Selling Ebooks on Amazon or your website: pros/cons (+ examples) (2024)

FAQs

Should I sell my ebook on Amazon or my website? ›

More money lands in your pocket

Typically, you earn more per sale when you sell ebooks on your website. Amazon ebook fees and royalties are… complicated. They consider factors like file size and sales price and can charge multiple fees for each transaction.

Is selling ebooks on Amazon profitable? It can be. As you can see, you can easily earn at least $2,000 a month (or more) selling your ebooks on Amazon. I'd consider that pretty profitable!

Selling books on Amazon is a fantastic way to make some cash — and even to start building an Amazon business. The best part is, you don't need a lot of money to start. In fact, you can get started for free by selling your old books that are collecting dust.

Eye Strain and Screen Fatigue

Unlike print books with their paper pages, e-books are typically read on electronic devices such as e-readers, tablets, or smartphones. The screens of these devices emit blue light, which can cause eye fatigue and discomfort.

Kindle publishers are paid either a 35% or 70% royalty for each book sold. Amazon takes 65% on books that sell below $2.99 and above $9.99.

Yes, there may be some costs involved in making money on Kindle without writing, such as hiring writers or purchasing cover designs. However, these costs can be minimal compared to the potential earnings from publishing and selling books on Kindle.

What type of book sells more on Amazon KDP? ›

Authors who write romance novels with strong characters and compelling plots tend to do well on Amazon KDP. Mystery and thriller novels are also quite popular on Amazon KDP. These types of books are known for their suspenseful plots and unexpected twists that keep readers guessing until the very end.

Problems that students experience with e-books include eye strain, distractions, a lack of overview, inadequate navigation features and insufficient annotation and highlighting functionality.

Is It Profitable to Sell Ebooks? Ebooks are profitable, but simply publishing one is not enough. eBooks are profitable when they are marketed and sold properly with intent. Some authors who use Amazon to publish their ebooks can potentially make $1000+ a month.

Eye strain and discomfort: Looking at a backlit screen for extended periods can cause eye strain, headaches, and discomfort, which can negatively affect your vision.

Selling ebooks directly from your own site comes with several advantages. The biggest is you get to keep your profits. Sure, most marketplaces have a built-in audience, which may help you sell to more customers, but they also take a portion of your royalties (between 65 and 30% per sale).

Once your file is ready to go, you need to consider what file type you would like to sell your eBook as. I recommend two file types: a simple PDF and an ePUB file.

Amazon offers competitive royalty rates, with authors earning between 35% to 70% on every sale. The exact percentage you earn depends on your book's list price, the location of the buyer, and whether the book is published exclusively on Amazon.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the top sellers are romance, thriller & mysteries, followed by science fiction and fantasy. Amazon categorizes units sales of romance, mystery, thriller/suspense, science fiction/fantasy and literary books.