The fees are the same as last year. Amazon held the peak increase at $0.32 per unit and did not add new eligibility requirements. The inventory deadlines moved up by 2 days, which is annoying but manageable. If those were the only changes, you could run last year's Q4 plan again with the dates shifted.
They are not the only changes. In May, Amazon replaced the AI that sits between shoppers and your products, and moved it into the main search bar. That is a bigger deal for Q4 than anything on the fee schedule.
Rufus was a side panel most shoppers never opened. Alexa for Shopping sits inside the search bar and writes an AI summary above the results. It is the default for every signed-in US customer, with no Prime membership or Echo device required. It also shows 12 months of price history and runs side-by-side product comparisons inside the results page. Your listing is now the document an AI reads before it decides whether to recommend you.
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| What | Q4 2025 | Q4 2026 | So What |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peak fulfillment fee | +$0.32 per unit, Oct 15 to Jan 14 | +$0.32 per unit, Oct 15 to Jan 14 | Same increase. But the 3.5% fuel surcharge started in April 2026 and now stacks on top of it. |
| Black Friday inventory cutoff | October 30, 2025 | October 28, 2026 | 2 days earlier. Book the delivery appointment 7 days before that, so you are really working to October 21. |
| AI shopping layer | Rufus, an optional side panel | Alexa for Shopping, in the search bar | Every signed-in US shopper now gets an AI summary above the results, whether they asked for one or not. |
| Event dates | Prime Big Deal Days confirmed for Oct 7 to 8 | No dates confirmed as of late August | You commit stock to a September 16 cutoff for an event Amazon has not dated. A spokesperson declined to confirm even the likely week. |
| Average cost per click, full year | Around $1.12 | $1.18 to $1.22 | Up 8% to 12%. Sponsored Display rose about 49%, to roughly $3.72. |
| Cost per click in November | Around $1.46 | Around $1.56 | Q4 runs about 30% above whatever that year's average is. The seasonal premium applied in 2025 too. What changed is the base it sits on top of. |
| AWD storage pricing | Standard transition to peak rates | Off-peak rate held to October 31 | Only if you use AWD with automatic replenishment into FBA. Worth checking whether that changes your storage mix. |
| Competitive benchmarks | US only | 18 markets, live since May 18 | You can now compare impressions, click-through rate, ROAS, and ACoS against category peers instead of guessing. |
The peak fee and the surcharge are the 2 that hit your P&L directly. Both apply to every unit that ships after October 15, and the fee is charged when the unit leaves the fulfillment center, not when it arrives. So a unit you sent in September at off-peak rates still ships at peak rates in November. Price your deals accordingly.
We manage Amazon for brands across a range of categories, and this calendar is the one we are working to. If you want to see what a Q4 plan looks like for your catalog, including the deal SKU list, the budget model, the DSP timeline, and the inventory schedule, we will build it and walk you through it.
Let's TalkVinculum · Q4 2026 Amazon Preparation Guide · Published August 2026
Dates and fees confirmed against Amazon Seller Central announcements published July 2026. Event dates marked as estimates are our projections, not Amazon guidance. Check Seller Central before you commit inventory or budget.