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Module 06: Amazon restock limits in 2026, reorder points and inventory fees
Amazon restock limits in 2026 are monthly capacity limits: Amazon replaced the old weekly restock limit and quarterly storage limit "with a single monthly capacity limit per storage type", measured by volume and influenced by your IPI score and sales forecasts (Amazon Seller Forums, FBA capacity limits). Sellers still call them restock limits.
Amazon charges for too little stock and for too much. Keep both your 30-day and 90-day days of supply at 28 or more to avoid the low-inventory-level fee, send only what sells within your capacity, remove slow stock before it ages past 181 days and set reorder points from daily sales, lead time and safety stock. This module shows each rule, a worked reorder point and the 2026 holiday dates.
How do Amazon restock limits work in 2026?
Your capacity limit is the volume of inventory you can hold and send to FBA in a month, set per storage type (standard, oversize and so on). Amazon announces next month's limits "in the third full week of each month" and gives estimates for the two months after that. It says "your FBA capacity limit is influenced by your IPI score, as well as other factors such as sales forecasts" (Amazon Seller Forums, FBA capacity limits).
Three things follow from that:
- Capacity is measured in volume, not units.
A bulky SKU uses more of your limit than a small one that sells the same number.
- Sales drive capacity.
Products that sell steadily earn space; stock that sits uses it up.
- You can buy more.
Capacity Manager lets you request additional capacity at a reservation fee you specify, and performance credits from the sales that capacity generates "are designed to offset up to 100% of your reservation fee" (same source).
In the holidays, limits may be lower. Amazon says fulfillment centers focus on receiving in September and October and on orders in November and December, and that sending early helps (Amazon Seller Forums, 2026 holiday peak fees).
What is the IPI score, and is there a minimum in 2026?
The Inventory Performance Index is Amazon's score for how well you manage FBA stock, shown on your inventory performance page in Seller Central. Amazon says it influences your capacity limit along with sales forecasts. We could not find a fixed IPI threshold for 2026 on Amazon's own pages, so treat any "IPI minimum" you read elsewhere as unconfirmed and check your own dashboard.
What raises it is the same work that keeps fees down: less excess and aged stock, a healthy sell-through, no stranded inventory (stock that cannot sell because its listing has a problem) and staying in stock on what sells.
When does Amazon charge the low-inventory-level fee?
Only when both your short-term (30-day) and long-term (90-day) historical days of supply are below 28 days. Amazon staff explained the rule in Seller Forums, along with three exemptions (Amazon staff, Seller Forums):
| Exemption | Detail |
|---|---|
| New Professional sellers | First 365 days after the first inventory-received date |
| New-to-FBA parent products | First 180 days after first inventory received, if enrolled in FBA New Selection |
| AWD auto-replenished products | Products auto-replenished by Amazon Warehousing and Distribution |
Amazon's New Seller Incentives also list low-inventory-level charges as waived until one year after your first FBA inventory is received (Sell on Amazon, New Seller Incentives). Days of supply, in plain terms, is how many days your average stock would last at your average sales rate. Our low-inventory-level fee guide goes deeper.
Example. Illustrative · sample figures. A product sells 20 units a day and averaged 400 units on hand over the last 30 days: about 20 days of supply. If the 90-day figure is also under 28, the fee applies to units shipped. Keep about 560 units or more on hand at that sales rate (28 × 20) and the fee does not apply.
What do storage and aged inventory cost you?
Storage is charged monthly "based on the space your inventory occupies", and an aged inventory charge applies to items stored more than 181 days (Sell on Amazon, Fulfillment by Amazon). Storage costs more per cubic foot in October to December than in the rest of the year; check the current rates in Seller Central before you send Q4 stock. One 2026 detail: sellers who send inventory through AWD with automatic replenishment to FBA keep paying the off-peak monthly storage rate through Oct 31, 2026 (Amazon Seller Forums, 2026 holiday peak fees).
So the target is a band, not a number: above 28 days of supply to avoid the low-inventory fee, below the point where stock starts to age, inside your capacity limit.
| Days of supply at Amazon | What it costs you | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Under 28 (both 30-day and 90-day) | Low-inventory-level fee per unit shipped | Reorder now; send from AWD or your 3PL |
| About 28 to 90 | Normal storage | Hold; reorder at your reorder point |
| Over about 120 | Storage plus capacity used by slow stock | Slow inbound; hold reserve outside FBA |
| Units nearing 181 days old | Aged inventory charge ahead | Promote, bundle or remove |
How do you set a reorder point?
With one formula: reorder point = average daily units sold × lead time in days + safety stock. Lead time is the whole chain: production, freight, customs, prep and Amazon check-in. When available plus inbound units fall to the reorder point, reorder.
Illustrative · sample figures. A product sells 20 units a day; lead time is 45 days; safety stock is 10 days of sales (200 units).
- Reorder point = 20 × 45 + 200 = 1,100 units.
- Days of supply at the reorder point = 1,100 ÷ 20 = 55 days, well above 28.
- If each unit takes 0.12 cubic feet, 1,100 units use about 132 cubic feet of your standard-size capacity. Check that against your limit before you book freight.
Raise safety stock for products with uneven sales or long, unreliable freight; lower it for steady sellers with a nearby supplier. Our reorder point calculator runs the numbers for each SKU.
How should you plan Q4 inventory?
Around the peak fee and Amazon's inbound cut-offs. Holiday peak fulfillment fees run Oct 15, 2026 to Jan 14, 2027, averaging $0.32 per unit with the 3.5% surcharge on top. For Black Friday week and Cyber Monday, Amazon's 2026 inbound cut-offs for Prime eligibility were Oct 14 for AWD shipments, Oct 21 for FBA shipments using minimal shipment splits and Oct 28 for FBA shipments using Amazon-optimized splits (Amazon Seller Forums, 2026 holiday peak fees). If you missed them, plan the rest of the season around what is already inbound and keep reserve stock in AWD or a 3PL.
What changed for prep and labels?
Amazon does not prep or label units for you in the US in 2026 (Packaging Insights, Oct 29, 2025). For inventory shipped on or after Mar 31, 2026, resellers must put Amazon barcode stickers on every unit, while brand owners with the Brand Representative role can ship products with a manufacturer barcode without them (Amazon Seller Forums, commingling ends). Prep mistakes now cost you check-in time as well as fees; put labeling instructions in every purchase order.
How to run your weekly inventory check in Seller Central
- 01Open your FBA inventory and inventory planning pages.
Note available, inbound and reserved units for each top SKU.
- 02Check days of supply
against 28 for each SKU, and list any below it.
- 03Check capacity.
Compare this month's limit and the two estimates with what you plan to send, by storage type.
- 04Compare with reorder points.
Raise a purchase order for any SKU at or below its point.
- 05Review aged stock.
List units older than 150 days and decide: promote, bundle or remove before 181 days.
- 06Check stranded inventory
and fix the listing problems behind it.
Common mistakes
-
Sending everything to FBA.
Slow units use capacity, pay storage and age.
-
Running lean to save storage,
then paying the low-inventory fee and losing rank on stockouts.
-
Lead times that ignore customs and check-in.
Add production, customs, prep and check-in, and a 30-day sailing can become a 45-day lead time.
-
Booking freight before checking capacity.
Stock with nowhere to go sits at a port or a 3PL, at your cost.
-
Treating restock limits as fixed.
They change monthly with your sales and IPI.
Key takeaways
- Restock limits are now monthly capacity limits by volume, per storage type.
- Keep 30-day and 90-day days of supply at 28 or more to avoid the low-inventory fee.
- Send what sells within weeks; hold reserve stock in AWD or a 3PL.
- Remove or move slow stock before 181 days and before October storage rates.
- A reorder point per SKU beats ordering on gut feel.
Do this now
- Calculate reorder points for your top 10 SKUs.
- List SKUs under 28 days of supply today.
- Check this month's capacity limit before booking freight.
- List SKUs older than 150 days and plan removal or a promotion.
- Put labeling instructions in your next purchase order.
Watch and practice
- Video: How do you plan inventory for Amazon, Walmart and Shopify? Voices are AI-generated.
- Video: Amazon ended commingling and prep: what do you do now? (93 seconds). Characters are fictional. Voices are AI-generated.
- Shorts: "What is the reorder point formula every seller needs?" (30 seconds) and "Is Amazon's low-inventory fee costing you?" (39 seconds). Characters are fictional. Voices are AI-generated.
- Tools: our reorder point calculator, our Amazon storage fee estimator and Amazon's restock recommendations in Seller Central.
Problem and fix
"We keep running out of our best sellers." Cause: reorders on gut feel, lead times that leave out customs and check-in. Fix: reorder points and alerts per SKU. Relay Module: Stock Flow (RELAY-03), one inventory count across FBA, WFS, Shopify and the 3PL with reorder points and draft purchase orders; or our Amazon inventory and fees service. Measure: stockout days on top SKUs; low-inventory fees paid per month.
Want a second pair of eyes on your inventory?
Book 30 minutes with an ops lead and bring your top 10 SKUs with sales rate and lead time. Selling $1M+ a year? The free Profit Leak Scan shows where stockouts and fees cost you, within 48 hours of working access. More in Scale on Amazon, or return to the Amazon guide.
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What are Amazon restock limits in 2026?
They are monthly FBA capacity limits per storage type, measured by volume. Amazon replaced the weekly restock limit and quarterly storage limit with them, announces each month's limit in the third full week of the month before, and sets it using your IPI score and sales forecasts among other factors (Amazon Seller Forums, FBA capacity limits).
What triggers Amazon's low-inventory-level fee?
Both your 30-day and 90-day historical days of supply falling below 28 days (Amazon staff, Seller Forums). If either is 28 or above, the fee does not apply. Keeping about four weeks of sales on hand at Amazon is the simple rule.
Who is exempt from the low-inventory fee?
New Professional sellers for 365 days after first inventory received, new-to-FBA parent products enrolled in FBA New Selection for 180 days and products auto-replenished by AWD (Amazon staff, Seller Forums). The New Seller Incentives page also lists the charge as waived for a year after your first FBA inventory is received.
Is there a minimum IPI score in 2026?
We could not verify a published threshold on Amazon's pages today. Amazon says IPI influences your capacity limit, so a higher score helps, but check your own Seller Central dashboard rather than a number from a blog. Cutting excess and aged stock is what moves it.
How do I get more FBA capacity?
Sell through what you have and cut slow stock. Then use Capacity Manager to request more at a reservation fee you set. Amazon says performance credits from sales on that extra capacity can offset up to 100% of the fee. Holding reserve stock in AWD or a 3PL also frees FBA capacity for what sells now.
When does Amazon charge aged inventory fees?
For items stored more than 181 days (Sell on Amazon, Fulfillment by Amazon). Review anything older than 150 days each month so you can act before the charge starts.
How do I avoid Q4 storage costs?
Send what will sell within weeks and keep reserve stock in AWD or a 3PL. Remove or promote slow stock before October. AWD users with automatic replenishment to FBA keep off-peak storage rates through Oct 31, 2026.
Sources7 sourcesLast checked Oct 20, 2026
- 01sellercentral.amazon.comchecked Oct 20, 2026Primary
- 02sellercentral.amazon.comchecked Oct 20, 2026Primary
- 03sellercentral.amazon.comchecked Oct 20, 2026Primary
- 04sellercentral.amazon.comchecked Oct 20, 2026Primary
- 05sell.amazon.comchecked Oct 20, 2026Primary
- 06sell.amazon.comchecked Oct 20, 2026Primary
- 07packaginginsights.comchecked Oct 20, 2026Primary
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