A plain guide to what you actually pay an Amazon FBA prep centre — with real, published prices, not "request a quote."
Last updated June 2026 · Prices exclude VAT
In the UK, FBA prep is usually charged per unit (for loose stock you send in boxes) or per case (for sealed cases you forward whole). Across the market, per-unit prep commonly lands around £0.35–£0.60 once labelling and packing are included, many centres add a £20–£50 monthly membership, and box or handling charges of £2–£4 are common.
ClearCrate publishes every rate instead: receiving from £0.23/unit, FNSKU labelling from £0.19, repack at £0.12, storage at £20/m³, and whole-case forwarding from £2.50/case — with no membership fee.
"FBA prep" isn't one fee — it's a stack of small charges. The trap is that some centres advertise a low headline rate, then add the rest at checkout. Here's the full stack, in the order your stock moves through a warehouse, with ClearCrate's real published rates as a reference point.
Every prep centre charges to take stock in, check it and log it. If you send loose units in boxes, this is priced per unit and usually drops as your monthly volume rises:
| Monthly unit volume | Price per unit |
|---|---|
| 0–100 | £0.23 |
| 101–500 | £0.19 |
| 501–1,000 | £0.17 |
| 1,001–2,000 | £0.16 |
| 2,001+ | £0.13 |
If you send sealed cases to forward whole, receiving is a flat £1.75 per case instead.
Applying the Amazon barcode that ties each unit to your listing. Priced per unit, and you can switch it off if your stock already arrives labelled.
| Monthly unit volume | Price per unit |
|---|---|
| 0–100 | £0.19 |
| 101–500 | £0.17 |
| 501–1,000 | £0.16 |
| 1,001–2,000 | £0.14 |
| 2,001+ | £0.11 |
Counting units into the outbound Amazon shipping carton, labelling, sealing and wrapping — ClearCrate charges £0.12 per unit. If items need bagging, polybagging runs from £0.16 to £0.42 per unit depending on bag size and volume.
Held stock is billed by the space it uses. ClearCrate charges £20 per cubic metre per month, with a one-month minimum — no per-pallet markup.
Quality inspection (a spot check at £1.00 per unit checked, or every unit at £0.45), new cartons (£1.70–£2.90), bundling, bubble wrap and pallet work are charged only when you need them.
Which model is cheaper depends entirely on how your stock arrives.
You send loose units; the centre unpacks, stores and preps each one. You pay per unit for receiving, labelling and packing. Best when units need individual handling or labelling.
You send sealed, ready-to-go cases; the centre receives them and forwards each case whole without opening it. ClearCrate charges £5.00 per case for 1–10 cases a month, dropping to £2.50 per case at 11 or more. Far cheaper per item when your supplier already packs to Amazon's spec.
Say you send in 4 sealed cases to forward whole, and hold them for under a month:
No membership fee, no per-unit charges on whole cases, no surprise handling line. Excl. VAT.
If you've searched for an FBA prep centre, you'll have hit the same wall: a "request a quote" form and no numbers. There are two reasons it's so common — and both cost you.
First, hidden pricing lets a centre lead with a low headline rate, then add receiving, labelling, box and handling fees once you're committed. Second, it stops you comparing like for like, so the cheapest-looking quote often isn't.
The fix is simple: a centre that publishes its full rate card has nothing to hide and nothing to add later. That's the whole idea behind ClearCrate — the price on the page is the price you pay.
Pick your services, enter your volume, and see your real total — no form, no sales call.
Open the pricing calculator →Per-unit prep commonly runs about £0.35–£0.60 once labelling and packing are added, though it varies by volume and centre. ClearCrate's published receiving rate starts at £0.23 per unit and drops to £0.13 at higher volumes, with FNSKU labelling from £0.19 and repack at £0.12.
Many do — commonly £20–£50 a month, whether you ship that month or not. ClearCrate charges no membership fee; you pay only for work handled.
Storage is billed by space used. ClearCrate charges £20 per cubic metre per month with a one-month minimum.
A sealed case is received and sent on to Amazon unopened. ClearCrate charges £5.00 per case for 1–10 cases a month, dropping to £2.50 per case at 11 or more.
No order minimum at ClearCrate beyond the one-month storage minimum, which is included automatically on any quote.