Where to Sell eBooks: Take-Home Calculator

Set one ebook sales scenario

The calculator starts at $4.99 and 100 hypothetical paid sales, with a 1 MB converted Kindle file. It compares USD transactions with US readers and original, non-public-domain ebooks sold from direct publisher accounts. Each platform is an alternative for the same sales count.

Payhip processing defaults to an editable example of 2.9% plus $0.30. Replace those values with the applicable processor terms. The input ceiling is this tool’s comparison limit, not a claim that every platform accepts every price or file size. Eligibility warnings remain part of the result.

• Use the converted Kindle size shown by KDP, not the source manuscript size.
• Keep the sales count identical when comparing the alternatives.
• Read the row conditions before using a number in your plan.

1. Compare ebook bookstores

Amazon KDP offers two ebook royalty options in this scenario. The 35% calculation has no delivery deduction. The conditional 70% calculation deducts delivery from price before applying 70%. For US sales, the current 70% price band is $2.99–$12.99, with additional qualification requirements. The calculator does not treat the two options as identical or automatically guarantee a 35% floor under the 70% result.

Apple Books states a 70% ebook royalty without file-delivery fees. Kobo uses a 70% rate for eligible original ebooks at the US $2.99 threshold or above; its terms also require the applicable discount from physical editions. Below the threshold, the original-work scenario uses 45%. Choose a bookstore for reader fit as well as the modeled costs.

Checkpoint: You understand why the retailer rows differ before comparing the dollar amounts.

2. Compare direct ebook sales

For ordinary Gumroad direct card sales, this model deducts 10% plus $0.50 and the separately stated card processing of 2.9% plus $0.30. Gumroad Discover uses a different fee; its 30% includes processing, so it is outside this direct-sale row. Volume discounts and custom rates are also outside the example.

Payhip Free Forever has a 5% platform transaction fee and no monthly plan fee, with payment processing additional. Its processing inputs are assumptions you can edit. Direct sales still need a route to readers. A favorable result in this calculator cannot tell you whether your product page will receive visits or convert them into orders.

Checkpoint: You have included fixed fees and processing instead of comparing headline percentages alone.

3. Check file size and royalty eligibility

In this US scenario, KDP delivery is estimated at $0.15 per MB with a $0.01 minimum. The model rounds file size up to a whole KB and the resulting delivery amount to cents. It uses 1,024 KB per MB as an explicit modeling convention; confirm the actual delivery amount in KDP’s preview.

The 35% minimum US price changes with file size: $0.99 below 3 MB, $1.99 from 3 MB to below 10 MB, and $2.99 at 10 MB or more. An image-heavy ebook can change the comparison. Reduce unnecessary file weight while preserving readability, then review the converted file again.

Checkpoint: The price and converted file size reflect the edition you intend to sell.

4. Separate proceeds from profit

The results multiply rounded per-sale proceeds by the number of sales you enter. They exclude taxes, refunds, currency conversion, marketing, production and other stated costs. Real statements may use different rounding stages. Compare the actual account report before using the estimate for bookkeeping.

A negative direct-sale result means the modeled fees exceed the price; it is not hidden by rounding it to zero. For a KDP 70% case with delivery at or above price, the calculator asks you to check the publishing preview rather than presenting a valid payout. No row predicts how many copies you will sell.

Checkpoint: Your budget includes costs beyond the displayed platform proceeds.

5. Choose a channel you can support

Use the result alongside practical questions: how will readers find the listing, which reading app or file do they prefer, and what distribution commitments have you made? If you choose KDP Select, its digital exclusivity changes where the same ebook can be offered during enrollment.

Prepare the manuscript in Bookeen, review the delivery edition and check the actual platform preview before launch. After sales begin, compare the statement with your assumptions. Update the plan using real evidence rather than treating the initial calculator result as a permanent platform ranking.

Checkpoint: Your choice considers readers, costs and commitments together.

Worked example: a $4.99 ebook

These are hypothetical calculations at 100 individual sales, using the default inputs and assuming retailer eligibility. They are not verified transactions or sales forecasts.

Amazon KDP 35%

$1.75 per sale; $175.00 for 100 sales.

Amazon KDP 70%

70% × ($4.99 − $0.15) = $3.39 after rounding; $339.00 for 100 sales.

Apple Books and eligible Kobo 70%

$3.49 per sale; $349.00 for 100 sales on either alternative.

Gumroad direct card sale

$3.55 per sale after the modeled standard fees; $355.00 for 100 sales.

Payhip Free with example processing

$4.30 per sale using 2.9% + $0.30 processing; $430.00 for 100 sales.

The alternatives assume the same sales volume to isolate listed costs. That makes the arithmetic comparable; it does not make the audiences, discoverability or actual sales equal. Bookeen helps prepare the book; the channel and your reach determine how readers encounter the offer.

What this ebook calculator does not include

This is a USD, US-reader comparison of individual paid ebook sales. It is not a global tax calculator, publishing eligibility checker or Kindle Unlimited earnings forecast.

Taxes on transactions, income tax, withholding, refunds, chargebacks, currency conversion, bank costs, affiliates, aggregators, advertising and production costs are excluded. Fees assessed on a tax-inclusive payment may differ from this pre-tax model. Excluding tax from an example does not mean a sale is tax-free.

Gumroad volume and custom tiers, Discover sales and PayPal processing are not modeled. Payhip paid monthly plans are not modeled. KDP price matching and Kindle Unlimited page-read payments are excluded. Read the linked current terms and your own account conditions before treating a row as applicable.

Build the ebook behind the numbers with Bookeen

A proceeds comparison becomes useful when it describes a real book and reader. Bookeen is an AI book creator for outlining, drafting and revising that manuscript. Keep the audience promise, chapter contents and sales description aligned.

Use the book creator to work on the material you control. Review the exported reading file and complete platform checks separately. Bookeen does not guarantee a royalty option, store acceptance or a sales volume.

• Develop the outline around the reader you plan to reach.
• Revise the manuscript before using it to write listing copy.
• Revisit the calculator when the price or converted file changes.

Where to sell ebooks: calculator questions