📚 Book Royalty Calculator
Estimate your author earnings across print, eBook & audiobook formats with real royalty rates
| Format | Traditional | Self-Publishing | Royalty Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| eBook (priced $2.99–$9.99) | 25% of net | 70% of list | Net / List Price |
| eBook (priced outside range) | 25% of net | 35% of list | Net / List Price |
| Hardcover (first 5,000 copies) | 10% of list | 50–60% of net | List / Net |
| Hardcover (after 5,000) | 12.5–15% | 50–60% of net | List / Net |
| Trade Paperback | 7.5% of list | 60% of net | List / Net |
| Mass Market Paperback | 6–8% list | N/A | List Price |
| Audiobook (ACX exclusive) | 10–25% | 40% of net | Net Receipts |
| Audiobook (ACX non-excl.) | 10–25% | 25% of net | Net Receipts |
| Kindle Unlimited (KENP) | N/A | ~$0.004/page | Per Page Read |
| Large Print Edition | 7.5% | 55% of net | List / Net |
| Format & Model | List Price | Rate | Per 1,000 Copies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-Pub eBook (KDP 70%) | $9.99 | 70% | $6,993 |
| Traditional eBook | $12.99 | 25% of net | $1,624 |
| Traditional Hardcover | $27.99 | 10% | $2,799 |
| Traditional Paperback | $16.99 | 8% | $1,359 |
| Self-Pub POD Paperback | $14.99 | 60% net | $3,598 |
| ACX Audiobook (excl.) | $24.99 | 40% | $9,996 |
| Traditional Audiobook | $34.99 | 15% | $5,249 |
| KDP eBook (35% tier) | $1.99 | 35% | $697 |
| Advance Amount | Paperback @ $1.36/copy | Hardcover @ $2.80/copy | eBook @ $3.25/copy |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5,000 | 3,676 copies | 1,786 copies | 1,539 copies |
| $10,000 | 7,353 copies | 3,572 copies | 3,077 copies |
| $25,000 | 18,382 copies | 8,929 copies | 7,692 copies |
| $50,000 | 36,765 copies | 17,857 copies | 15,385 copies |
| $100,000 | 73,529 copies | 35,714 copies | 30,769 copies |
The Book Royalty is the amount that publisher gives to author for the right to sell his book. It simply is the part that author receives from every book sold. The percentage of Book Royalty normally is part of the sale price of every copy, commonly counted from the price in stores.
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Some folks call them list-price royalties or retail royalties. Even so, always more many publishers now give royalties based on final sales. So the percentage is counted after one removed the discounts to stores.
What Book Royalty Is and How It Works
Publishers commonly sell books to bookshops with various discounts occasionally even until the half of the cover price or more.
In traditional publishing the publisher cares about the costs of the book. Hence the Book Royalty percentages usually are the lowest than in other forms of publication, between 7 and 25 percent. The most many traditional publishers offer 12 until 18 percent of Book Royalty based on the list price of the book, although for e-books and cover publications the rates a bit differ.
Around 10 percnet are usual for cover books, but some authors manage to reach 12 percent.
Traditional publication is the only option where advances for books happen. An advance is a payment of money, that author receives before, but he does not receive additional royalties until quite a lot many copies sell to repay it. For instance, if a book gives 2,50 dollars Book Royalty four cover copy and the advance was 5 000 dollars, you need 2 000 copies to reach that.
If it sells only 1 999 copies and later disappears from stores, no additional royalties will pay. Many authors never reach return of their advance.
The payments of royalties usually come six months until a year after the real sales, because of checking practices. But there are exceptions. Books sold under production cost to make space for storage, sometimes called remainders or over-stock, do not give anything to the author.
So if a contract promises 8 percent on a paperback book of 7,95 dollars, that results in 64 cents for each sold copy.
When a book has two authors, that contributed almost equally, one usually shares royalties in 50/50. Some partners share even smaller parts. Royalties depend only on sales, and the author receives them until his death.
The heirs can receive them during 70 years after that.
Platforms for self-publishing work differently. Google Play, Apple, Kobo and Barnes & Noble all give 70 percent Book Royalty regardless of the price. At Amazon KDP the lowest price for 70 percent rate is 2,99 dollars.
Everything under that receives 35 percent. With 70 percent there is a cost to deliver the e-book. With 35 percent the delivery is free, whatever the size of the book.
The list price must be at least 20 percent less than the price of a physical book on Amazon. From June 2025, books priced under certain rules will be with a Book Royalty rate of 60 until 50 percent.
Authors do not get royalties for books bought used or taken free. That used-market flow can hurt sales so much, that a publisher decides toremove the author entirely.
