How to Publish a Book on Amazon: Step-by-Step KDP Guide

To publish a book on Amazon, you create a free Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) account, complete the tax interview, and upload your manuscript and cover. You then fill in three tabs (Details, Content and Pricing) for each format and submit. Amazon reviews the book before it goes on sale. The steps below cover both the Kindle eBook and the paperback, in the order you will meet them.

If you would rather work from a printable list, the Amazon KDP publishing checklist covers the same steps in tick-box form.

What do you need before you publish on Amazon?

Gather these before you sign in. Having them ready means you can finish each format in one sitting.

Item	Kindle eBook	Paperback
Finished, proofread manuscript	DOCX, EPUB or KPF file	Print-ready interior PDF at your chosen trim size
Cover	JPEG or TIFF, ideally 1600 × 2560 px, RGB	One full-wrap PDF: back + spine + front, with 0.125" bleed on every edge
ISBN	Not required (Amazon assigns a free ASIN)	Required: KDP's free ISBN or your own
Book description	Yes	Yes (can match the eBook)
Keywords and categories	Yes	Yes
Price you want to charge	Yes	Yes, plus the printing cost from KDP
Tax and bank details	Needed once per account	Same account

The cover and ISBN rules above come from KDP's published guidelines. Store rules change from time to time, so confirm them in your KDP dashboard before you upload.

If you are still at the writing stage, start with the wider guide to self-publishing a book and come back here when the manuscript is done.

Step 1: How do you set up a KDP account?

1.1 Sign in or create an account

Go to the KDP website and sign in with an existing Amazon account, or create a new one. Many authors use their normal shopping account. Others create a separate one for business so book income and purchases stay apart. Either works.

1.2 Complete the tax interview

KDP will not let you publish, or pay you, until your tax information is complete. You find it under your account settings.

The tax interview is a guided form. It asks whether you are a US person and then fills in the matching IRS form for you:

• US authors complete a W-9 with their name, address and Social Security Number or Employer Identification Number.
• Authors outside the US complete a W-8BEN. If your country has a tax treaty with the US, you can claim a lower withholding rate by entering your local tax ID.

Answer carefully and use your legal name, not a pen name. You can publish under a pen name later; the tax form is about who receives the money. If you are unsure about your own tax position, ask a local accountant. KDP cannot give tax advice.

1.3 Add your payment details

Add a bank account so Amazon can pay royalties. Check that the account holder name matches your tax details. A mismatch is a common reason for payments being held.

Step 2: How should you prepare your book files?

File problems cause most rejections and delays, so spend time here before you open the upload screens.

2.1 Prepare the eBook manuscript

KDP accepts DOCX, EPUB and KPF files for Kindle eBooks. EPUB tends to give the most predictable result because the formatting is already fixed for reflowable eBooks.

Check these points:

• Use real heading styles for chapter titles so KDP can build a working table of contents.
• Remove page numbers, headers and footers. Kindle text reflows, so they make no sense on screen.
• Insert page breaks between chapters.
• Delete blank pages and extra empty lines.

2.2 Prepare the paperback interior

The paperback needs a PDF laid out at the exact trim size you will choose on the Content tab. Common choices are 5 × 8, 5.5 × 8.5 and 6 × 9 inches for novels and memoirs, and larger sizes such as 8.5 × 11 for workbooks.

Make sure that:

• Margins meet KDP's minimums for your page count. Thicker books need a wider inside margin.
• All fonts are embedded in the PDF.
• Chapters start where you want them, often on a right-hand page.
• The page count is final, because the cover spine depends on it.

If you do not yet know how many pages your manuscript will make, the book page count calculator gives an estimate from your word count and trim size.

2.3 Prepare the covers

You need two different cover files.

Kindle cover: a single front image. KDP's guidance is JPEG or TIFF, ideally 1600 × 2560 pixels (a 1.6:1 ratio), at least 625 × 1000, in RGB colour.

Paperback cover: one PDF containing the back, spine and front, with 0.125 inches of bleed on every edge. The spine width depends on your page count and paper type. KDP places the barcode in the bottom-right area of the back cover, so keep text and important images away from that spot.

Use the book spine width calculator and the book cover size calculator to get the full-wrap dimensions before you or your designer start.

If you write in Inkora, it exports a print-ready interior PDF at eight trim sizes, a full-wrap cover PDF with the spine width calculated from the page count, a 1600 × 2560 Kindle cover JPG and an EPUB 3 file. You still upload these yourself in your own KDP account.

Step 3: How do you fill in the Details tab?

From your KDP Bookshelf, choose to create a new Kindle eBook or paperback. Many authors start with the eBook. Once it exists, you can add the paperback from the same Bookshelf entry, and KDP copies over most of the details.

The Details tab asks for:

1. Language of the book.
2. Title and subtitle. These must match what appears on your cover. Do not stuff extra keywords into the subtitle; KDP may reject it.
3. Series information, if the book is part of one.
4. Edition number, which is optional.
5. Author name. This is where you can use a pen name.
6. Contributors such as an editor, illustrator or translator.
7. Description. This is your sales copy on the product page. Lead with the hook, keep paragraphs short, and use the basic formatting KDP allows.
8. Publishing rights. Confirm you own the copyright, or mark the work as public domain if it is.
9. Primary audience. Say whether the content is sexually explicit, and set a reading age range for children's books.
10. Primary marketplace. Usually the Amazon store where you expect most sales.
11. Categories. Pick the most specific ones that honestly fit. A narrow category is easier for a new book to be seen in than a broad one.
12. Keywords. KDP gives you seven boxes. Use phrases readers actually type, such as subgenre, setting, tropes or problems your book solves. Avoid other authors' names and trademarked terms.

For the eBook, the Details tab also lets you set a pre-order release date if you want readers to order before launch day.

Save and continue to move to the next tab.

Step 4: What goes on the Content tab?

This is where you upload files and preview the result. The eBook and paperback screens differ.

4.1 Kindle eBook content

1. Manuscript. Upload your DOCX, EPUB or KPF file.
2. DRM. Choose whether to apply digital rights management. You cannot change this setting after publishing, so decide now.
3. Cover. Upload your JPEG or TIFF, or build a simple one with KDP's Cover Creator.
4. AI-generated content. Answer the disclosure questions (see 4.3 below).
5. Preview. Open the online previewer and check every chapter on phone, tablet and Kindle views. Look for broken headings, missing images, odd spacing and a working table of contents.
6. ISBN. Optional for eBooks. If you leave it blank, Amazon assigns its own ASIN.

4.2 Paperback content

1. ISBN. Required. You can take a free KDP ISBN, which only works for distribution through KDP, or enter one you bought yourself. If you plan to print the same edition through IngramSpark, you need your own ISBN, because a free KDP ISBN cannot be used there.
2. Print options. Choose ink and paper type, trim size, bleed setting (use bleed if images run to the page edge) and cover finish (matte or glossy). These must match your files.
3. Manuscript. Upload your interior PDF.
4. Cover. Upload your full-wrap cover PDF, or use Cover Creator.
5. AI-generated content. Answer the same disclosure questions.
6. Previewer. Launch the print previewer. It flags errors such as text outside margins, low-resolution images or a cover that does not match the page count. Fix every flagged issue before you approve.

You can also order a printed proof copy at this stage. A proof is the best way to catch problems with margins, fonts and cover colours that a screen will not show you.

4.3 How does the AI disclosure work?

KDP asks whether your book contains AI-generated content, covering text, images and translations separately. KDP's content guidelines distinguish between AI-generated content (material an AI tool created, even if you edited it heavily afterwards) and AI-assisted content (material you created yourself and then used a tool to brainstorm, edit or polish). As KDP's guidelines currently stand, you must disclose AI-generated content, but AI-assisted content does not need to be declared.

Answer honestly. The disclosure is not shown to readers on the product page under KDP's current policy, but you remain responsible for the book following all content guidelines, including not infringing anyone's rights. If an AI tool helped write a non-fiction book, check every fact, figure and quotation yourself before publishing. Read the current wording in KDP's content guidelines, because this policy has been updated before.

Step 5: How do you set the price on the Pricing tab?

The Pricing tab controls where the book is sold, how much it costs and which royalty you receive.

5.1 Kindle eBook pricing

1. KDP Select. Decide whether to enrol. KDP Select puts your eBook in Kindle Unlimited and adds promotional tools, but it requires the eBook to be exclusive to Amazon for the enrolment period. You cannot sell that eBook on Apple Books, Kobo or other stores while enrolled.
2. Territories. Choose worldwide rights unless you only hold rights in certain countries.
3. Royalty plan. Choose 35% or 70%.
4. List price. Set your main price, and let KDP convert it for other marketplaces or set each one by hand.

5.2 Paperback pricing

1. Territories, as above.
2. List price. KDP shows the printing cost for your page count, ink and trim size, and sets a minimum price that covers it.
3. Expanded Distribution. Optional. It offers your paperback to bookstores and libraries through other channels, at a lower royalty rate.

5.3 How much will you earn?

According to KDP's published terms:

Format	Royalty	Conditions
Kindle eBook	70%	List price between $2.99 and $9.99, minus a delivery fee based on file size
Kindle eBook	35%	Prices outside that range
Paperback (Amazon)	60% of list price, minus printing cost	50% for prices below $9.99 on Amazon.com
Paperback (Expanded Distribution)	40% of list price, minus printing cost	Sales through Expanded Distribution channels

These rates can change, so confirm the current figures on the Pricing tab of your KDP dashboard. To see what a given price earns per copy, try the KDP royalty calculator.

When everything looks right, click Publish.

Step 6: How long does Amazon take to review your book?

After you click Publish, the book status changes to "In review". KDP's help pages say this usually takes up to 72 hours, though many books go live sooner. During review the book cannot be edited.

Once approved, the status changes to "Live". The product page may take a little longer to show everything: the paperback and eBook can appear as separate listings at first, and the "Look Inside" preview can lag behind. KDP usually links the two formats automatically when titles and author names match exactly. If they stay separate, contact KDP support and ask them to link the editions.

If KDP needs changes, it emails you and the book returns to draft. Fix the issue and submit again. Each resubmission goes back through review.

Common problems and fixes

Your tax interview is incomplete or rejected. The publish button stays greyed out until the tax interview is done. Go back to your account settings and check that your name and address match your tax ID records exactly.

The previewer says your cover does not fit. This almost always means the spine width is based on the wrong page count or paper type. Recalculate with your final page count, regenerate the cover PDF, and upload again. Remember the 0.125" bleed on every edge.

Text sits outside the margins. Widen the inside (gutter) margin in your interior file, export a new PDF, and recheck. Thicker books need more gutter space.

The eBook table of contents is missing or broken. Apply proper heading styles to every chapter title in your source file, or switch to an EPUB that already contains a navigation table of contents.

The book is rejected for metadata. Common causes are a title or subtitle that does not match the cover, keyword stuffing in the subtitle, or a description that mentions other authors or prices. Edit the Details tab and resubmit.

The book is flagged for rights questions. If your text is freely available elsewhere, for example on your blog, KDP may ask you to prove you own the rights. Reply with evidence such as a link to the original page in your name.

The 70% royalty option is unavailable. Check that your list price is between $2.99 and $9.99 and that you selected territories where 70% applies under KDP's terms.

You spot a typo after the book is live. Correct the file and upload it again from the Content tab. The current version stays on sale while the new one is reviewed.

Publishing on Amazon takes an afternoon of form-filling once your files are ready, and most delays trace back to the files themselves. Get the manuscript and cover right first, order a proof of the paperback, and keep the Amazon KDP checklist open as you go. If you later want to reach other stores, the same files with small changes will carry you there.