FBA vs FBM offers on Amazon: what the seller type means for your costs and delivery dates

What is the difference between FBA vs FBM offers?

The difference between FBA vs FBM offers comes down to who holds and sends the stock. FBA, Fulfilled by Amazon, means a third-party seller has sent its stock to Amazon's warehouses and Amazon picks, packs and delivers each order. FBM, fulfilled by merchant (also called seller fulfilled), means the seller keeps the stock and dispatches orders itself. A third kind of offer is sold and dispatched by Amazon, where Amazon owns the stock outright.

All three can appear on the same product page, and any one of them can be the offer in the buy box, the panel with the main Add to Basket button that most shoppers buy from. For an eBay seller who prices from Amazon, the type of offer changes the cost, the delivery charge and the delivery date, so it is worth knowing which one each reading came from.

How can you tell which kind of offer you are looking at?

Look at two lines in the buy box or in the list of other sellers.

On some pages these lines are shown as "Ships from" and "Sold by", or combined into one line. The meaning is the same. If you track products, record both lines with every reading. When neither line is visible, open the list of other sellers, where each offer shows its own delivery details and seller name.

How do FBA and FBM offers compare?

Every seller is different, so treat this as the usual pattern rather than a rule for every offer.

The two lines that matter most for your eBay pricing are the delivery charge and the delivery estimate. Both change your real cost and your ability to keep the promise in your listing.

Why does the offer type matter for your eBay price?

Your eBay price should rest on what the product really costs you, and your delivery promise should rest on when it would really arrive. A change of offer type can move both at once.

The delivery charge is part of the cost

An FBM offer at £12.49 plus £3.99 delivery costs £16.48, not £12.49. If your tracker reads only the item price, it sees a cheaper offer and may lower your eBay price when it should raise it.

The delivery date shapes your handling time

An offer that arrives in five to eight days cannot support an eBay listing that promises dispatch within a day. Either the listing's times must match, or the listing should not be on sale while that is the only offer.

A hypothetical example

Example: suppose a garden hose fitting is in the buy box as an FBA offer at £8.99 with free delivery, arriving tomorrow. You price your eBay listing from £8.99. The FBA seller runs out, and the buy box moves to an FBM seller at £7.99 plus £2.95 delivery, arriving in three to five days. Your real cost is now £10.94, almost £2 more, and the delivery is slower. The right response is to reprice from £10.94 and check whether the new date fits your listing, or set quantity to zero until a faster offer returns.

Stock behaves differently too

Offer types also differ in how their stock runs out. An FBA seller's stock sits in Amazon's warehouses, and when it sells through, the seller has to send more in before the offer returns, which can take days or weeks. An FBM seller's stock sits with the seller, so the offer can return as soon as the seller restocks, but it can also vanish suddenly if the seller pauses its account or goes on holiday. Amazon's own offer can show a later dispatch date when stock is low, rather than disappearing.

These patterns explain a lot of what you see in your readings. An offer that flickers in and out from day to day is often FBM. An offer that disappears for a few weeks and then returns with the same seller is often FBA waiting on a delivery into Amazon. Neither is certain, but recording the offer type helps you read the pattern.

What does eBay's policy say about sourcing from Amazon sellers?

The seller type does not change eBay's rules. eBay permits dropshipping when you fulfil orders directly from a wholesale supplier. Listing an item on eBay and then buying it from another retailer or marketplace that ships directly to your buyer is not allowed under eBay's drop shipping policy, and that applies whether the offer is Amazon's own, FBA or FBM.

Whatever your sourcing model, you are responsible for safe delivery within the time frame in your listing and for your buyer's satisfaction. Knowing the offer type helps you price and plan accurately; it does not make any sourcing method acceptable to eBay.

How should you handle offer changes in your repricing?

Because the buy box can switch between offer types without warning, build the switch into how you read and price.

1. Record the offer type with every reading. Note "Dispatches from" and "Sold by", so you can see when the type changes.
2. Add the delivery charge to the cost. Always price from item price plus delivery.
3. Check the delivery estimate against your handling time. Hold or zero a listing whose only offer cannot arrive in time.
4. Flag large jumps. A switch from FBA to FBM often moves the cost by more than a normal price change. Review it before it goes live.
5. Watch for the return. When the faster offer comes back, reprice again from the new reading.

Keep an eye on how often each product switches. A product whose buy box moves between Amazon, FBA and FBM sellers several times a week needs more frequent readings and a wider margin than one with a single steady seller. If the switching makes the product unprofitable more often than not, it may be better removed from your range altogether. Your reading log will show which products these are within a few weeks.

Software can do this for you. Dropizon reads the live buy box, including price, stock, seller and delivery estimate, at the postcode you choose, and reprices with your own formula and a minimum profit floor. The documentation covers how each reading is used, and the Amazon buy box explained post covers the rest of the buy box in detail.

Which offer type should you prefer?

There is no single best type. Each has trade-offs, and the right choice depends on your listing's promise. The question to ask of any offer is the same: if an eBay buyer ordered now, would this offer let you deliver the item new, on time and at a profit?

• If your listing promises quick dispatch, only offers that arrive fast fit, which in practice often means Amazon's own stock or FBA.
• If your listing allows a longer handling time, more offers fit, but your buyer waits longer and the risk of a late delivery rises.
• If an FBM offer is much cheaper, check the delivery charge and the seller's delivery window before treating it as cheaper at all.
• If the offer type keeps changing, price from the dearer of the usual offers, or use a wider margin, so a switch does not wipe out your profit.

A quick checklist for reading offer types

• Read "Dispatches from" and "Sold by" on every reading and store them.
• Price from the item price plus any delivery charge.
• Compare the delivery estimate with your listing's handling time and delivery date.
• Review any reading where the offer type changed before pushing a new price.
• Widen the margin on products where the buy box often switches between types, and review those products every month.
• Read eBay's drop shipping policy and check your sourcing model against it.