Where does €100 of Amazon sales actually go?
By Claudiu Clement · September 26, 2026 · Curated by George's Blog
Where does €100 of Amazon sales actually go?
Here's a typical cascade for a mid-priced FBA product. The numbers are illustrative, but the order is not.
Net sales (after VAT) €100
− Refunds −€4
− Referral fee (charged on the VAT-inclusive price) −€18 (depending on the country)
− FBA fulfilment −€12
− Storage & aged inventory −€2
− Advertising −€10
− Landed COGS −€30
− Overheads −€7
= Net margin €17
Three things founders tend to miss:
Refunds come off the top. They don't just cost revenue. They also cost the fee Amazon keeps and the unit you may not be able to resell.
Storage looks small until the aged-inventory surcharge kicks in. Then it's the line that quietly doubles.
Overheads are real: software, agency fees, salaries, 3PL prep. If they're not allocated, your "17%" is a gross margin wearing a net margin's clothes.
The cascade is the same for every SKU, but the percentages aren't. Run it per product and you'll find the ones where the €17 is actually −€3.
Which of the eight lines is missing from your current P&L?