How are printing costs and print royalties calculated?

With print on demand, each copy has a manufacturing cost, and your royalty is what is left after that and the store's share.

What drives print cost

• Page count — more pages cost more (the biggest factor).
• Trim size — see trim sizes.
• Colour — black-and-white interiors are far cheaper than colour.

The royalty math

For each sale, roughly: Your royalty = list price − print cost − retailer's share.

So your job is to set a list price that covers the print cost and leaves a healthy margin, while staying competitive for your genre.

Tips

• Keep page count efficient (a sensible trim helps).
• Price in line with comparable paperbacks, not your ebook.
• Remember ebook and print are separate prices and margins. For ebook earnings, see how much will I earn.

Print royalties flow into your monthly payout alongside ebook earnings.

Still need help? Open a ticket from your dashboard or email [email protected] — a real person replies.