In the ever-evolving landscape of eCommerce, understanding the tools and programs at your disposal can significantly influence your business’s success. One such program that has been making waves recently is The Amazon FBA Small and Light program.
This program is designed to offer sellers a cost-effective solution to store, pack, and deliver smaller, lightweight items to their customers. But what exactly is it, and how can it transform your online selling experience?
In this blog post, we will delve into the specifics of the Amazon FBA Small and Light program, highlighting its benefits, eligibility requirements, and how it can potentially revolutionize your eCommerce business.
Buckle up, and let’s dive into the world of Amazon’s lesser-known but highly impactful program.
What is the Amazon FBA Small and Light Program?
Amazon FBA Small and Light is a program for sellers that want reduced fulfillment costs as they have comparatively smaller and lightweight products.
Of course, Amazon has some set certain criteria for weight, size, and price that sellers should meet to offer their product at an affordable price for customers.
Amazon introduced the Small and Light program to help small-scale sellers save money, especially on FBA fulfillment fees.
Once you add all the FBA fees you have to pay, the profit margin for low-priced products will be very thin, making it too expensive to sell them. Amazon FBA Small and Light is a good initiative that mitigates this.
Small and Light offers reduced fulfillment costs on qualified items, allowing you to pass the savings to your customers.
As an Amazon FBA Small and Light seller, you send your products to an Amazon fulfillment center, and Amazon takes care of storage, packaging, and shipping to customers.
Amazon also handles customer service and returns for these orders, just like the regular FBA (fulfillment by Amazon) program.
Who is Eligible for Amazon FBA Small and Light Program?
There are certain criteria listed below that your products should meet to be eligible for FBA Small and Light:
- The products you enroll in this program must have to be new and in perfect condition. Products in any other condition (used/pre-owned) are not eligible for Amazon FBA Small and Light.
- Should measure 18 x 14 x 8 inches or less
- Weigh 3 lb or less
- Priced at $12 or less
- If it has an existing ASIN, it must have sold at least 25 units in the past month
- It must comply with the Prepping/Shipping guidelines.
Now we should also talk about what not to put for Amazon FBA Small and Light program:
- Restricted products
- FBA prohibited products
- Adult products
- Dangerous goods (hazmat)
- Temperature-sensitive products (e.g., chocolates)
- Existing FBA products that use manufacturer barcodes for tracking instead of Amazon barcodes
- ASINs that have been on Amazon.com for more than 90 days and have sold in the previous 4 weeks (or are expected to sell in the upcoming 4 weeks) fewer than 25 units
Crushable products, such as potato chips and glass, are eligible if properly packaged.
If your products meet all the above criteria, you are good to go and enroll in the Amazon FBA Small and Light program so you can save up to above $10, it will automatically be removed from the program.
What are the Fulfillment Fees for Amazon FBA Small and Light?
Below are the fulfillment fees you will pay if your products are enrolled in the Amazon FBA Small and Light program.
| Size tier | Shipping Weight | Dimensions | Small and Light fulfillment fee per unit | Surcharge | Fulfillment fee (including surcharge) |
| Small standard | 6 oz or less | 15 x 12 x 0.75 inches or less | $2.35 | $0.12 | $2.47 |
| 6+ to 12 oz | $2.49 | $0.12 | $2.61 | ||
| 12+ to 16 oz | $3.00 | $0.15 | $3.15 | ||
| Large standard | 6 oz or less | 18 x 14 x 8 inches or less | $2.53 | $0.13 | $2.66 |
| 6+ to 12 oz | $2.80 | $0.14 | $2.94 | ||
| 12+ to 16 oz | $3.59 | $0.18 | $3.77 | ||
| 1+ to 2 lb | $4.21 | $0.21 | $4.42 | ||
| 2+ to 3 lb | $4.94 | $0.25 | $5.19 |
Compare these fulfillment fees to the standard FBA fees you would pay if your product did not meet this criterion.
| Standard-size product tiers | |||||
| Product Type | Size Tier | Shipping Weight | Fulfillment Fee per Unit | Surcharge | Fulfillment Fee (including surcharge) |
| Most products (non-dangerous goods, non-apparel) | Small standard | 6 oz or less | $2.92 | $0.15 | $3.07 |
| 6+ to 12 oz | $3.07 | $0.15 | $3.22 | ||
| 12+ to 16 oz | $3.59 | $0.18 | $3.77 | ||
| Large standard | 6 oz or less | $3.54 | $0.18 | $3.72 | |
| 6+ to 12 oz | $3.77 | $0.19 | $3.96 | ||
| 12+ to 16 oz | $4.52 | $0.23 | $4.75 | ||
| 1+ to 2 lb | $5.14 | $0.26 | $5.40 | ||
| 2+ to 3 lb | $5.79 | $0.29 | $6.08 | ||
There are standard shipment prep & packaging requirements for Amazon FBA Small and Light, but the followings are the notable differences:
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- Same-ASIN units are bundled together in clear plastic bags, manufacturer, or seller case packs.
- Each bag, outer case, or shrink-wrapped bundle has a label with the total quantity of sellable units.
- Small and Light only uses poly bags and Jiffy bags. Crushable items such as potato chips and glass should be properly prepped and packaged so they do not crush or break when shipped. Broken or destroyed items will not be received at the fulfillment center. They will be removed or disposed of at your expense.
- You must label each same-ASIN bag or pack with the total quantity of sellable units—a minimum of 24 units per SKU must be sent in each shipment.
- All the contents in the shipment match the shipping plan.
- Shipment does not contain dangerous, temperature-sensitive, meltable, or crushable goods.
- If applicable, pallets are single-stacked and front-loaded with no more than 22 skids per trailer.
- It’s possible to ship multiple SKUs in a single box, as long as each SKU meets the requirements.
- Lastly, take note of the general FBA requirements that also apply to Small and Light:
- Shipping boxes must not exceed 25 inches on any side; and
- Shipping boxes must not weigh more than 50 pounds
Amazon has set straightforward requirements for Amazon FBA Small and Light, everything for Amazon will always boil down to the fees.
View the Shipment Preparation Guide for a comprehensive guide on getting your shipments ready.
What are the Benefits of Enrolling in Amazon FBA Small and Light?
As you’ve probably gathered by now, the biggest benefit to enrolling in Amazon FBA Small and Light is the discounted fulfillment fees. Other benefits include:
Free Shipping for Prime Customers
With Amazon FBA Small and Light, Prime customers can get FREE shipping and access to millions of active Amazon shoppers.
Your Products will be Prime-Eligible
Another selling point is that your products are Prime-eligible, meaning, your listings will rock the Prime badge—one of many Amazon badges that can spice up your listings.
That’s free visibility to Amazon Prime members, which are pretty active shoppers if you ask me.
Reduced Fulfillment Costs
By selling through Amazon FBA Small and Light, the motive is to improve your margins or pass more savings along to customers.
Instant Customer Trust
Amazon’s A-to-z Guarantee puts your customers at ease. They know and trust us, and that trust extends to you. Customers trust Amazon and with FBA, that trust extends to you.
Amazon’s world-class team will take care of customer queries and refunds while you focus on your business.
No minimum Order Requirement
Another pro is that customers won’t have to satisfy any minimum purchase requirement. Standard FBA only grants free shipping if you order $25 or more of eligible items.
Multi-Channel Fulfillment
A relatively recent update, FBA’s Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF) is now available for Amazon FBA Small and Light.
You can Offer Discounts for Free
Under FBA Small and Light, some small products priced at $5 or lower and fall under the Consumables category (e.g., Beauty and Grocery) are eligible for a discount if the customer orders two or more units.
Some products priced > $5 in the consumables category (beauty, health & personal care, grocery, baby – excluding Apparel) may be eligible for a 5% discount when a customer orders two or more units of the item.
In these cases, the discount is covered by Amazon and you won’t be charged. Essentially, they are free promotions for your products that won’t hit your bottom line either.
- Improved Amazon SEO
- Reduce ACoS for better ad ROAS in your Amazon advertising
- A good Amazon Sales Rank from Increased sales velocity
How to Enroll For Amazon Small and Light
Signing up for Amazon FBA Small and Light is easier than ever, and once you do you’ll receive these valuable benefits. It’s even easier to stay competitive on your small, low-priced products. Our self-service registration page makes product enrollment quick and easy.
See Amazon FBA Small and Light fees for further information.
- Create or use an existing MSKU (merchant stock-keeping unit) depending on your business plan. You can use Amazon’s small and light enrollment guide to help you figure out what you need to do.
- Got your MSKUs ready? Log in to seller central and access the enrollment page.
- Download the enrollment template.
- Enter the relevant MSKUs in the provided fields. Make sure you remove extra spaces before and after your MSKUs – this is to ensure that there are no upload errors.
- Upload the updated document to seller central.
- Monitor and review upload status. The time taken to process your request depends on the file size. Once the processing report is available, make sure you double-check the report for errors.
- Ship the products to the Amazon fulfillment center. You need to send at least 24 items for each MSKU.
Now a step-by-step guide on how you can choose Amazon FBA Small and Light for each shipment.
Step 1
Sell on Amazon and choose FBA.
If you have a selling account on Amazon, choose Fulfilled by Amazon as your shipping method. If you’re new to selling on Amazon, get started today.
Simply navigate to the Small and Light page in seller central. You can access this page by searching for Small and Light in Seller Central.
Step 2
Select items. Create new offers for your products, or enroll existing SKUs in the Small and Light program.
Step 3
Enroll in Small and Light. Refer to our enrollment guide above for product eligibility requirements.
Step 4
The next step is to prep and ship to a specified Amazon fulfillment center with the help of a prep and packaging guide.
When you make a sale, Amazon uses a standardized packaging weight of 0.7 oz. for every package under FBA Small and Light, while in Standard FBA, it’s 4 oz. for standard-size packages.
You can also avail of Amazon’s optional FBA Label Service at $0.10 per unit under Small and Light.
After sending your inventory to Amazon FBA, you’re good to go. Be sure to monitor your sales and keep your inventory up to avoid losing customers or having your products delisted from the program.
Tips for Preparing Your Shipment to Amazon
Well if you knew nothing about Amazon FBA Small and Light, you do now. As you’re already here, here are a few tips for shipping items to Amazon FBA:
- Make sure your packages are labeled correctly. You must include your name, address, carrier name, carrier’s shipping reference number, and unit quantity.
- All your items will need to be labeled with a scannable barcode. This can either be the UPC code that came with the product or an ASIN.
- Be sure to follow Amazon’s instructions in regard to preparing your items. Depending on what you’re selling you may need to package each product in a clear plastic bag or shrink wrap. Other items might be fine in their original packaging.
- You can send multiple ASINs in one box assuming you bundle different products together. Just remember to clearly label your box, including the items inside and the quantity for each.
- Use Amazon Partnered Carriers to get a discount on your shipping.
Final Thoughts
Amazon FBA Small and Light is an easy way to save on fulfillment costs if you’re selling small, cheap, and fast-moving products.
Sure, a dollar-per-unit (or even less) in savings is not much, but it adds up as you sell more units. Plus, you can pass the savings on to your customers to help establish some brand loyalty.
The Small and Light program is a cost-cutting program that reduces fulfillment costs for sellers and allows you to pass the savings on to your customers.
