If you’re planning to publish your ebook as a paperback, you have a whole different set of distribution questions to answer. Whereas for your ebook you had a choice of different retailers and distributors (aggregators) to publish your book through, for your paperback distribution the list of available companies to partner is smaller. The two I work with are Amazon to reach the Amazon universe and IngramSpark to reach and expanded distribution.
Expanded Distribution through Amazon KDP
If you want to keep your paperback publishing options simple you can choose to only sell your print on demand paperback through Amazon KDP, and click the option “Expanded Distribution”.
Expanded Distribution will help you reach more readers through bookstores, online retailers, libraries, and academic institutions.
Online retailers and bookstores source books through relationships with large distributors (like IngramSpark). If your book is listed with these distributors, the retailers they partner with can buy your book. Through Expanded Distribution, you can distribute and make your book available to a wider selection of online retailers, bookstores, and distributors.
Is every author eligible for Expanded Distribution?
You need to set up your book via Amazon KDP and meet these requirements:
- Your paperback can have an ISBN you purchased or one assigned by KDP.
- Your book’s ISBN must not have been submitted for distribution through another service.
Your book must be one of these trim size, ink and paper types:
What royalty rate will I receive from Amazon?
When you select Expanded Distribution, the royalty rate is:
- 40% of the book’s list price effective in the distribution channel at the time of purchase
- minus printing costs
- minus applicable taxes
- minus any withholding.
To find out the estimated royalty for a paperback:
- Go to your paperback listing on your Bookshelf
- Navigate to the PAPERBACK ACTIONS menu
- Select Edit Paperback Rights & Pricing.
- Select the territories for which you hold distribution rights.
- Enter a list price and see how the pricing grid automatically updates the printing cost and estimated royalty
How long will it take for my book to be available in all channels?
It can take up to six to eight weeks for your book to become available in Expanded Distribution channels.
Who prints my book?
“Books sold through the Expanded Distribution channels might be manufactured by third parties. There may be minor differences in manufacturing (e.g., paper thickness, color shade, etc.).”
It won’t always be Amazon KDP who prints your book. When you select expanded distribution through Amazon, you are giving them permission to send your book details and files to other distributors.
One of their main distributors is IngramSpark, and you book could be printed by them—it all depends on where the customer shipping point is.
- If it’s in a territory that Amazon has a cheaper distribution network, Amazon will print your book.
- If it’s in a territory where IngramSpark has a cheaper distribution network, they (or one of their agents) will print and distribute your book.
Should I choose expanded distribution through Amazon KDP?
If you want to:
- keep your paperback distribution network simple, and only work with one distributor
- and don’t want to purchase an ISBN to sell your book through IngramSpark
you can choose the expanded distribution option through Amazon KDP.
But there’s a downside:
- the vast majority of booksellers won’t use Amazon’s expanded distribution service. Either because they don’t receive their usual wholesale discount, or because they’re anti-Amazon.
- if you do happen to sell books through Amazon’s expanded distribution, you’ll receive less royalties than if you go direct with IngramSpark.
IngramSpark is still the distributor of choice for most self-publishers who want to get wide print distribution, as you can set your wholesale discount to attract bookseller’s attention.
The most financially lucrative distribution set up is:
- Amazon distribution through Amazon (NOT expanded distribution).
- Expanded distribution through IngramSpark (using one of their promo offers to waive the set up fees)
With this option you will need to set up and maintain two book distributors, but if you’re looking at your author career as a long-game plan, then the effort it takes to work with two distributors, is worth the effort. You’ll end up with increased royalties (as long as your book sells!)
Can I back out of expanded distribution?
Yes, but there’s a hurdle to overcome.
After you have submitted your book to Amazon’s expanded distribution (which is after you’ve hit the publish button) you can change your mind and un-click the expanded distribution option in your Amazon KDP set up, but at that point your book records (and ISBN) have been sent to IngramSpark.
So if you decide you want to distribute direct through IngramSpark, you will have to file a form with IngramSpark, taking back ownership of your book from Amazon, so they can update their records and allow you to use your ISBN directly with them.
Here’s a couple of articles I’ve published about the impact of backing out of expanded distribution:
How to remove your paperback from KDP Expanded Distribution to sell your book via IngramSpark
POD Title Transfer Instructions from Amazon KDP Expanded Distribution to IngramSpark
Additional Resources
Here’s some more recent articles about using Amazon KDP expanded distribution.
Here’s what IngramSpark has to say about their relationship with Amazon:
Even though this articles talks about their relationship with CreateSpace, it’s relevant for KDP now that all CreateSpace books are moving to KDP.
I want to make it clear that Ingram and Amazon enjoy a very collaborative relationship where human beings on both sides work tirelessly to improve the experience for our collective publisher and author content providers. The people who work on both sides are not adversarial as is often assumed in online posts; nor is there any evidence that Amazon is intentionally targeting and depressing the availability of IngramSpark books on the Amazon site.
Is it better to go with Amazon Expanded distribution, or should you opt out? #indieauthor #selfpublishing Click To Tweet
If I use Ingram Spark for expanded distribution with the suggested 55% discount. Am I opening myself up to an onslaught of 3rd party sellers taking over the buy box for titles? My titles sell quite well on Amazon now. Both KDP 60% royalty + Ingram Spark. Is that the best combo?
Discounts are tricky …. it really depends on the niche and your selling power. But if you don’t offer enough wholesale discount, bookstores won’t stock your books.
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Will Amazon ship your books?
Amazon prints and ships your books in territories it makes financial sense for them to do so. But in some territories it’ll use a 3rd party supplier, which is some cases will be IngramSpark.
Thanks, very interesting! I am pleased to see that I seem to be getting periodic quantity orders from Amazon’s Expanded Distribution. Is there any way I can find out who is ordering? Also, is it easy for a bookstore to apply for Amazon’s Expanded Distribution? If so, where would they go to apply? Very curious! Thanks again!
As far as I’m aware, there’s no way to know who’s ordering them … whether you use Amazon, Ingram, or any other distributors, they keep pretty tight lipped about their customers.
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I am unclear if there is no appreciable difference in the volume of sales and monetary benefit to a self-published author whether they use Ingram OR Amazon Expanded Distribution. I live in Australia and have found using Ingram extremely tiresome, receiving apologies for errors and bewildered by the lack of clarity in some emails I receive and a to me, a very annoying account interface. I recently altered list prices in my account and received a “Please wait.” This I was told means that I must wait till the Friday of the week when changes are made. I am amazed this type of logical inconsistency has not been rectified by Ingram. I could write long article about my experiences validated by facts.
My initial attraction to Ingram was that bookshops may have an account with Ingram to order my book but not with Amazon. My sense is that bookshop prefer to order from Ingram or a book distributor than from Amazon, which is the marketplace for the public, not book shops.
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Bookshops prefer Ingram because of the more lucrative wholesale discounts they provide, which is a lot better than what Amazon provides. On Ingram we authors have control over this discount, but on Amazon, it’s set and we can’t tinker with it.
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My experience with Expanded Distribution is that it serves Amazon and Amazon only. Years ago, when I first started using Amazon KDP (it was CreateSpace back then), I would place my books into expanded distribution. It was accepted by a handful of book outlets and when I got a sale from these outlets, it was pennies. I averaged around .45cents per book as the royalties you get are a joke. As time has gone on, these outlets are no longer accepting my books. I have three books which have been published for nearly 9 months and the only place you can buy it is on Amazon. I called Amazon to question why my books are not listed on any other outlet, and this is what they said. “We cannot dictate which outlets will accept our books; it’s up to the outlet to accept them.” I said, “So you mean to tell me that none of these other outlets will carry my book?” The rep said, “I’m sorry, sir, I don’t know what to tell you.”
I then researched online about Amazon and expanded distribution. Many sites said the reason why these outlets will not accept from Amazon is that they hate them with a passion! Amazon is a monopoly on the publishing business and they will not contribute to them by accepting their books. After I read that, I no longer placed my books into expanded distribution. As one person mentioned, you’re better off getting distribution through Ingramspark. At least the outlets will accept their books.
Yes I recommend using Amazon for Amazon sales and a traditional book distributor, like Ingram, for the book and library industry. The only impediment is the barcode issue. It requires a financial outlay to buy ISBNs for your book – but it’s worth the investment.
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This is a good discussion. Some of my paperbacks are in IS; some apparently are not. I’d like to fix that. I didn’t check Expanded distribution on Amazon.
I see that Amazon UK is selling my paperback versions although I did not check expanded distribution. Where does that paperback book come from? Thank you!
If your book is available through IngramSpark, depending on your setting they could be sending the title information over to Amazon. The way it works is that you can either distribute separately through Amazon and Ingram. Do expanded distribution through Amazon, and they’ll send your book information to distributors, or do expanded distribution through Ingram, and they’ll send your book information to other distributors (including Amazon). The way to check where your book is coming from is to look at the ISBN. Is it the one you provided to Ingram?
It hurts my eyes to see authors suggesting higher discounts on IngramSpark. Don’t do that. Set the minimum discount of 30% and 35% depending on the market. Don’t waste your precious royalties. Book stores will not stock your books no matter the discount. They only care about best sellers, famous authors, and big publishers. You can earn 2x more money if you give up on that idea.
Exactly. Its very frustrating, but thats the way it is. But that is hard to get through to new autnors when they expect their books to be stocked by book shops. Only the big publishers and their imprints get a look in.
I see my book published and offered by a variety of bookstores immediately upon publishing. . I always wondered how that happened. Is that because of expanded distribution? The book is selling at the normal price but I get 72 cents. I own my own ISBN. Sounds like I should not do expanded distribution and go with IngramSparks myself.
Please I’m thinking of using the Amazon expended distribution platform, but reading through the complains of some that have make used of that platform, it’s makes me want to change my mind. Advice, please.
Let’s get it on, babe!
Hello !
I would like to find out how must I release my book for I don’t know what to do and where to start ?
Can I sell my book on Amazon KDP and also have it on Ingram sparks if I have multiple ISB numbers?
Does using expanded distribution stop your 60percent royalty from Amazon or you get to have both royalties from Amazon (60p) and expanded distribution (40p)
Could I use the amazon free ISBN to sell a paperback on Amazon with expanded distribution, and then use Ingramspark and setup a hardcover of the same book with an ISBN I purchased? That way my book is out there through two different channels? Thanks for this helpful article!
First of all, thanks to Birds of a Feather Press for this useful article. I was considering using Lulu.com for publishing, their rates seem even higher than Amazon. I will check Ingramspark. I was wondering if it’s feasible to use Amazon.com ISBN and use that to publish a book on rest of “expanded distribution” platform independently? Any insight on this would be great!
Hello, thanks for the informative article. My question is, once the books are enrolled and accepted into the Expanded Distribution, how does my local bookstore order the book? Is there an online catalogue or something?