If you sell on Merch by Amazon, you probably got an email recently about changes to the royalty structure — and if you’re like most people, you read it, felt a little confused, and set it aside to deal with later.
Let’s deal with it now. Because this change is actually pretty significant, and depending on how you react to it, it could either quietly cost you money or meaningfully increase your earnings.
Here’s the plain-English breakdown of what’s changing, what it means if you’re in the Creator group (spoiler: most of us are, at least for now), and what you can do to move up.
The Big Picture: Three Groups, Three Different Pay Rates
Starting June 1, 2026, Amazon is replacing the old royalty structure with three distinct seller groups — Creator, Plus, and Premium — each with different royalty multipliers. Your group determines how much you earn on every single sale, so this is worth understanding.
Here’s how it breaks down:
Creator — This is the standard group. Everyone starts here. Your royalties are based on Amazon’s existing rates (more on the actual numbers below).
Plus — Enhanced rates for sellers who drive at least 15% of their monthly unit sales through non-organic traffic. Plus group sellers earn 2x the Creator rate.
Premium — The highest tier, for sellers who drive at least 35% of their sales through non-organic traffic. Premium sellers earn 2.16x the Creator rate.
Non-organic traffic, per Amazon’s definition, is any traffic you drive to your listings — this includes Amazon ads, off-Amazon ads (Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, etc.), and social media promotion of any kind.
Your group is automatically updated every month based on your trailing two-month average of non-organic traffic-driven sales. You need a minimum of 10 sales per month in the US store to be eligible for Plus or Premium.
What Does This Actually Mean in Dollars?
Let’s look at real numbers using the Creator group royalty examples from Amazon’s official email. These apply to US store sales.
Standard T-Shirt (US)
| Price | Creator Royalty | Plus (2x) | Premium (2.16x) |
|---|---|---|---|
| $15.99 | $0.96 | $1.92 | $2.07 |
| $17.99 | $1.70 | $3.40 | $3.67 |
| $19.99 | $2.44 | $4.88 | $5.27 |
| $21.99 | $3.18 | $6.36 | $6.87 |
| $23.99 | $3.92 | $7.84 | $8.47 |
| $25.99 | $4.66 | $9.32 | $10.06 |
Let that sink in for a second. On a $19.99 t-shirt, a Creator earns $2.44. A Premium seller earns $5.27 on that exact same sale, with no change in price to the customer.
That’s more than double the income from the same design, at the same price point, just by actively driving traffic.
Pullover Hoodie (US)
| Price | Creator Royalty | Plus (2x) | Premium (2.16x) |
|---|---|---|---|
| $29.99 | $1.78 | $3.56 | $3.84 |
| $33.99 | $3.23 | $6.46 | $6.97 |
| $37.99 | $4.67 | $9.34 | $10.09 |
| $39.99 | $5.39 | $10.78 | $11.64 |
Sweatshirt (US)
| Price | Creator Royalty | Plus (2x) | Premium (2.16x) |
|---|---|---|---|
| $27.99 | $1.06 | $2.12 | $2.29 |
| $31.99 | $2.56 | $5.12 | $5.53 |
| $35.99 | $4.05 | $8.10 | $8.75 |
| $37.99 | $4.80 | $9.60 | $10.37 |
Other Products — Creator Rates at a Glance (US)
Tank Top: $17.99 → $1.04 | $19.99 → $1.80 | $21.99 → $2.56
V-Neck: $17.99 → $1.05 | $19.99 → $1.80 | $21.99 → $2.55
Long Sleeve: $20.99 → $1.19 | $22.99 → $1.90 | $24.99 → $2.62
Zip Hoodie: $29.99 → $1.13 | $33.99 → $2.55 | $37.99 → $3.97
PopSocket: $12.99 → $0.91 | $14.99 → $1.05
Phone Case: $14.99 → $0.40 | $17.99 → $1.44 | $19.99 → $2.14
Tote Bag: $16.99 → $0.60 | $19.99 → $1.85
Mug: $16.99 → $1.27 | $19.99 → $1.50
Tumbler: $26.99 → $1.89 | $29.99 → $2.10
(Remember: Plus sellers earn 2x these amounts; Premium sellers earn 2.16x)
If You’re in the Creator Group Right Now — Here’s the Real Talk
If you’ve been running your Merch shop the “set it and forget it” way — uploading designs and letting Amazon’s organic traffic do all the work — you’re in the Creator group, and you’re staying there unless you change your approach.
That’s not necessarily the end of the world. Plenty of side hustlers have built solid passive income on organic Merch sales alone. But this new structure is a clear signal from Amazon: they want creators who actively promote their products, and they’re willing to pay significantly more to those who do.
Here’s what being in the Creator group means practically:
- You earn the base royalty rates on every sale
- You still benefit from Amazon’s built-in traffic and Prime customer base
- You have no minimum sales requirement to maintain your status
- You won’t see any reduction from how things worked before for organic-only sellers
It’s the floor, not a penalty. But the ceiling just got a whole lot higher for people willing to put in a little extra work.
How to Move Up to Plus or Premium
Here’s the honest side hustler version of what it takes.
The Requirements Recap
To qualify for Plus, you need:
- At least 10 unit sales per month in the US store
- At least 15% of those sales coming from non-organic traffic you drive
To qualify for Premium, you need:
- At least 10 unit sales per month in the US store
- At least 35% of those sales coming from non-organic traffic you drive
Your group updates automatically every month based on your trailing two-month average, and it can take up to two business days after the start of each earnings period for the new rates to kick in.
What Counts as “Non-Organic Traffic”?
Amazon identifies any traffic you drive — on or off their platform — as non-organic. This includes:
- Amazon Sponsored Products ads — running ads directly within Amazon’s search results
- Amazon DSP or other Amazon ad types
- Social media posts (Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, Facebook) that link to your listings
- Off-Amazon ads (Facebook Ads, Pinterest Ads, Google Shopping)
- Email marketing that drives people to your Amazon listings
- Blog posts or YouTube content with links to your products
If someone finds your shirt because you posted it on your Instagram story and they clicked through to buy it, that’s non-organic. If someone searched “funny nurse t-shirt” on Amazon and stumbled across your design, that’s organic.
A Realistic Path to Plus Status
If you’re selling 10+ units a month — which is very achievable once you have a solid portfolio of designs — hitting the 15% non-organic threshold for Plus status is genuinely within reach for most side hustlers. Here’s how to think about it:
Pinterest is your best friend. Merch designs are visual products, and Pinterest drives long-tail, evergreen traffic better than almost any other free platform. Creating a dedicated Pinterest board for your designs, pinning consistently, and using keyword-rich pin descriptions is one of the highest-ROI activities you can do for a Merch business. It’s free, it takes maybe 30 minutes a week, and the traffic compounds over time.
Instagram works if you’re already there. If you have any kind of Instagram presence — even a small, niche account — posting your designs and linking to them in your bio (or directly if you have link-in-bio tools) counts. You don’t need a massive following. Even 2–3 sales a month from Instagram on a 15-sale month puts you at Plus territory.
Amazon’s own ad platform is worth a small test. Even $10–20/month in Sponsored Products ads on your best-selling designs can generate enough attributed sales to push your non-organic percentage meaningfully. The beauty of this approach is that you’re spending a small amount to unlock a 2x royalty multiplier on all your sales.
TikTok and Facebook groups can work too, especially if you sell in niche markets. A quick video showing off a funny design in a relevant Facebook group, or a short TikTok in a niche community, can generate bursts of attributed traffic.
What About Premium?
Getting 35% of your sales from non-organic traffic is a bigger lift — but not impossible, especially if you treat your Merch business like an actual business rather than a passive side project. At this level, you’re probably running consistent Amazon ads, actively posting on social media, and possibly building an email list or blog that funnels people to your products. For most side hustlers, Plus is the realistic near-term target. Premium is something to build toward as your catalog and promotional habits grow.
A Few Things Worth Knowing
Royalties outside the US are unchanged. If you sell in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, or Japan, those royalty rates remain as they were. The new group system only affects US store sales.
Your group can change every month. This is actually a feature, not a bug. If you have a great month of promotion, you get the higher rate. If life gets busy and you go back to organic-only for a month, you just revert to Creator rates. There’s no punishment or penalty — just a direct relationship between your promotional effort and your earnings.
Inactive accounts may be paused. Amazon noted that accounts with no sales in over a year may be moved to inactive status. If you’ve been neglecting your Merch account, now’s a good time to refresh your designs and get a sale or two on the board.
The 2x and 2.16x multipliers are significant. We want to be direct about this: if you’re currently earning $200/month in Creator royalties and you can hit Plus status, that becomes $400/month with zero change in your pricing or products. For a side hustle you might already be running, that’s a meaningful income increase for what amounts to a consistent promotional habit.
The Bottom Line
This change rewards Merch sellers who think like marketers, not just designers. If you upload great designs and hope for the best, you’ll keep earning — just at Creator rates. If you start treating your Merch listings like products you actually promote, even a little, Amazon is now willing to pay you significantly more for the same sales.
For side hustlers who are already posting on social media, already running the occasional ad, or already thinking about driving traffic to their online shops — this is actually great news. You may already be closer to Plus status than you think.
Check your Merch dashboard analytics to see how much of your current traffic is attributed to non-organic sources. It might be a pleasant surprise. And if not, now you know exactly what to work toward.
