Part of: KDP Publishing Guide: Low-Content Books · KDP low-content publishing
Amazon ads for books are pay-per-click ads KDP authors run from the KDP Bookshelf or the Amazon Ads console. Start with a Sponsored Products automatic campaign on a small daily budget (the minimum is $1), then move converting search terms into a manual campaign. Keep ACoS below your break-even: royalty ÷ list price.
| Ad type | Where it shows | Who it suits | Billing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sponsored Products | Search results and other book pages | Every author — the starting point | Cost per click |
| Sponsored Brands | A banner above search results with several of your books | Authors with three or more books | Cost per click |
Both run on an auction with a minimum daily budget of $1.00. Your book's cover, title and content are reviewed as part of the ad, and ads must suit a general audience. You can start a Sponsored Products campaign from your KDP Bookshelf or the Amazon Ads console, signing in with your KDP account.
ACoS (advertising cost of sales) is ad spend divided by ad sales. If you spend $20 and sell $50 of books through ads, your ACoS is 40%. You break even when ACoS equals your royalty as a share of the list price.
| Book | List price | Royalty per sale | Break-even ACoS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ebook, 70% royalty | $4.99 | about $3.49 | about 70% |
| Paperback, 6 × 9 in, 200 pages, black ink | $12.99 | $4.39 | 34% |
| Low-content journal, 120 pages | $9.99 | $3.55 | 36% |
| Low-content journal, 120 pages | $9.49 | $2.31 | 24% |
Paperback royalty = 60% of list price at $9.99 and above (50% below) minus printing cost of $1.00 + $0.012 per page (US, black ink, 110+ pages). Ebook royalty is before the small delivery fee.
The KDP royalty calculator gives the royalty for your own trim, pages and price.
Insight: Your break-even decides your maximum bid. If a book earns $3.55 per sale and one in ten clicks buys, you can afford about $0.35 a click before losing money. Bid above that only if you are deliberately buying reviews and rank for a series.
For the publishing side — trim, interiors and royalties — see the KDP publishing guide. Selling on Etsy too? Are Etsy ads worth it applies the same break-even test to Etsy Ads.
You set the budget. Amazon charges per click through an auction, so cost depends on your bids and competition. The minimum daily budget for Sponsored Products is $1.00, and many authors test with $5–$10 a day.
Any ACoS below your break-even, which is your royalty divided by the list price. A 70% royalty ebook breaks even near 70% ACoS; a low-royalty paperback can break even nearer 30%. Authors with series often accept a higher ACoS on book one.
Sometimes, but margins are thin. A 120-page $9.99 journal earns about $3.55 in royalty, so each sale can only afford a few clicks. Test with exact-match keywords and pause targets that get 25–35 clicks without an order.
Both, in that order. An automatic campaign shows you the search terms buyers actually use; a manual campaign then bids on the ones that convert, at prices you control.
Not strictly, but ads send traffic to your book page, and a page with no reviews or a weak cover converts poorly. Fix the cover, description and look-inside first, then spend on traffic.
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