What is KDP Expanded Distribution?

Expanded Distribution is a free, optional setting for print books published through Amazon KDP. When it is on, KDP makes the book available to distributors outside Amazon, so bookstores, libraries, academic institutions and other online retailers can order it.

Two things change when you turn it on. First, the royalty on Expanded Distribution sales is lower than on Amazon sales — KDP currently pays 40% of the list price minus printing cost, compared with 60% on Amazon marketplaces — and the book must be priced high enough to cover that. Second, the book must meet the program's eligibility requirements, including trim size and ISBN; check KDP's current rules.

Expanded Distribution does not mean bookstores will stock your book. It makes your book orderable, which helps if a reader asks a shop to order it or a library wants a copy. Physical bookstores typically expect a standard wholesale discount and the option to return unsold copies, which KDP's program does not offer, so shelf placement is rare.

That is why many self-publishers use KDP for Amazon and IngramSpark for everywhere else, with their own ISBN, and leave Expanded Distribution off. If you publish the same edition through IngramSpark, avoid enabling Expanded Distribution for it as well — the two channels can conflict.