2+ to 2.25 lb
$5.92
$6.29
$0.37 (6.3%)
Large standard, 2.75+ to 3 lb
$6.67
$7.08
$0.41 (6.1%)
Beyond 3 lb the standard-size rate becomes a base fee plus $0.08 for each additional 4 oz. For the $10 to $50 band the base is $6.97 off-peak and $7.51 in the peak window, which is $0.54 more. Apparel has its own rate cards on the same Amazon page, and items under $10 and over $50 have their own columns, so check the column that matches your price.
Bulky and extra-large tiers
Heavier and larger products are charged in dollars rather than in pennies. The figures below are for the $10 to $50 band, which matches the over-$50 band in these tiers. These are US non-apparel base fees, not complete quotes for every shipping weight. Bulky and extra-large 0–50 lb items add $0.38 per pound interval above the first pound. Extra-large 50+–70 lb and 70+–150 lb items add $0.75 per pound interval above 51 lb and 71 lb respectively. Extra-large 150+ lb adds $0.19 per pound interval above 151 lb. The weight increments apply in both seasons; the table compares the base fees.
Size tier
Jan 15 to Oct 14, 2026
Oct 15, 2026 to Jan 14, 2027
Increase
Small bulky, first pound
$7.55
$8.59
$1.04
Large bulky, first pound
$9.35
$10.39
$1.04
Extra-large, 0 to 50 lb
$26.33
$29.06
$2.73
Extra-large, 50+ to 70 lb
$37.32
$40.13
$2.81
Extra-large, 70+ to 150 lb
$51.32
$55.74
$4.42
Extra-large, 150+ lb
$194.95
$203.46
$8.51
Extra-large products above certain dimensions can also carry the Overmax handling fee, which is separate from both cards and is described on its own Amazon page.
What the increase costs as a share of the price
The 3.5% surcharge applies to the fulfillment fee, so the amount you actually pay is the card rate plus 3.5%. Here is what that means for three examples, with every amount rounded to the cent.
Example item
Fee outside the window
Fee in the window
Extra per unit
Share of the price
$12, small standard, 2 oz or less
$3.44
$3.63
$0.19
1.6%
$30, large standard, 1+ to 1.25 lb
$5.22
$5.53
$0.31
1.0%
$100, large standard, 1+ to 1.25 lb
$5.49
$5.80
$0.31
0.3%
The $100 example uses the over-$50 column, which is why its base fee is $5.30 off-peak and $5.60 in the window. The pattern is the useful part: the dollar increase is similar across the three, so the lower the price, the larger the bite. A seller of $12 products gives up about five times as much of each sale as a seller of $100 products.
Peak fees outside FBA
The window is not limited to FBA. Multi-Channel Fulfillment orders, which ship your inventory to customers who bought on other channels, fall under the same dates, as does Buy with Prime. The surcharge reached those two programs later than FBA: from May 2, 2026 for Buy with Prime in the US and for Multi-Channel Fulfillment in the US and Canada, against April 17 for FBA in the US and Canada. If you use Multi-Channel Fulfillment to serve a Shopify or Walmart store, include the peak card in the margin for those orders, not only the ones placed on Amazon.
Remote Fulfillment with FBA into Canada and Mexico is also in the window. The surcharge covers Remote Fulfillment with FBA from the US into Canada, Mexico and Brazil.
Pricing and restocking around the window
The peak window is already underway. Review these three items before the next replenishment or promotion rather than waiting for another settlement.
Absorb or reprice. For an item at $100 the extra $0.31 is easy to absorb. For an item at $12, the extra $0.19 is 1.6% of the price, a noticeable share of the margin on a thin-margin product. If you raise prices for the window, keep in mind that Amazon shows shoppers up to a year of price history on a product page, so a temporary increase and the later drop are both visible to a buyer who looks.
What counts as the window. Amazon's fee page says the fulfillment fee is charged when the buyer's order ships. Read the peak dates as applying to orders that ship in that period, and use your own Fee and Economics Preview report to confirm the rate on units that ship close to either end of the window.
Stock depth. Higher demand shortens days of supply. For standard-size and bulky products, Amazon charges a low-inventory-level fee on shipped units when inventory falls below 28 days of supply relative to customer demand. A seller trying to keep stock lean to save on storage can end up paying that fee instead during the busiest weeks.
A ten-minute check for your catalog
Before the window gets going, work through your ten largest SKUs in the same five steps.
Note the selling price band and the size tier of each one.
Look up the peak rate for that tier and band, then add 3.5%.
Subtract the non-peak rate plus 3.5% to get the extra cost per unit.
Multiply by the units you expect to ship between October 15 and January 14.
Compare that total with the margin you expect from the same units.
For a $30 large standard item that ships 2,000 units in the window, the extra cost is 2,000 × $0.31, or $620. If the same item earns $8.00 a unit before the increase, the extra cost takes about 4% of that margin. The calculation takes minutes, and it shows which products deserve a price review and which can be left alone.
Where to see your own peak cost
Amazon says the Revenue Calculator, the Profit Analytics dashboard and the Fee and Economics Preview report have been updated to reflect the peak rates and the surcharge. Use the Revenue Calculator for one ASIN, the Profit Analytics dashboard to see the effect on margin, and the Fee and Economics Preview report for the whole catalog. If a fee looks higher than the card suggests, check the size tier Amazon assigned to the product first, because the Monthly Storage Fees report shows it. Our free FBA calculator is a quick place to try a price against your costs.
Common questions
When do peak fulfillment fees start and end?
They start on October 15, 2026 and end on January 14, 2027.
Does the 3.5% surcharge apply on top of the peak fees?
Yes. Amazon says the fuel and logistics-related surcharge applies to the holiday peak fees. The surcharge is 3.5% of the fulfillment fee, so it grows with the fee.
Do peak fees apply to apparel and to items under $10?
Yes, each has its own rate card. The tables in this guide are the cards for non-apparel items, and the price column matters: under $10, from $10 to $50, and over $50 are priced separately. Apparel rate cards are on the same Amazon page.
Does the peak fee apply to Multi-Channel Fulfillment orders?
Yes. Amazon lists Multi-Channel Fulfillment and Buy with Prime in the same window as FBA, and the surcharge applies to those peak fees as well. The details and rates for those programs can differ from the FBA cards, so check the Multi-Channel Fulfillment fee page for the card that applies to you.
Can I avoid the peak fee by sending inventory later?
The fee is charged when the buyer's order ships, so sending stock to Amazon later does not change the rate on an order. What changes it is the date the order ships. Delaying a shipment to Amazon only risks running short during the busiest weeks, and a shortage brings its own costs.
