Amazon Merch on Demand is a print-on-demand service that lets you upload original designs, place them on products like t-shirts and hoodies, and sell them directly on Amazon without ever touching inventory. Amazon handles the printing, shipping, and customer service. You earn a royalty on each sale. There are no upfront costs and no minimum orders.
How the Process Works
You create a design file, upload it through the Merch on Demand dashboard, choose which products to place it on, set your price, and write a product listing. Once approved, the product goes live on Amazon just like any other item. When a customer orders it, Amazon prints your design on the product, packages it, and ships it. You never buy blank shirts, never visit a post office, and never deal with returns.
The entire fulfillment side is Amazon’s responsibility. Products are eligible for Prime shipping, which gives your listings the same delivery speed customers expect from any other Amazon purchase. Your job is limited to creating designs and optimizing your listings so shoppers can find them.
Available Product Types
The platform started with t-shirts but has expanded over time. Current product options include standard t-shirts, premium t-shirts, long-sleeve shirts, tank tops, pullover hoodies, zip hoodies, sweatshirts, PopSockets phone grips, tote bags, throw pillows, and phone cases. Not every product type is available in every marketplace, but the U.S. store has the broadest selection.
Each product type has its own design template with specific dimensions and file requirements. Most require a PNG file with a transparent background. Two-sided printing is available on some apparel items for an additional $4.00 in production cost, which reduces your royalty unless you raise the price accordingly.
What You Earn Per Sale
Your royalty equals the sale price minus taxes and Amazon’s production and fulfillment costs, with a multiplier applied based on your account level. You set the purchase price, so higher prices mean higher royalties, but also potentially fewer sales.
Here’s what the royalty structure looks like for some common products in the U.S. at the Creator Tier:
- Standard t-shirt at $15.99: $0.96 royalty
- Standard t-shirt at $19.99: $2.44 royalty
- Standard t-shirt at $25.99: $4.66 royalty
- Pullover hoodie at $33.99: $3.23 royalty
- Pullover hoodie at $39.99: $5.39 royalty
- Zip hoodie at $35.99: $3.26 royalty
These numbers illustrate the tradeoff. A t-shirt priced at $15.99 earns you less than a dollar, while pricing it at $25.99 gets you closer to $5. Most sellers experiment with pricing to find the sweet spot where conversion rates and royalties balance out. Hoodies carry higher price tags and slightly better per-unit royalties, but they also have a more seasonal demand pattern.
The Tier System
Every new account starts at Tier 10, meaning you can have up to 10 published designs at any time. At Tier 10, you can create a maximum of 640 products across all marketplaces with those designs (since each design can be applied to multiple product types and sold in multiple countries).
As you make sales, Amazon moves you to higher tiers: 25, 100, 500, 1,000, and beyond. Tier advancement is based on the number and percentage of products sold over the previous 12 months. Amazon doesn’t publish the exact sales thresholds for each tier, but the general pattern is straightforward: sell a meaningful portion of your available slots, and you’ll move up. Listings that sit unsold for months without any traction won’t help you tier up.
The tier system means your early strategy matters. With only 10 slots, every design counts. Most experienced sellers recommend filling all 10 slots quickly, analyzing which designs get traction, removing underperformers, and replacing them with new attempts.
Applying for an Account
Merch on Demand is an invitation-request program. You submit an application through the Merch by Amazon website, provide your personal or business information along with tax details, and wait for approval. Amazon doesn’t accept every applicant immediately. Wait times vary widely, from a few days to several months, depending on application volume.
You’ll need a valid bank account for royalty deposits and tax identification information (a Social Security number for U.S. individuals or an EIN for businesses). Non-U.S. residents can also apply, though tax withholding rules differ by country. There is no application fee.
Content Rules to Know
Amazon enforces strict content policies, and violations can result in designs being rejected or your account being terminated. The most important rules fall into a few categories.
Intellectual property is the biggest area of enforcement. You cannot use trademarks, copyrighted characters, logos, sports team names, celebrity likenesses, or any design elements you don’t have rights to. This includes parodies and designs that are “close enough” to a trademarked phrase or image that a customer might confuse the source. Amazon’s review team flags these aggressively, and repeat violations lead to account suspension.
Beyond IP, the platform prohibits designs featuring violence, hate speech, adult sexual content, drug-related imagery, weapons, and political campaign material. Designs making health claims or promoting illegal activities are also banned. Amazon reviews every design before it goes live, so problematic content typically gets caught at the upload stage rather than after it reaches customers.
Who It Works Best For
Merch on Demand appeals to a few different types of sellers. Graphic designers and illustrators use it as a passive income channel for original artwork. Niche hobbyists create designs targeting specific communities (dog breeds, professions, inside jokes for particular hobbies) where they understand what the audience wants. Some sellers treat it as a keyword-driven business, researching trending phrases and seasonal events to create timely designs.
The platform is not a quick-money play. Royalties per sale are modest, so meaningful income requires either a large catalog of designs (which takes time given the tier system) or a few designs that consistently sell at volume. Sellers who reach higher tiers with hundreds or thousands of live designs can generate steady monthly royalties, but getting there takes months or years of consistent uploading and testing.
Because there are no upfront costs, the financial risk is essentially zero. Your investment is time: the hours spent creating designs, writing listings, and researching niches. That makes it a low-barrier entry point into e-commerce, but the low barrier also means competition is significant. Millions of designs are already live on the platform, so standing out requires either strong design skills, sharp niche targeting, or both.
How Royalties Are Paid
Amazon deposits royalties into your bank account on a monthly basis, typically about 30 days after the end of the month in which the sale occurred. There is no minimum payout threshold you need to hit before receiving payment. Your royalty dashboard shows pending and paid earnings, along with a breakdown by product and marketplace.
Royalties are taxable income. U.S.-based sellers receive a 1099 form (a tax document reporting non-employment income) if their annual royalties exceed the IRS reporting threshold. You’re responsible for reporting this income on your tax return regardless of whether you receive a 1099.