Creating an Amazon FBA Shipment: The Complete Step-by-Step Guide
Why Shipment Creation Matters More Than You Think
Creating an FBA shipment is one of the most operationally intensive tasks in an Amazon seller's workflow. Do it wrong and you face receiving delays, misrouted inventory, additional fees, or even rejected shipments. Do it right and your inventory moves efficiently into Amazon's fulfillment network, arriving ready to sell with minimal friction.
For sellers managing dozens of SKUs, the shipment creation process can take hours of manual work in Seller Central. The interface is not intuitive, the requirements are strict, and small mistakes create problems that do not surface until weeks later when your inventory is stuck in receiving.
Step 1: Planning Your Shipment
Before opening Seller Central, you need three pieces of information:
What to send: Which products need replenishment? Your restock planning system should identify products approaching reorder points. Prioritize by days of supply remaining, profit contribution, and sales velocity.
How much to send: For each product, calculate the quantity based on your demand forecast, lead time, and safety stock requirements. Avoid sending more than 60 to 90 days of supply unless stocking up for a known seasonal event.
How it will be packed: Decide whether each product will ship as individual units or in case packs. Case packs are received faster by Amazon because they reduce the check-in time per unit.
Step 2: Creating the Shipment Plan
Navigate to Send to Amazon in Seller Central and create a new shipment plan. Specify:
Ship-from address: The location where your inventory will ship from. This affects which fulfillment centers Amazon assigns as destinations.
Packing type: Choose between individual products (mixed SKUs per box) or case-packed products (each box contains one SKU only). Case-packed is strongly preferred because Amazon receives and shelves case-packed products faster, with fewer discrepancies during check-in.
Product selection and quantities: Add each SKU and its quantity. Verify the FNSKU label assignment for each product.
Step 3: Prep and Labeling Requirements
Amazon has specific prep requirements based on product category:
Poly-bagging: Required for products with exposed openings or unsealed packaging. The poly bag must have a suffocation warning if the opening is larger than five inches.
Bubble wrapping: Required for fragile items. Products must survive a three-foot drop test.
FNSKU labeling: Every unit must have an FNSKU label. You can print and apply labels yourself or pay Amazon $0.55 per unit to label at the fulfillment center.
Taping: Any product with packaging that could open during handling must be taped shut.
Missing or incorrect prep is one of the most common reasons for receiving delays. Amazon may apply prep at your expense ($1-3 per unit) if products arrive without required preparation.
Step 4: Box Content Information
Box content information tells Amazon exactly what is inside each box of your shipment:
2D Barcode (Recommended): Generate a 2D barcode that encodes the contents of each box. This barcode is scanned at receiving, allowing Amazon to process it quickly.
Web Form: Manually enter the contents of each box through Seller Central. Receiving times are typically slower.
Accuracy is critical. If actual contents do not match your declared contents, Amazon may slow down receiving for your future shipments. No box should exceed 50 pounds.
Step 5: Placement Options
Amazon may split your shipment across multiple fulfillment centers:
Distributed placement (default): You ship to multiple destinations. Avoids the inbound placement fee but requires shipping to multiple addresses.
Amazon-optimized placement: Ship everything to a single destination and let Amazon redistribute. More convenient but incurs the inbound placement fee ($0.25 to $1.50 per unit).
Choose based on your shipment volume and operational capacity. High-volume sellers with negotiated freight rates often prefer distributed placement.
Step 6: Transportation
Small Parcel Delivery (SPD): Ship individual boxes through UPS, FedEx, or USPS. Best for shipments under 15 boxes.
Less Than Truckload (LTL): Palletize your boxes and ship via freight carrier. Required for larger shipments. Pallets must be standard 40x48 inches, no taller than 72 inches including the pallet, stretch-wrapped with labels on all four sides.
Full Truckload (FTL): For very large shipments (10+ pallets to a single destination), the most cost-effective option per unit.
Step 7: Labels, Review, and Ship
Required Labels
- Box labels: Every box needs an Amazon shipment label (FBA box ID label) on the outside
- Pallet labels: For LTL shipments, four labels per pallet
- FNSKU labels: On every individual unit
Pre-Ship Checklist
- All units have FNSKU labels applied correctly
- Prep requirements met for every product
- Box content information matches actual contents
- No box exceeds 50 pounds
- Carrier pickup or drop-off scheduled
- Tracking numbers entered in Seller Central
After Shipping
Mark your shipment as shipped and enter tracking information. Amazon typically takes 5 to 14 business days to receive and process. If a shipment shows delivered but units have not appeared after 10 business days, open a case with Seller Support.
Common Mistakes That Cause Delays
Wrong FNSKU: The single most common shipment error. Always verify the FNSKU matches the listing before labeling.
Missing prep: Products arriving without required prep are quarantined and either returned or prepped at your expense with significant delays.
Inaccurate box content: Declaring 24 units per box but packing 20 creates discrepancies that slow receiving.
Overweight boxes: Boxes over 50 pounds are rejected or handled separately.
Wrong destination: Shipping to the wrong fulfillment center means your shipment is rerouted or rejected.
How SellerVault Streamlines Shipment Creation
SellerVault's 7-step shipment wizard guides you through the entire process with built-in validation at each step. It pulls product data, prep requirements, and FNSKU information automatically. Box templates let you define standard configurations and reuse them. The system generates labels, calculates optimal packing, and tracks shipments from creation through receiving.
When integrated with the restock engine, you can go directly from a restock recommendation to a shipment plan without re-entering product quantities.
Ready to streamline your FBA shipment workflow? Start your free trial and create your first shipment with our guided wizard, or see our pricing for details.