How KDP paperback royalties work
Amazon pays you a share of the list price and then subtracts what it costs to print the copy. The share depends on the price. In the US store it is 60% at $9.99 and up and 50% at $9.98 and below. The UK tier starts at £7.99, the euro stores at €9.99, and Canada and Australia at 13.99 in local currency. The calculator switches thresholds when you change marketplace.
Printing cost has two parts for black ink. From 24 to 110 pages you pay one flat price, $2.30 in the US for a regular trim. That makes 110 pages a natural target for a $9.99 puzzle book: every page up to it is free to print. Above 110 pages the cost becomes a fixed charge plus a per-page charge. Color interiors and large trims cost more, and standard color is only offered from 72 to 600 pages. All KDP figures here come from Amazon's printing cost and royalty help pages, checked 24 September 2026.
Pricing tips for puzzle books
- Never list at $9.98 or just under. You earn roughly a dollar less per copy than at $9.99.
- Fill the flat band. If your book is 70 pages, you can add 40 pages of puzzles for no extra printing cost.
- Large print costs more to print. 8.5 x 11 is a large trim, so budget for the higher rate.
Selling the same book elsewhere
Many puzzle publishers also sell a printable PDF version. The comparison table estimates what you keep per sale on each platform, using fees published as of September 2026:
- Etsy: $0.20 listing fee, 6.5% transaction fee and US payment processing of 3% plus $0.25 (Etsy fee policy, 2026).
- Gumroad: 10% plus $0.50 on direct sales (30% on Discover marketplace sales), with card processing charged on top per Gumroad's help centre (Gumroad pricing page, September 2026).
- Teachers Pay Teachers: Basic sellers keep 55% and pay $0.30 per resource; Premium sellers ($59.95 a year) keep 80% and pay $0.15 only on orders under $3 (TPT seller page, 2026).
- IngramSpark: you choose a wholesale discount, typically 40% to 55%; you are paid list minus discount, minus print cost ($1.33 plus $0.0146 per page for a small US black-and-white paperback) and a 1.875% market access fee (IngramSpark price sheet effective 1 February 2026).
- Payhip: 5% on the free plan (2% on Plus, 0% on Pro) plus Stripe or PayPal processing (Payhip help centre, 2026).
Every non-KDP figure is an estimate. Check the platform's current fees before you set a price. To turn a price into a finished book, the page count calculator shows how many puzzles fill 110 pages.
Frequently asked questions
How is KDP paperback royalty calculated?
Royalty is list price times the royalty rate, minus the printing cost. On Amazon.com the rate is 60% at $9.99 and above and 50% at $9.98 and below. A 110-page black-ink 6 x 9 book at $9.99 earns $9.99 x 0.6 - $2.30 = $3.69 a copy.
Why does $9.98 earn so much less than $9.99?
Because the rate drops from 60% to 50% one cent below $9.99. On a 110-page book that is $2.69 instead of $3.69, a full dollar per copy for a one-cent price difference. Most older calculators still assume a flat 60% and overstate royalties on cheaper books.
What does KDP charge to print a black-ink paperback?
On Amazon.com a regular-trim black-ink paperback costs a flat $2.30 to print from 24 to 110 pages. From 111 pages it is $1.00 plus $0.012 per page. Large trims (wider than 6.12 inches or taller than 9 inches) cost more: $2.84 flat, then $1.00 plus $0.017 per page.
What is the break-even price?
It is the lowest list price at which your royalty covers printing, which is also the minimum price KDP will let you set. Below it the book would earn less than nothing, so KDP refuses the price.
Are the Etsy, Gumroad, TPT, IngramSpark and Payhip numbers exact?
No. They are estimates from each platform's published fees as of September 2026, for a US seller and a single-item order. They leave out sales tax, VAT, currency conversion, offsite ads, payout fees and returns. Check each platform's current fee page before pricing.