Today's tip · Pricing
Your deal is ready. Is your offer even the one shoppers see?
Amazon posted a Pricing Health checklist for Black Friday this week, and its warning is blunt: if your offer isn't the Featured Offer, shoppers working through their deal lists may never see it. Seven days before Black Friday Week opens, that is a better use of an hour than another bid change.
Pricing Health sorts your problems into three piles. Deactivated offers are listings Amazon pulled for a potential pricing error, such as a price that fell below the minimum you set. Featured Offer disqualified means your total price, selling price plus shipping, sits above the competitive external price or well above recent prices. The third pile is the hopeful one: offers within 5% of the current Featured Offer, where a small change could tip it.
Most of these come with a one-click default action in the Action column, Amazon says. That is the whole appeal. You are not rebuilding a pricing strategy in November, you are clearing a queue.
The order matters. A deactivated offer sells nothing, so fix those first. A disqualified one still sells, just without the Add to Cart button shoppers actually press. The 5% pile is where you decide, offer by offer, whether the margin is worth the button.
Categories and wording from Amazon's Pricing Health post in the Seller Forums and Sell on Amazon's pricing guide.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
Data desk by XENA IntelligenceThe weekend plan
- 01Open Pricing Health
In Seller Central, hover over Pricing and select Pricing Health. Start with the deactivated offers, since those sell nothing at all.
- 02Clear the disqualified list
For each offer, compare your total price, item plus shipping, with the competitive external price and the reference prices shown.
- 03Use the default actions
Amazon says most pricing opportunities have a one-click default action in the Action column. Read it, then apply it.
- 04Dispute what is stale
If a competitive reference price looks outdated, dispute it through Seller Assistant. Amazon says automated resolution can take as little as 30 minutes.
- 05Decide on the 5% pile
Offers within 5% of the Featured Offer price are the close calls. Match the price where the margin holds, and leave the rest alone.
Section 02
This week's checklist
7 jobs pulled from this issue, in the order the deadlines bite. Tick them off as you go. Your browser remembers the ticks, nobody else sees them, and a fresh list comes with each issue.
0 of 7 done
Section 03
The seller calendar
Every date Amazon has put in writing for the season, plus the two everyone knows. October is zoomed in on the chart because that's where the trouble is.
Peak fulfillment fees run Oct 15 to Jan 14. Plus $0.32 per unit on average, with the 3.5% surcharge on top.
| Date | What happens | Type | Countdown | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime Big Deal Days (Oct 6 to 7) | Shopping event | Done | About Amazon | |
| AWD arrival deadline for Black Friday Week | Inventory | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Holiday peak fulfillment fees begin | Fees | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Original Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal deadline (Amazon has since extended it to Nov 13) | Deals | Done | Seller Central News | |
| FBA arrival deadline, minimal shipment splits | Inventory | Done | Seller Central News | |
| FBA arrival deadline, Amazon-optimized splits (most sellers) | Inventory | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Business Hour Delivery Rate review: seller-fulfilled offers under 90% may be deactivated for Amazon Business customers | Offer | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Last day of off-peak storage for AWD with auto-replenishment | Inventory | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Confirm New Selection Program (2026) enrollment to keep launch fee credits | Fees | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Extended holiday returns begin: items bought Nov 1 to Dec 31 can come back until Jan 31 | Returns | Done | Seller Central News | |
| New commercial liability insurance requirements take effect: a $1 million policy for products in categories with enhanced safety listing requirements, with no sales threshold | Policy | Done | Seller Central News | |
| Virtual multipacks from the latest pilot wave become available to customers | Offer | Done | Seller Central Help | |
| Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal sourcing closes (extended from Oct 20) | Deals | Tomorrow | Seller Central News | |
| Amazon finishes rolling out lithium battery TIC compliance notifications in Account Health for US smart home and consumer electronics | Policy | In 4 days | Seller Forums | |
| Ask Amazon: Seller Assistant live Q&A in the Seller Forums, 8 AM to 5 PM PT (questions open now) | Shopping event | In 6 days | Seller Forums | |
| Amazon's Black Friday Week and Cyber Monday deal events run from 12:01 a.m. PT on Nov 19 through Nov 30 | Shopping event | In 7 days | About Amazon | |
| Prime for Young Adults members get 20% cash back on a selection of trending products, Nov 24 only | Shopping event | In 12 days | About Amazon | |
| Black Friday | Shopping event | In 15 days | Calendar | |
| Cyber Monday | Shopping event | In 18 days | Calendar | |
| Last day to create an international FBA shipment plan covered by Amazon's 45-day related-shipment and 90-day closure extensions | Inventory | In 18 days | Seller Central News | |
| Prepaid return labels required for most US seller-fulfilled returns (heavy and bulky items excepted for now) | Returns | In 36 days | Seller Forums | |
| Last day to sign up for the free 12-month Amazon Quick Plus subscription | Offer | In 49 days | About Amazon | |
| Last purchase date covered by the extended holiday return window | Returns | In 49 days | Seller Central News | |
| Updated product bundling policy takes effect: most single-ASIN bundles must be packaged by the original manufacturer or brand | Policy | In 60 days | Seller Central News | |
| Holiday peak fulfillment fees end | Fees | In 63 days | Seller Central News | |
| Most 2027 US referral and FBA fulfillment fee changes take effect | Fees | In 64 days | Amazon | |
| Last day to return holiday purchases under the extended window | Returns | In 80 days | Seller Central News | |
| Storage utilization surcharge ends; age-based storage rates and the rewritten low-inventory-level fee begin | Fees | In 81 days | Amazon | |
| Last day to enroll in FBA New Selection Program 2026 (window extended) | Fees | In 139 days | Seller Central News |
Add every date to your calendar (.ics)Works with Google Calendar, Outlook and Apple Calendar. Re-download after big announcements.
Sources: Seller Forums, Ask Amazon: Seller Assistant, Canvas and Workflows, About Amazon, Seller Assistant, Seller Central News, Business hour delivery requirement for seller-fulfilled shipments, Seller Central News, New requirements for product bundles starting January 11, Seller Central News, Black Friday Cyber Monday deals deadline extended, Amazon, 2027 US referral and FBA fee update, Seller Central News, Holiday 2026, Seller Central News, New commercial liability insurance requirements, Seller Forums, New lithium battery requirements (US), Seller Forums, Amazon's prepaid return label notice and moderator clarification, Seller Central News, 2026 holiday return policy, Seller Central Help, Virtual multipacks, About Amazon, Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2026: a first look at Amazon's best deals
Fee watch
The changes that cost money this year, newest last. If Amazon hasn't announced it, it isn't here.
Since Jan 15, 2026
2026 US fee update
FBA fees rose by an average of $0.08 per unit. Amazon added no new fee types for 2026.
Amazon, 2026 US referral and FBA fee updateSince Apr 17, 2026
Fuel and logistics surcharge
3.5% on FBA fulfillment fees, about $0.17 per unit on average in the US. Multi-Channel Fulfillment and Buy with Prime followed on May 2.
Seller Central News, Fuel and logistics surchargeSince Sep 2026
MCF Preferred Pricing Program
Discounted Multi-Channel Fulfillment fees plus FBA credits per unit shipped. Amazon says sellers save 15% to 25% on fulfillment fees for the first six months, with no contract and one-click enrollment in Seller Central.
About Amazon, Prime delivery for MCF merchants' websitesOct 15, 2026 to Jan 14, 2027
Holiday peak fulfillment fees
About $0.32 more per unit on average, with the 3.5% surcharge calculated on top.
Seller Central News, Holiday 2026Holiday deal events
Deal fees
$100 upfront per promotion plus 1.5% of promotional sales, capped at $5,000, for Best Deals, Lightning Deals and Prime Exclusive Price Discounts.
Seller Central News, Holiday 2026Nov 1, 2026 to Jan 31, 2027
Extended holiday returns
Orders placed Nov 1 to Dec 31 can be returned until Jan 31, 2027, for FBA and seller-fulfilled orders alike. Budget for a slower, larger return wave.
Seller Central News, 2026 holiday return policyAnnounced Nov 5, 2026; most changes Jan 15, 2027
2027 US referral and FBA fee update
On average, FBA fulfillment fees rise by $0.19 per unit sold (about 0.8% of the average item's selling price). Some products go up, some go down. The FBA fuel and logistics surcharge stays unchanged. Effective Feb 1, 2027, Amazon eliminates the storage utilization surcharge, folds the aged inventory surcharge into a single age-based monthly storage rate, and rewrites the low-inventory-level fee around 28 days of supply.
Amazon, 2027 US referral and FBA fee update
Section 04
By the numbers
Four figures worth knowing this week. Each one is Amazon's own, linked to where they said it.
the gap to the Featured Offer price that puts an offer on Pricing Health's close-call list
Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)the fastest automated resolution Amazon cites for a competitive price dispute in Seller Assistant
Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)the window behind Typical Price, the median price buyers paid, one of Pricing Health's benchmarks
Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)until Black Friday Week opens at 12:01 a.m. PT on November 19
About Amazon, Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2026: a first look at Amazon's best dealsSection 05
The playbook
3 moves for this week, then a few quick ones for the train.
Pricing
The competitor dropped its price in August. Amazon may still think it's August.
Pricing Health shows the benchmarks it judges you against: the Featured Offer price, the 60-day average selling price, the Typical Price, which is the 90-day median, and a few more. Any one of them can go stale, and a stale competitive price is the one that hurts, because it can disqualify an offer that is priced fairly today.
Amazon now lets you dispute an outdated competitive reference price directly through Seller Assistant, with no escalation queue. It says automated resolution can happen in as little as 30 minutes. That is faster than most people take to find the right help page.
Do this: Pick the three disqualified offers that sold best last November and, for each one, ask Seller Assistant to review the competitive reference price before Monday.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
From Amazon's Pricing Health post: Typical Price is the 90-day median price paid, and the average selling price covers 60 days. Shown in days.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
Data desk by XENA IntelligencePricing
A repricer that only knows how to go down needs a floor
Automate Pricing is free, and Amazon's pre-defined competitive price rule does one simple thing. It matches the competitive external price or the Featured Offer price, whichever is lower. Amazon's own pitch for Black Friday is that prices shift fast that week and the rule keeps up while you sleep.
The floor is the part you own. Set it at the price where the unit still makes money after fees and ads, not at a round number that felt safe in July. Set it too low and you can win the button on every sale and lose money on every one of them.
Do this: Before turning on the competitive price rule, write down a minimum price per SKU from your actual landed cost, referral fee and FBA fee, and enter that as the floor.
Sources: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026), Sell on Amazon, Amazon pricing strategies
- Matches the competitive external price or the Featured Offer price
- Picks whichever of the two is lower
- Stops at the minimum price you set
- Adjusts prices in real time once a rule is applied
From Amazon's Pricing Health post and Sell on Amazon's pricing guide, which describes Automate Pricing as free.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
Data desk by XENA IntelligenceMarket
Your Featured Offer percentage is a chart you already own
Amazon points sellers to Business Reports, then the Detail Page Sales and Traffic by Child Item report, where Featured Offer percentage sits by ASIN and can be graphed over time. Most brands open that report for sessions and never scroll right.
Graph it for the last few weeks before the event, not after. A child ASIN that slid from most days to some days is telling you about price, stock or shipping speed while there is still time to fix it.
Do this: Export Detail Page Sales and Traffic by Child Item for the last 30 days, sort by Featured Offer percentage, and open Pricing Health for the bottom five.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
Know your Featured Offer percentage.
Quick hits
04Operations
Shipping is part of the price Amazon checks
Pricing Health compares your total price, selling price plus shipping, with the competitive external price. Amazon's pricing guide also lists excessive shipping fees among the tactics to avoid. A low item price with a hefty shipping charge does not fool the math.
Sources: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026), Sell on Amazon, Amazon pricing strategies
05Account Health
Price is not the only thing deciding the button
Amazon says Order Defect Rate, Pre-Fulfillment Cancellation Rate and Late Shipment Rate can count against an offer when it is considered for the Featured Offer, and that running out of stock can knock an item out entirely. A perfect price on an empty shelf wins nothing.
Sources: Sell on Amazon, Amazon pricing strategies, About Amazon, Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2026: a first look at Amazon's best deals
Section 06
The wire
What changed lately, straight from Amazon. We read the announcement so you can read the summary.
- Deals
Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal sourcing closes tomorrow
Prime Exclusive Discounts are created under Advertising, then Price Discounts, by selecting Events from the drop-down menu.
via Seller Central News, Black Friday Cyber Monday deals deadline extended - Pricing
Amazon posts a Pricing Health checklist for Black Friday
Clear deactivated offers, fix Featured Offer disqualifications, consider Automate Pricing and track Featured Offer percentage in Business Reports.
via Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026) - Pricing
Competitive reference prices can be disputed in Seller Assistant
Amazon says sellers no longer need an escalation, and automated resolution can happen in as little as 30 minutes.
via Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
Follow for more
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One short email when a new issue lands. Amazon's news without the press-release voice, and one move worth making that week. No upsells, no "ultimate guides."
Section 07
Straight answers
The questions sellers are typing into search bars and chatbots this week, answered in under a minute each. Every answer is grounded in Amazon's own announcement, linked below it.
What is Pricing Health on Amazon?
Pricing Health is a free Seller Central dashboard, found under Pricing, that shows offers deactivated for potential pricing errors, offers disqualified from the Featured Offer because their total price is not competitive, and offers priced within 5% of the current Featured Offer price. Most issues come with a one-click default action.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
Why is my Amazon offer not the Featured Offer?
Amazon says an offer can be disqualified when its total price, selling price plus shipping, is above the competitive external price or significantly higher than recent prices. Order Defect Rate, Pre-Fulfillment Cancellation Rate, Late Shipment Rate and running out of stock can also count against an offer.
How do I dispute a competitive price on Amazon?
If you think a competitive reference price shown in Pricing Health is outdated, Amazon says you can dispute it directly through Seller Assistant in Seller Central, without waiting for an escalation. Automated resolution can happen in as little as 30 minutes, according to Amazon's November 2026 Pricing Health post.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
What does Amazon's competitive price rule do?
The pre-defined competitive price rule in Automate Pricing automatically matches the competitive external price or the Featured Offer price, whichever is lower, and never goes below the minimum price you set. Amazon describes Automate Pricing as a free tool that adjusts prices in real time once a rule is applied.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
Where do I find my Featured Offer percentage on Amazon?
In Seller Central, open Business Reports and choose the Detail Page Sales and Traffic by Child Item report. It shows Featured Offer percentage for each child ASIN, and Amazon suggests graphing it over time to spot a slide before big events such as Black Friday Week, which opens November 19, 2026.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)
What is Typical Price on Amazon?
Typical Price is the 90-day median price that customers paid for a product on Amazon. Pricing Health shows it next to other benchmarks such as the Featured Offer price and the 60-day average selling price, so sellers can see which reference prices their offers are being judged against before a sale.
Source: Seller Forums, Amazon's Pricing Health tips for peak (Nov 2026)