Amazon UK vs Amazon US: prices, tax, delivery and currency compared for eBay sellers

Amazon UK vs Amazon US: what is different?

Amazon UK vs Amazon US is not one shop in two currencies. Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com are separate marketplaces, each with its own sellers, its own stock, its own prices and its own delivery network. A product with the same name, and often the same ASIN (Amazon's product identifier), can have different offers, a different buy box winner and a very different price on each site.

For eBay sellers, the practical lesson is simple: price each eBay site from the Amazon marketplace in the same country, read in that country's currency, at an address in that country. Mixing the two is one of the fastest ways to put a nonsense price on a live listing.

How do Amazon UK and Amazon US compare?

Even where both sites run the same event on the same days, the deals on each are chosen separately. A product on deal in the US may be at full price in the UK.

How does tax differ between the two sites?

This difference catches out many sellers who move between the two markets.

Amazon UK

Prices shown to consumers on Amazon.co.uk generally include VAT, so the price in the buy box is close to what a single order costs, apart from any delivery charge. Your own VAT position as a business is a separate matter; check it with HMRC or an accountant.

Amazon US

On Amazon.com, listed prices do not include sales tax. Tax is calculated at checkout from the delivery address and the item, and added to the total. If you pay sales tax on your purchases, your true cost is higher than the listed price, and a formula built on the listed price will underprice every US listing by the tax amount. Whether tax applies depends on the state and your own situation, so take advice from the IRS, your state's tax authority or a qualified accountant.

Holidays, seasons and delivery networks

The two markets also run on different calendars. Bank holidays, Thanksgiving, school terms and the timing of seasonal demand differ, and each affects prices and delivery dates in its own country. A product that is in short supply in the US in November may be easy to get in the UK, and the reverse. Delivery networks differ too: distances in the US are far larger, so delivery estimates vary more by ZIP code than estimates vary by postcode on the UK mainland.

These differences are one more reason to keep each market's readings, history and settings apart. A handling time that works comfortably for UK listings may be too short for US listings, and a check interval that suits a UK product may be too slow for its busier US equivalent.

Why should each eBay site be priced from its own Amazon marketplace?

An eBay listing promises delivery to buyers in its own country, at a price in its own currency. The cost behind it should come from the same country for three reasons.

• Delivery dates. An Amazon UK delivery estimate tells you nothing about how quickly an item can reach a buyer in Ohio, and the reverse.
• Currency. A cost in the same currency as the sale removes exchange-rate guesswork from your margin.
• Product versions. Plugs, voltages, editions, sizes and labelling differ between markets. The UK version of an electrical item is not what a US buyer expects.

Dropizon is built around this pairing: sources include amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.de, amazon.ca and amazon.com.au, with one Amazon marketplace per eBay account, and a currency guard checks every push. The how it works page explains the set-up.

Whatever the marketplace, the sourcing rule is the same. eBay allows dropshipping from a wholesale supplier, but listing an item and then buying it from another retailer or marketplace that ships directly to your buyer is not allowed under eBay's drop shipping policy, on eBay.com as on eBay.co.uk. You stay responsible for delivery within the time in your listing and for your buyer's satisfaction.

What goes wrong when the two markets get mixed?

Mix-ups between the two sites are common, and their effects can be large.

• A dollar price read as pounds. If Amazon shows a page in dollars because the delivery address is in the US, and the figure is treated as pounds, the eBay UK price can be badly wrong.
• A US list price without tax. The cost looks lower than it is, and the US listing is underpriced.
• Delivery country mismatch. Amazon.com can show prices in another currency, or different offers, if the delivery country is set outside the US. Always check the "Deliver to" line.
• A stale exchange rate. If you convert one market's cost into the other's currency, the rate moves, and a rate fixed months ago can hide a margin loss.

A hypothetical example

Example: suppose a camping lantern reads $29.99 on Amazon.com, but the reading is accidentally recorded as £29.99 for an eBay UK listing. At a hypothetical exchange rate where $29.99 is about £23, the UK cost is overstated by about £7, and the eBay price rises by more than that after markup and fees. The listing stops selling. Run the mistake the other way, with a UK reading treated as dollars for an eBay US listing, and the listing sells below cost. A currency check on every reading catches both before they go live. The same check protects you against the subtler case where Amazon shows prices converted into your home currency for a delivery address abroad, which can look correct at a glance.

What does eBay charge when currencies differ?

If your eBay sales and your payouts are in different currencies, conversion costs come into play. eBay's UK selling fees page says its seller currency conversion charge is 2.5%, rising to 2.75% from 1 December 2026. Read the details on eBay's selling fees page to see when it applies to you.

If you sell on eBay.com and are paid out in pounds, build the conversion charge into your US pricing, alongside fees and any sales tax on your purchases. The same applies in reverse. A margin that looks healthy in one currency can be thin by the time it reaches your bank in another.

Exchange rates add a second layer of movement on top of Amazon's own price changes. If your costs are in one currency and your payouts in another, review your markup whenever the rate moves noticeably, rather than once a year. A small markup leaves little room for a rate that turns against you.

How do you run both markets without mistakes?

1. Pair each eBay account with one Amazon marketplace. eBay UK with Amazon UK, eBay US with Amazon US.
2. Read at an address in the same country. A UK postcode for Amazon.co.uk, a US ZIP code for Amazon.com.
3. Record the currency with every reading. Reject anything that does not match the marketplace.
4. Include US sales tax where you pay it. Add it to your cost, based on advice for your own situation.
5. Allow for conversion charges. If payouts are in a different currency from sales, include eBay's conversion charge in your margin.
6. Check product versions. Make sure the product you price from is the version your buyers expect.
7. Keep separate history. Store each marketplace's readings separately, so one market's prices never appear in the other's history.

What to do next

• List which eBay site each of your listings is on and which Amazon marketplace it prices from.
• Fix any listing priced from the other country's Amazon, and reprice it from a fresh reading in the right marketplace.
• Check the "Deliver to" line and currency on a sample of your recent readings.
• Add sales tax and conversion charges to your US pricing where they apply.
• Read eBay's drop shipping policy for each site you sell on.
• For UK products, use the Amazon UK price comparison and history to see how prices move over time.