Find clear answers to common questions about UAE e-com platforms cost
Marketplace seller fees in the UAE typically consist of three core components:
1. Referral fee – A percentage of the product’s selling price, charged by the marketplace. This varies by category and can range widely depending on the product type.
2. Fulfillment fee – delivery charge also known as "delivery" or "outbound fees". If using marketplace fulfillment (e.g., Amazon FBA or Fulfilled by Noon), you pay per unit based on size and weight. In "delivered by marketplace" models, you only pay for delivery as you handover ready parcels to the marketplace carrier. Self-ship models do not incur any delivery charge
3. Storage fee – Charged monthly for inventory stored in marketplace warehouses (Amazon FBA and Fulfilled by Noon).
Additional adjustments may include transportation, return processing fees, penalties for cancelataions and late shipping, VAT implications etc.
This calculator is designed to provide a realistic margin estimate based on common marketplace fee structures in the UAE including referral and fulfillment fees only.
The goal of this calculator is to give sellers a structured, conservative estimate before committing inventory or launching a new SKU. For final validation, sellers should always compare results with official marketplace fee breakdowns once listings are live.
Other costs include:
Sellers should use the calculator to validate unit economics first, and then layer in other costs - operational, tax, and marketing - to understand real net profit performance of selling on Amazon, Noon, Trendyol
In the UAE, sellers typically choose between:
Each model affects cost structure, delivery speed, featured offer competitiveness, and operational complexity. Some channels provide higher visibility and trust, while others offer more cost control.
Channel selection should be aligned with product size, expected volume, operational capacity, and working capital.
Self-ship channels do not charge fulfillment fees, however, the transportation is arranged and paid for by you
Before entering Amazon, Noon, or Trendyol in the UAE, sellers should evaluate:
Marketplace entry should be treated as a structured business decision rather than a trial experiment. Validating unit economics before launching inventory significantly reduces risk.
Also referred to as "marketplace" or "category" fees. Referral fees are calculated as a fixed % of a selling price basis specific category and price band. Example, category "Baby" has 8% commission for products below 50 AED and 15% for items above
Also referred to as "delivery fees". This is charged by Amazon for picking and delivering your order in case of Easy Ship and product packing and delivering from Amazon FC in case of FBA. Fulfillment fees vary basis product dimensions and weights, the rates are introduced in multiple tiers
There are other charges which Amazon might impose on Selling Partner accounts, including inventory removal charge for FBA and performance penalties for Easy Ship (e.g. cancellation fee, late shipping fees) etc.
Branded T-shirt 30 × 20 × 1 cm, 150 g, selling price 80 AED
Easy Ship
Referral fee: 12 AED
Fulfillment fee: 14 AED
Total fees: 26 AED
Expected defective return cost: 0.16 AED
Net after fees: 53.84 AED
FBA
Referral fee: 12 AED
Fulfillment fee: 8 AED
Inbound to FC: 0.21 AED
Storage 2 Months: 0.08 AED
Expected defective return cost: 0.16 AED
Total fees + Cost: 20.46 AED
Net after fees: 59.54 AED
What this shows
For this product, FBA is cheaper than Easy Ship by 5.70 AED per unit. That advantage usually holds when storage time and inbound cost stay low, but FBA also creates more inventory dependence because stock is held inside Amazon’s fulfillment network. Once you lock your inventory at FC, it is difficult to get it back or sell with better opportunity elsewhere
Noon charges 3 main types of fees in UAE:
Also referred to as "marketplace", "category" and "selling" fees. Referral fees are calculated as a fixed % of a selling price basis specific category and price band. Example, category "Home - Furniture" has 15% commission for products below 750 AED and 10% for items above
Also referred to as "outbound fees" and "delivery fees". This is charged by Noon for picking and delivering your order in case of Direct Ship and product packing and delivering from Noon FC in case of FBN. Fulfillment fees vary basis product dimensions and weights, the rates are introduced in multiple tiers
There are charges which Noon will impose on Selling Partner accounts, including return fees, long-term and unselable items storage fees on FBN, missing warranty fees, inventory removal fees and some misellaneous fees for violating local regulations
Branded T-shirt 30 × 20 × 1 cm, 150 g, selling price 80 AED
DirectShip
Referral fee: 21.60 AED
Fulfillment fee: 14.00 AED
Total fees: 35.60 AED
Return admin: 0.17 AED
Expected defective return loss: 0.16 AED
Net after fees: 44.07 AED
FBN
Referral fee: 21.60 AED
Outbound fee: 8.00 AED
Inbound to FC: 0.21 AED
Storage 2 Months: 0.06 AED
Return admin: 0.17 AED
Expected defective return loss: 0.16 AED
Expected inventory removal: 0.03 AED
Total fees: 30.23 AED
Net after fees: 49.77 AED
Takeaway:
FBN is cheaper by 5.70 AED per unit in this example, as long as the product sells quickly and inbound costs stay under control
