How To Make Money on Amazon in 2026: 4 Real Ways
Make ebooks for Amazon KDP with Designrr
How To Make Money on Amazon in 2026: 4 Real Ways
If you want to know how to make money on Amazon in 2026, there are four real options: the Amazon Associates affiliate program, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Merch on Demand and selling your own products with Amazon FBA. Three of them cost almost nothing to start. One of them can lose you real money.
Amazon also changed the rules on most of these this year. Merch royalties dropped for most sellers, FBA fees went up and KDP widened its 70% ebook royalty range. Here is how each one works, what it pays and which one to start first.
Amazon Associates Affiliate Program for Beginners
Amazon Associates is Amazon's affiliate program. You share a special link, someone clicks it and buys within 24 hours, and you earn a percentage. You usually earn on everything in their cart, not only the product you linked.
Here are the steps:
Have a place to share links. You need a blog, a YouTube channel or a social account with real posts. Brand new empty accounts get rejected.
Sign up. It is free.
Get 3 sales in 180 days. They must be three separate orders from real customers. Your own orders do not count. If you miss this, Amazon closes your account.
So don't sign up the day you start posting. Build a small audience first, then join.
Make content for people who are close to buying: "this vs that" comparisons, reviews of things you own, and gift guides with a clear budget. Pinterest works well for this, and we covered it in our guide to Amazon affiliate marketing on Pinterest.
How Much Amazon Associates Pays
Commission runs from about 1% to 20% depending on the category. The usual rate is lower, often around 2% to 4%. On a $50 product, that is a dollar or two. Payment arrives about 60 days after the end of the month.
If you make videos, look at the Amazon Influencer Program too. The commission rates are the same, but you get your own storefront page on Amazon, and your review videos can show up on the product page itself.
Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) for Beginners
KDP lets you publish a book on Amazon for free. Amazon prints and ships every copy, so you never hold stock.
Pick a book people already search for. Guides, workbooks, journals, low-content books like planners, or fiction in a genre you read.
Write it, format it and make a cover.
Upload it and set your price.
Here is the 2026 change that helps you. Since July, Amazon pays 70% royalties on ebooks priced from $2.99 up to $12.99. Before that, the 70% band stopped at $9.99.
If formatting is what slows you down, a tool like Designrr turns content you already have into a finished ebook. We walked through it in how to create ebooks to sell online.
KDP AI Disclosure Rules
You can use AI on KDP, but there are rules. If AI wrote the text, made the cover or translated the book, you have to tell Amazon when you upload. If AI only helped, like brainstorming or checking grammar, you don't.
The disclosure is private. Readers don't see it, and Amazon says it does not affect your ranking. But lying about it can get your book removed, and repeat problems can close your account.
Amazon Merch on Demand: Print on Demand With No Inventory
Merch on Demand lets you sell t-shirts and hoodies with your own designs. You upload a design, and Amazon prints and ships it only when someone orders. You hold no inventory.
Request an invite at merch.amazon.com. It is invite-only, approval can take weeks or months, and not everyone gets in.
Start with 10 design slots. You unlock more by making sales.
Upload designs, write clear titles and set prices.
Never use brand names, logos, sports teams or famous characters. Those are someone else's trademarks. Stick to original ideas for a specific group, like a hobby, a job or a pet breed.
For more on the business model, read our print on demand playbook.
Amazon Merch Royalty Tiers in 2026
In June 2026, Amazon changed how Merch pays. There are now three royalty tiers.
The default tier pays about half the old rate. On a $20 shirt, that is around $2.44 per sale. To reach the higher tiers, you have to bring your own buyers from outside Amazon: at least 15% of your sales for the middle tier and 35% for the top one.
So Merch now rewards people who already have an audience. If you don't have one yet, expect small royalties at first.
Selling Your Own Products With Amazon FBA
Selling physical products has the highest ceiling. It is also the only method on this list where you can lose real money.
Pick a plan. The Individual plan costs $0.99 per item sold. The Professional plan is $39.99 a month. At around 40 sales a month, Professional becomes cheaper, and it unlocks advertising and more selling tools.
Choose how to ship. Ship orders yourself, or use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), where you send stock to Amazon's warehouses and they handle shipping.
Know your fees before you pick a product. Amazon takes a referral fee on every sale, usually 15%. With FBA you also pay fulfillment and storage fees.
Start small. Buy a test batch, price it so you still profit after every fee, and reorder only what sells.
Amazon FBA Fees in 2026 and the New Selection Program
FBA got more expensive this year:
Fulfillment fees went up about 8 cents per unit on average in January.
A 3.5% fuel surcharge was added to fulfillment fees in April.
Peak holiday fees run from mid-October to mid-January.
If your stock drops below 28 days of supply, you can pay a low-inventory fee on each unit.
There is one break for beginners. Since July 30, Amazon's New Selection program covers new branded products sent to FBA. Amazon credits back part of your referral fee on your first 200 units, about 10% on the first 100 and 5% on the next 100. You also get free storage and no low-inventory fee on those first 200 units for 120 days.
If you want help choosing what to sell, see how Doba's AI tool picks products.
Risks of Making Money on Amazon
Amazon sets the rules, and it can change them. This year alone, Merch royalties dropped for most sellers, FBA added a fuel surcharge and peak fees came back. You don't get a vote.
So don't build all your income on one Amazon program. Build something you own next to it, like an email list, your own website or an audience on another platform.
Small rule breaks can also end an account. Associates closes if you miss three sales in 180 days, KDP can remove books if you hide AI use, and FBA sellers who don't track their fees can sell a lot and still lose money. Read the rules before you start, and check them again every few months.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to start making money on Amazon? Amazon Associates, KDP and Merch on Demand are free to join. Selling your own products costs $0.99 per item or $39.99 a month, plus stock and fees.
What is the easiest way to make money on Amazon for beginners? Amazon Associates or KDP. Both are free to start, and you don't need to buy inventory.
Can I use AI to publish books on Amazon KDP? Yes. But if AI wrote the text, made the cover or translated the book, you must disclose it when you upload.
Is Amazon FBA still worth it in 2026? It can be, but only after you do the fee math. Start with a small test batch and money you can afford to lose.
The Bottom Line
Amazon is still one of the biggest ways to make money online because the buyers are already there. But the easy-money stories skip the costs.
If you have little money, start with Amazon Associates or KDP. If you already have an audience, add Merch on Demand. Only sell your own products after you have done the fee math, and only with money you can afford to lose. This is not financial advice. Pick one program this week and read its rules from start to finish.
Want the full step-by-step breakdown? Watch the video → https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S2AaBNDK-s
