Amazon FBA vs Easy Ship vs Self Ship (2026 Comparison)
By Vanshika - ecommerce seller & educator, @chitraabyvanshika (100,000+ followers)
Amazon India gives you three ways to get an order to the buyer, and the right one depends almost entirely on your price point rather than your ambition.
The short version: Easy Ship suits most sellers under ₹1,000. FBA earns its cost on higher-priced, fast-moving products. Self Ship is for heavy, bulky or custom-packed items where Amazon's logistics do not fit.
Here is the fee-by-fee comparison that explains why.
What each one means
| Who stores | Who packs | Who delivers | |
|---|---|---|---|
| FBA | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
| Easy Ship | You | You | Amazon |
| Self Ship | You | You | You |
FBA - you send stock to an Amazon warehouse and they handle everything after that, including returns and customer service. Your listing gets Prime eligibility.
Easy Ship - stock stays with you. You pack each order, Amazon's courier collects it. The middle option, and the default for most Indian sellers.
Self Ship - you arrange your own courier. Full control, full responsibility, and no weight handling fee because Amazon is not doing the shipping.
The fee that decides it
Closing fees differ sharply by channel, and the gap is widest exactly where new sellers live.
| Selling price | Easy Ship | FBA | Self Ship |
|---|---|---|---|
| ₹0 - ₹250 | ₹5 | ₹25 | ₹7 |
| ₹251 - ₹500 | ₹9 | ₹28 | ₹20 |
| ₹501 - ₹1,000 | ₹30 | ₹40 | ₹36 |
| ₹1,001 - ₹5,000 | ₹50 | ₹65 | ₹55 |
| Above ₹5,000 | ₹65 | ₹80 | ₹70 |
On a ₹200 product, FBA's closing fee alone is ₹25 against Easy Ship's ₹5. That is ₹20 per order, before storage, before pick and pack, before anything else FBA charges.
At 300 orders a month that difference is ₹6,000 - on closing fees alone.
Notice the gap narrows as price rises. At ₹1,001-5,000 it is ₹50 versus ₹65 - ₹15, which a Prime badge can plausibly earn back in extra conversions. That is the real crossover point, and it is about price, not scale.
What FBA charges that the others do not
- Storage, per cubic foot per month, rising in the October to December festive window
- Pick and pack per unit
- Removal fees if you want unsold stock returned
- Higher closing fees, as above
FBA is not simply more expensive - it is differently expensive. You are buying Prime eligibility, faster delivery, Amazon handling returns and customer service, and your evenings back.
The question is whether the extra sales cover it. On a fast-moving product above ₹1,000 with healthy margin, they often do. On a slow-moving ₹250 product, storage fees quietly bill you every month whether it sells or not.
Self Ship: the underrated one
No weight handling fee, because Amazon is not shipping it. Self Ship also has the second-cheapest closing fee at low price points - ₹7 against Easy Ship's ₹5 and FBA's ₹25.
And Amazon kept its 2025 reductions in place for 2026: under ₹300 the self-ship closing fee dropped from ₹45 to ₹20, and ₹300-500 dropped from ₹35 to ₹26.
It works when:
- Your product is heavy or bulky and Amazon's weight slabs punish it
- You need custom packaging - fragile, perishable, or branded unboxing
- You already have a courier relationship at better rates than Amazon's slabs
- You sell locally and can deliver cheaply
It fails when you underestimate the work. You own delivery timelines, tracking updates and courier failures, and Amazon measures you on all of them.
Choosing, by price point
Under ₹300 - Easy Ship, almost always. Fixed fees dominate at this price, FBA closing fees are five times higher, and storage on a cheap product rarely pays back. Amazon also cut Easy Ship fees under ₹300 by ₹15 in March 2026.
₹300 to ₹1,000 - Easy Ship as the default. Consider FBA only if the product moves fast and you are losing sales to Prime competitors.
₹1,000 to ₹5,000 - genuine decision. The closing fee gap narrows to ₹15, the referral fee returns above ₹1,000, and Prime eligibility matters more in considered purchases. Test both on the same product if you can.
Above ₹5,000, or heavy - Self Ship deserves a serious look, particularly if your own courier rates beat Amazon's slabs.
Work it out on your actual numbers in the free Amazon fee calculator rather than on the shape of this advice. The full fee stack, including the March 2026 zero-referral change, is in Amazon seller fees 2026.
Two things that catch people out
Returns are not refunded. Amazon does not return your original weight handling fee when a customer sends something back. On Easy Ship you absorb that. On FBA, Amazon handles the return process but the cost still lands on you.
Festive storage. FBA storage rates rise in October to December, exactly when sellers stock up. Plan inventory so it sells through rather than sitting at peak rates.
FAQ
Which is cheaper, FBA or Easy Ship?
Easy Ship, clearly, at low price points - the closing fee alone is ₹5 against ₹25 for products under ₹250, before FBA's storage and pick-and-pack. The gap narrows as price rises, and above ₹1,000 FBA's Prime eligibility can justify it.
Amazon Easy Ship kya hai?
Easy Ship mein stock aapke paas rehta hai. Har order aap khud pack karte ho, aur Amazon ka courier aakar pickup kar leta hai. Delivery Amazon ki zimmedari hoti hai. Zyadatar Indian sellers ke liye yahi sabse practical option hai.
Do I need FBA to get the Prime badge?
FBA is the straightforward route to Prime eligibility. There are seller-fulfilled programmes with strict performance requirements, but for most sellers Prime means FBA.
Is Self Ship worth it?
For heavy or bulky items, custom packaging, or when your own courier rates beat Amazon's weight slabs. You take on delivery timelines and tracking, and Amazon measures you on both - so it suits sellers with existing logistics, not beginners.
Can I use different methods for different products?
Yes, and most established sellers do. Fast-moving high-value SKUs on FBA, the long tail on Easy Ship, anything heavy on Self Ship.
Does Amazon refund shipping fees on returns?
No. The original weight handling fee is not refunded when an order comes back. Build that into your pricing rather than treating returns as revenue-neutral.
What does FBA storage cost?
Charged per cubic foot per month, and rates rise during the October to December festive period. Check the current schedule in Seller Central - slow-moving stock is where FBA quietly becomes expensive.
How to price so fees and returns do not eat the margin is covered in the Meesho A-Z Course - the method transfers to every marketplace.
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