Amazon is introducing a new fee structure for its Selling Partner API (SP-API), marking the end of the free access that developers have enjoyed since introduction of the API in 2009 (formerly called Marketplace Web Services).
- Starting January 31, 2026, all developers will be charged an annual subscription fee of $1400, which includes access to the Solution Provider Portal, support services, and production usage of SP-API.
- New developers to sign up before then will be charged after their first production SP-API service call, while existing third-party developers will see charges begin on this date.
- Starting April 30, 2026, Amazon will implement a monthly API usage fee based on your GET API call volume. Developers can choose from four tiers — Basic, Pro, Plus, and Enterprise — which range from an additional $0 to $10,000 per month and include packages of GET Calls ranging from 2.5M to 250M.
- Additional API calls beyond those packages will cost $0.40 per thousand calls.
- Amazon published a Call Optimization Guidance Page with best practices and tools to help developers make more efficient API calls.
- All developers are required to activate their subscription by Feb 16, 2026, or risk losing access to SP-API until they have provided payment and tax information.
PPC Land notes that sellers and vendors using SP-API directly for only their own businesses will not face additional SP-API fees. The new API fees apply exclusively to third-party developers who build applications serving other selling partners.
Third-party software companies that build applications serving Amazon sellers will initially bear these costs, but it's expected that eventually they'll be passed on to sellers through higher SaaS fees.
The changes are expected to force developers of third-party tools to optimize their API calls for efficiency, and of course, make Amazon some money!
