Amazon is known as a giant online marketplace, but Amazon Marketplace is actually the name given to Amazon products that are sold by third-party sellers, i.e., not directly from Amazon. While it can be a little confusing, it’s important to understand exactly what Amazon Marketplace is.
As well, if you have a specific Amazon Marketplace charge on your credit card, you may be wondering: What is an Amazon Marketplace charge?
What Is Amazon Marketplace Charge?
The Amazon Marketplace charge is what Amazon charges third-party sellers to sell their products on the e-commerce site. Depending on what they sell, how many items are sold, and the price of the items, third-party sellers will all pay different Amazon Marketplace charges.
In this article, we will discuss why Amazon is charging for Amazon Marketplace, as well as exactly what Amazon Marketplace is, including how it works, whether or not it’s safe to buy from, and so much more!
Why Is Amazon Charging for Amazon Marketplace?
One of the main ways in which Amazon makes money is through Amazon Marketplace charges. Essentially, Amazon has created the world’s largest online marketplace and offers this platform to hundreds of thousands of third-party sellers as a safe and trusted location to sell their products.
This system is beneficial to all parties: consumers can find the items they want all in one place, third-party sellers do not need to create and promote their own website or store, and Amazon makes a profit from these sales to keep the entire operation running smoothly.
So, to answer our original question: Amazon charges for Amazon Marketplace as part of its business model to be able to continue offering a third-party e-commerce site to its customers.
How Do I Stop Paying for Amazon Marketplace?
If you are an Amazon third-party seller, there is no way to stop paying Amazon marketplace payments unless you stop selling on Amazon.
When it comes to selling on Amazon Marketplace, there are several types of seller profiles to choose from, and each one comes with different fees. If you want to change your profile type in order to decrease charges from Amazon Marketplace, you will have to do a little research to find out which option has the lowest charge while still ensuring you can sell what you want to sell.
If you want to completely stop paying for Amazon Marketplace, you will have to close your seller account.
- Fulfill any outstanding orders.
- Wait 90 days after your last sale to ensure the A-to-z Guarantee claims period is honored.
- Wait until you have a zero balance in your account (your next disbursement or charge date).
- Resolve all of your transactions with buyers, including issuing any necessary refunds.
- Confirm that you have valid bank account information on file to receive the final payment.
- Check your Performance Notifications to make sure that all the reasons for your account’s suspension have been resolved and your account is restored.
It’s important to note that once you permanently close your seller account, it cannot be reactivated, and you will need to create an entirely new one if you want to continue selling on Amazon.
Is Amazon Marketplace the Same as Amazon?
Amazon Marketplace is technically not the same as Amazon; however, it can be extremely confusing as both services are offered on Amazon’s site and app without much differentiation.
Amazon is the name of the entire company, which sells brand-name as well as private-label products through its fulfillment centers, offers online web services, memberships, and so much more. Amazon Marketplace is the facet of the company which sells products from third-party sellers who send their own items to Amazon customers.
When you shop on Amazon.com, Amazon Marketplace items will be included in your browsing, but if you want to search solely on Amazon Marketplace, you will have to specifically search for third-party items or individual seller profiles.
How Do I Find My Amazon Marketplace Purchases?
As an Amazon consumer, it is quite easy to find all your Amazon purchases in one place within the Your Orders menu of your account.
However, there is no real way to only find your Amazon Marketplace purchases. All items purchased from Amazon or Amazon Marketplace will be listed in the same place, and you will have to read the details of each item to know whether they were sold directly from Amazon or from a third-party seller on the marketplace platform.
If you do want to find all your Amazon and Amazon Marketplace purchases, here’s what you can do:
- Sign in to your Amazon or Amazon Prime account.
- Click the Accounts & Lists menu on the top right corner of the page.
- Navigate to Your Orders.
Everything you have purchased on Amazon or Amazon Marketplace will be listed here.
It’s also interesting to know that if you have made a purchase on Amazon Marketplace, an Amazon Marketplace credit card charge will not appear any different than a standard Amazon charge, so you will not be able to tell what is an Amazon marketplace item.
How Do I Contact Amazon Marketplace?
As you now know, Amazon Marketplace is a platform within Amazon that allows third-party sellers to sell products from their small to medium-sized businesses on Amazon.com.
If you are having an issue with an item you purchased from a third-party seller on Amazon Marketplace, or if you simply have a question about a specific product or delivery time, you can either contact Amazon’s standard customer service team on their site or 24-hour phone line, or you can contact the third-party seller directly.
The good news is that Amazon offers specific instructions to follow to contact an Amazon Marketplace seller!
To contact a Marketplace seller before placing an order:
- On the product detail page, select the name of the seller.
- On the next page, select Ask a question.
- Select the appropriate options in the Seller Messaging Assistant chat or fill out the contact form.
- Your message will be sent to the seller via the Buyer-Seller Messaging Service.
- They will respond to you by email within two business days.
To contact a Marketplace seller after placing an order:
- Navigate to Your Orders.
- Next to the relevant order, select Contact seller.
- Your message will be sent to the seller via The Buyer-Seller Messaging Service.
- They will respond to you by email within two business days.
Is It Safe to Buy on Amazon Marketplace?
Amazon is one of the most trusted and reliable companies in the world, and it certainly is safe to buy on Amazon Marketplace.
It’s important to note that while all Amazon Marketplace sellers do have to be approved by Amazon and are backed by Amazon’s A to Z guarantee, there are some sellers who are better than others.
Before you make a purchase from Amazon Marketplace, you should read the seller’s reviews to ensure previous customers have received the items they ordered in a timely manner and as described on the page.
You can feel safe buying on the Amazon Marketplace because if, for any reason, the item you ordered and received from Amazon Marketplace is damaged upon arrival, different from described, or incorrect in any way, Amazon guarantees you will receive a free refund upon initiating a return.
How Many Amazon Marketplaces Are There?
Amazon technically has 19 different marketplaces; however, there is only one in the United States. The other 18 Amazon Marketplaces are based in other countries around the globe.
Here are the countries that host Amazon Marketplaces for third-party sellers:
- United States
- Canada
- Mexico
- United Kingdom
- Germany
- France
- Italy
- Spain
- Japan
- Singapore
- United Arab Emirates
- Brazil
- Australia
- India
- Netherlands
- Saudi Arabia
- Turkey
- Sweden
- Poland
If you live in one of these countries, you have the opportunity to sell your own products on Amazon Marketplace!
What Is the Biggest Marketplace on Amazon?
Without a doubt, the biggest marketplace on Amazon is in the United States.
There are currently more than 500,000 third-party sellers based in the US on the country’s Amazon Marketplace, and more than 50% of Amazon.com’s sales in the US come from third-party sellers.
While Amazon Marketplaces in other countries are slowly growing, with 60% of all of Amazon’s customers being based in the United States, it’s fairly safe to say that the US-based Marketplace will continue to be the largest for the foreseeable future.
Conclusion
An Amazon Marketplace charge is Amazon’s fee for third-party sellers who sell their products on Amazon’s e-commerce platform. The charge can vary depending on the type of seller profile, the price tag of the items, how many products are actually sold, and where in the world the seller is located.