US referral fees were not the 2026 increase — fulfillment was
Amazon publica avisos de Seller Central y Ads en inglés. El brief de abajo sigue en inglés para no perder el texto fuente. Revisión, formularios y políticas están en tu idioma. Confirma cifras en Seller Central.
Who it hits
US 3P catalogs. Anyone who added a blanket referral bump in January because a newsletter said fees went up.
What to do this week
Read the referral percent on your category in Seller Central. Change the break-even sheet only if that percent changed. Put the energy on fulfillment, surcharge, returns, and placement.
What still moves contribution
- Fulfillment fee by size tier and price band.
- The 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge from 17 April.
- Peak fulfillment from 15 October 2026.
- Returns processing, inbound placement, low inventory, aged inventory, SIPP packaging.
Referral is still the biggest single percent on most ASINs. It is just not the thing that changed in the US in January. A wrong referral percent in the sheet is still a wrong bid. Check it. Then stop blaming it for the Q2 ACOS slide.
Category referral rates can still be edited by Amazon in a later notice. Re-read the schedule when you open Fee Preview, every time.
FAQ
Clothing referral dropped in Europe. Did the US match it?
The Europe notice cut clothing, home, grocery, pet, and vitamins referral on low price bands. That notice is not the US letter. Compare the two schedules. Do not apply a UK percent to a US SKU.
Source: Amazon Selling Partner: 2026 US Referral and FBA fees · Confirm live numbers in Seller Central. This desk is the method, not a rate card.
Stuck on this change?
I will walk the public listing, say whether this change is leaking spend, and what week one would be.