Amazon discontinues Small and Light program

Amazon is pulling the plug on its specialized fulfillment program for small, lightweight, and low-priced goods in Europe, after the discontinuation in the US. Starting from September 26, these items will automatically be subject to new ‘low-price FBA rates’.

In 2015, Amazon introduced the Small and Light program, which allowed merchants to sell smaller, lighter, and more affordable products with reduced Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) fees. This was a helpful move, as the regular FBA fees would often eat into the profits of selling lower-priced items.

Regular FBA fees would often eat into profits

To make this feasible, Amazon provided slower shipping speeds for these products compared to regular FBA items. But soon, the Small and Light program will be discontinued.

Higher rates, faster delivery

The discontinuation was announced earlier this summer in the US and will take effect there on August 29th. The new low-price FBA rates will be, on average, 0.77 dollars lower per item compared to the current FBA rates, but around 0.30 dollars higher than the Small and Light rates. The advantage is that these items will now benefit from the regular, faster FBA fulfillment speed. Unlike the Small and Light program, merchants do not need to go through an enrollment process to access the lower rates.

Merchants are not required to enroll for the low-price FBA rates

Price threshold

Amazon has now also announced this change for our continent, notifying sellers. Starting from September 26th, the Small and Light program will be discontinued in Europe, and the low-price FBA rates will automatically apply for sellers on Amazon in Europe.

The company works with country-specific price thresholds in Europe for this purpose. In Germany, the threshold for the lower fees is set at 11 euros, while in France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain, it is 12 euros. In the UK, it is 12 British pounds, in Sweden, it is 140 Swedish kronor, and in Poland, 55 zloty.

Fulfillment costs in Europe

The actual FBA fees for products falling under the price threshold also depend on their weight and dimensions. For users of PAN-European FBA, these fees range from €1.45 to €2.87, as calculated by Onlinehändler News. Merchants storing their goods in a single European Amazon location usually incur higher costs. Earlier this year, Amazon raised fulfillment costs in Europe.