When you start selling on Amazon, you quickly realize there are a lot of strange acronyms and terminology used by sellers.
All this jargon can be confusing, so we have compiled a full list of Amazon acronyms you are most likely to come across when buying and selling.
Our Amazon Glossary of Terms is arranged alphabetically to help you quickly find what you are looking for.
3PL – Third-party Logistics – A provider of outsourced logistics services that can include shipments, storage, and fulfillment.
A-to-Z Guarantee – An Amazon program that guarantees the condition and timely delivery of third-party products. Amazon customers may make claims against sellers under the a-to-z guarantee. This can be very damaging to your seller account, so do what you can to keep the customers happy.
ACoS – Advertising Cost of Sales – The percentage of attributed sales spent on advertising. This is calculated by dividing your total ad spend by your total sales.
AZ or AMZ – AMZ is short for Amazon.
ASIN – Amazon Standard Identification Number – The unique identification code Amazon assigns to a listing.
B2B – Business to Business – you selling to a business customer.
Barcode – It is the umbrella term for UPCs and EANs and is usually a numerical code between 12 and 14 digits.
BB – Buy Box – This is the main spot on Amazon where a buyer can do a “one-click” purchase. The Buy Box seller gets a large percentage of the sales of that product.
There are many factors involved in getting the Buy Box, including price, sales history, account age, metrics, etc.
We have a full guide to winning the Buy Box here: How to win the Amazon Buy Box: Ultimate Guide.
BOLO – What does BOLO mean in reselling? Well, BOLO stands for Be On Look Out. This refers to products that are worth buying to resell on Amazon, usually when doing Retail Arbitrage. You will often find BOLO Groups on Facebook.
Brand Registry – An Amazon program that helps you protect your brand from other sellers jumping on your listing. You need a trademark to get Brand Registered. You will also be able to use Enhanced Brand Content.
BSR – Best Seller Rank – This is the Amazon category rank for a product based on how well it sells. This can be found on the listings. The lower the number, the better the rank and therefore the more it sells.
We have BSR and rank charts for the US, Canada, UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, and France here – Amazon Product Rank and BSR Charts for the US, UK and Europe.
COGS – Cost of Goods Sold – how much you paid for your products – this is used for accounting.
CTR – Click Through Rate – The percent of shoppers who see your ad and click on it. This is calculated by dividing total clicks by total impressions.
EAN – European Article Number – this is a unique barcode that identifies the product and is the European version of the UPC.
EBC – This is the Amazon acronym for Enhanced Brand Content that allows sellers to create more detailed product descriptions with additional images, videos, and text.
EXW – Ex Works – International trade term that describes an agreement in which the seller is required to make goods ready for pickup at his or her own place of business. All other transportation costs and risks are assumed by the buyer. For Amazon sellers, this would mean that they have to cover the costs of shipment, starting from the factory or wholesaler.
FBA – Fulfillment By Amazon – this is when you send your products in bulk to Amazon warehouses and Amazon then fulfills the orders and deals with customers.
FBM – Fulfillment By Merchant – this is when the seller picks and packs the orders to the customer and deals with customer service too.
FC – Fulfillment Center – A fulfillment center is where you send your products when doing FBA. They are stored and then prepped and shipped once they are sold.
FNSKU – Fulfillment Network Stock Keeping Unit – this is Amazon’s unique code assigned to each seller on a product. It remains the same for you and the asin combination so you can print and label your products in advance.
More info on all codes used on Amazon here – Ultimate Guide to Amazon Barcodes: UPC, GTIN, EAN, ASIN, FNSKU.
FOB – Freight On Board – This is the last location where the seller of an item will cover shipping costs. For Sellers, if they see a term sheet with the term “FOB Port of Hong Kong”, this means that the factory will cover the shipping costs up until the Port of Hong Kong, after that point, it is the Buyer (Amazon Seller) who assumes control over the goods.
Gated Brand – Individual brands can also be restricted and you need to apply to sell. This normally involves getting invoices and written permission from the brand.
Gated Category – A restricted category of products for which you need approval from Amazon to sell.
Our guide to getting ungated here – How to get Ungated in Amazon restricted categories.
GTIN – Global Trade Identification Number – includes UPC, ISBN, and EAN.
More info on all codes used on Amazon here – Ultimate Guide to Amazon Barcodes: UPC, GTIN, EAN, ASIN, FNSKU
ISBN – International Standard Book Number – for books, this code is used instead of an ASIN to identify on Amazon.
Lightning Deals – A promotional offer where a product is featured for several hours on the Amazon Deals page.
MAP – Minimum Advertised Price – this is the minimum price this brand will allow sellers to list their product.
MSRP – Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price – the standard price the manufacturer recommends products should be sold at. Also known in the UK as RRP – Recommended Retail Price.
MOQ – Minimum Order Quantity – The lowest possible order volume allowed by a manufacturer for a particular product. Negotiable.
OA – Online Arbitrage – Buying from online stores to resell on Amazon
OEM – Original Equipment Manufacturer – A company that makes products that can be sold by another manufacturer.
PL – Private Label – branding a generic product with your own brand to sell on Amazon. Usually imported from China.
Find our guide to finding a PL product to sell here – How To Find the Best Private Label Products To Sell on Amazon.
PPC – Pay Per Click – Advertising model where an advertiser pays for the ad placement only when the Ad is clicked.
RA – Retail Arbitrage – Buying from physical stores to resell on Amazon.
Referral Fee – A percentage-based cost for selling products on Amazon. Usually, 7-15% based on the final selling price.
ROI – Return on Investment – percentage profit compared with the purchase price.
SC – Seller Central – The main portal for managing your Amazon seller account
Seller Feedback – A rating awarded to Amazon’s third-party sellers from customers who have purchased from the seller, which ranges from 1 to 5 stars. This is different from a Product Review, which is only linked to the actual product and not the individual seller.
Negative feedback can be very damaging to your account and if you get too much, you will eventually be suspended.
SFP – Seller Fulfilled Prime – this is where you store the products in your warehouse but offer express Prime shipping using Amazon’s approved carriers.
SKU – Stock Keeping Unit – the manufacturer of the product will allocate a unique SKU to each of their products. If you are doing Private Label, you will choose this code.
SS – Seller Support – Amazon’s support team for resolving Sellers’ issues and questions.
TOT – TOT is the acronym for Time Off Task. TOT is used by Amazon to describe employees who spend too long on a break from scanning packages.
Unverified Reviews – When a customer leaves a product review without first purchasing the product on Amazon. Unverified reviews carry less weight when Amazon averages a given product’s reviews and Amazon are now starting to remove Unverified Reviews.
UPC – Universal Product Code – A unique 12-digit number assigned to retail merchandise that identifies both the product and the vendor that sells the product.
More info on all codes used on Amazon here – Ultimate Guide to Amazon Barcodes: UPC, GTIN, EAN, ASIN, FNSKU.
VA – Virtual Assistant – this is when you hire someone – usually offshore in the Philippines or similar to do work for you – i.e. product sourcing or data input.
Verified Reviews – When an Amazon customer leaves a product review after purchasing the product.
VC – Vendor Central – The central portal for managing your Amazon Vendor account
WS – Wholesale – Buying products in bulk from a wholesaler or distributor for a low price to sell higher on Amazon.
More info on Amazon wholesaling here – Finding Wholesale Suppliers and Distributors for Amazon FBA.
Please print our Amazon Glossary of Terms & Acronyms so you can refer to it when required. If you know any acronyms or terminology that are missing from the list, please get in touch and we can add them. 🙂
You are also very welcome to join our friendly and supportive Amazon FBA Facebook Group:
Amazon FBA Selling for Beginners & Pros – for people just starting their Amazon FBA journey, and pro sellers. 🤷♂️😎
Useful Resources
Amazon Best Sellers Rank (BSR) Charts for the US, UK, Canada and Europe
A full list of gated and restricted brands: Current list of Amazon Gated and Restricted Brands
The 5 Best Amazon Product Sourcing And Selling Tools
If you are looking to find a Private Label product to sell, please read this: The Best Private Label Products to Sell on Amazon
Good Luck & Happy Selling
James 👨
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James is an ecommerce entrepreneur with over 15 years of experience selling online. He has a wealth of knowledge in selling on Amazon FBA, eBay, and building ecommerce websites.
Despite running a successful business, James has decided to share his expertise with others by offering guidance through his website, “The Selling Guys,” "The Selling Guys Facebook Page," and his “Amazon Selling for Beginners” Facebook Group.
James now has three children, two dogs, and a cat. 👨
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