FBA margin guides

Amazon Aged Inventory Surcharge & Overstock Fees: What They Cost You in 2026

If you sell wholesale on Amazon, you've probably heard "365 days" as the danger line for old stock. That line is out of date. The aged inventory surcharge now kicks in at 181 days, and it gets steeper the longer a unit sits. By the time most sellers notice, the fee has often eaten the profit on that unit.

When the surcharge starts

Any unit that has been in an Amazon warehouse for 181 days or more gets charged. It is billed every month, on top of your normal storage fee, not instead of it. The rate climbs in steps as the stock gets older, with the biggest jumps after about 9 months and again after a year.

One thing that trips sellers up: Amazon counts age "first in, first out" across the whole network. Sending in a fresh shipment does not reset the clock on your older units.

The 2026 rates for your oldest stock

Amazon charges whichever is higher: a per-unit fee or a per-cubic-foot fee. For stock over a year old, as of January 2026:

• 12 to 15 months: $0.30 per unit or $6.90 per cubic foot, every month
• Over 15 months: $0.35 per unit or $7.90 per cubic foot, every month

The 12–15 month per-unit rate doubled in 2026, and the 15+ month tier is new. For small items, the per-unit fee usually wins, so your cost is driven by how many units are sitting, not how big they are. Amazon changes these rates from time to time, so confirm the current numbers in Seller Central before big decisions.

Amazon overstock fees: the other cost stacking on top

Old stock is not the only penalty. Two more storage costs pile onto slow inventory:

• Q4 storage jumps about 3x. Standard-size storage is $0.78 per cubic foot from January to September, then $2.40 from October to December. Stock you don't need for the holidays costs far more to hold starting October 1.
• Storage utilization surcharge. If you hold many weeks of inventory compared to what you sell, Amazon adds an extra fee per cubic foot on top of the base rate. Overstocking a slow seller is what triggers it.

Put together, a unit that sits too long can cost you three separate fees at once: base storage, the aged surcharge, and the overstock surcharge.

What to actually do about it

1. Pull your Inventory Age report in Seller Central.
2. Flag anything past 150 days, so you can act before the 181-day surcharge starts.
3. For each one, ask: is this still profitable once the storage fees are added in? If not, reprice it, liquidate it, or remove it.
4. Time it right. Amazon takes its inventory snapshot on the 15th of each month. A removal order placed before the 15th avoids that month's surcharge.

Common questions

Is the aged inventory surcharge the same as the long-term storage fee?
Yes. Amazon replaced the old long-term storage fee with the aged inventory surcharge. The big changes: it starts earlier (181 days), and it's charged monthly instead of twice a year.

Does sending new inventory reset the age of my old units?
No. Amazon assumes your oldest units sell first, so older stock keeps aging no matter what you send in.

How do I avoid the surcharge?
Sell, liquidate, or remove units before they reach 181 days, and place removal orders before the 15th of the month.