Amazon Lightning Deals and Coupons in Australia: Which Deal Types Exist and What They Cost You

Sellers on Amazon Australia's Professional plan can create two types of deals, Lightning Deals and Best Deals, and can also set up coupons from the Coupons dashboard in Seller Central. Eligible FBA products can be featured on Amazon Outlet as well. Amazon does not publish fees, minimum discounts or eligibility rules for any of these on a public Australian page, so the costs and conditions you see when you create a deal in Seller Central are the ones that count. This guide sets out what is confirmed and how to protect your margin.

What deal types can you use on Amazon Australia?

Amazon's public educational page lists these tools:

Amazon also refers to Prime-exclusive discounts in its Prime Day guidance, aimed at Prime members. That page does not explain how to set one up or what it costs.

Amazon does not say on that page what makes a Lightning Deal different from a Best Deal. Some Amazon markets describe Lightning Deals as short time-limited promotions and other deal types as longer ones, but Amazon has not published those definitions for Australia, so check the descriptions in your dashboard before you pick.

Which selling plan do you need?

The plan matters more than most sellers expect. Creating deals needs a Professional plan. The Professional plan is A$49.95 a month plus selling fees, excluding GST, and applies once you have active listings. The Individual plan is A$0.99 per unit sold plus selling fees.

Amazon's guidance is that the Individual plan suits sellers selling fewer than 50 items a month and Professional suits more. That is guidance, not a hard limit. If you want deals, you are on Professional regardless of volume. Our guide to Individual versus Professional walks through the break-even.

What do deals and coupons cost?

Amazon Australia does not publish deal or coupon fees on any public page. They are shown inside Seller Central when you set the deal up. Seller forum posts quote specific amounts, but they are anecdotal and may be out of date, so this page does not repeat them. If you see a figure on an agency blog, ask where it came from.

What you can calculate yourself is the discount cost. Your real costs on a promoted unit are:

1. The discount you give.
2. The referral fee on the lower price. Referral fees are percentages of the total sales price including delivery and gift wrapping, with no minimum or maximum fee.
3. The fulfilment fee if you use FBA. Selected FBA fees were reduced from 10 June 2026.
4. Any deal or coupon fee shown in Seller Central.
5. GST, which Amazon applies if it is relevant to the sale.

What does a deal do to your margin?

A worked example with invented inputs. A pet product sells for A$30.00 including GST. Pet Products carry a 10% referral fee up to A$20 and 13% above A$20. Both prices below are above A$20, so the 13% rate is used (the page states the rate switches at the price shown).

• At A$30.00 the referral fee is about A$3.90.
• You run a 20% discount, so the price becomes A$24.00. The referral fee is about A$3.12.
• You saved A$0.78 in fees but gave away A$6.00. Net, you earn A$5.22 less per unit before any deal fee.

If your margin at A$30.00 was A$7.00, it is now about A$1.78 before the deal fee and before GST is considered. That may be a fair price for a ranking push or to clear stock, and it may not. The point is to know the number first. Our Amazon Australia profit calculator guide sets this out for a full unit.

Which products suit a deal, and which suit a coupon?

There is no Amazon-published rule, so use judgement:

• Stock to clear: Outlet for eligible FBA products, or a coupon that you can switch off when the stock is gone.
• Hero products with strong reviews: a deal during a big event, if Seller Central offers it, can lift visibility. Make sure stock covers the surge.
• New products with no history: a coupon alongside Sponsored Products is cheaper to test than a deal. See Amazon PPC product launch.
• Thin-margin items: often neither. Spend on ads or listing improvement instead.

A deal is not a ranking guarantee. Amazon's own advice for big events is to keep discounts within a healthy margin, check competitor pricing and consider more advertising. Deals, coupons and ads work together, and ads need a Professional account too.

What goes wrong with deals?

• Stock-outs. A deal that sells out early ends and the ad spend behind it is wasted. Check inventory before you submit, and allow for how long stock takes to become available after delivery to a fulfilment centre (Amazon says typically within three working days).
• Stacked discounts. A coupon plus a deal plus a price cut can take you below cost. Write down your floor price per ASIN.
• Ineligible ASINs. Seller Central shows which ASINs qualify and why not. Fix what it flags, often price competitiveness or stock, before the next window.
• Forgetting storage. Peak storage from October to December is A$51.80 per cubic metre for standard-size items, against A$37.00 in the rest of the year, excluding GST.

How do deals fit with the calendar?

Amazon's Australian newsroom lists two 2026 events: Prime Day (7 to 13 July) and Prime Big Deal Days (29 September to 5 October). See Prime Day for Australian sellers and the sales calendar. Amazon has not announced Black Friday or Boxing Day windows publicly.

FAQ

Do I need a Professional account to run Lightning Deals in Australia? Yes. Amazon's educational page says sellers with a Professional selling account can create Lightning Deals and Best Deals. The plan is A$49.95 a month excluding GST.

How much does a Lightning Deal cost in Australia? Amazon does not publish it on a public page. The fee, if there is one, is displayed in Seller Central when you create the deal. Treat figures quoted on forums or agency sites as unverified, and decide based on what your own dashboard shows.

How do I set up a coupon on Amazon Australia? Coupons are created from the Coupons dashboard in Seller Central. Pick eligible ASINs, set the discount and dates, and review any cost shown before you confirm. Check whether the coupon stacks with other promotions.

Can individual-plan sellers use coupons? Amazon's public page does not state the plan needed for coupons, while it does state that deals need Professional. Check your Seller Central dashboard to see if the Coupons tool appears for your account.

What is Amazon Outlet? Amazon describes it as a place where shoppers look for overstock and clearance, and says eligible FBA products can be featured there. It suits stock you want to clear rather than hero products.

Is a bigger discount more likely to win a deal slot? Amazon does not publish selection criteria for Australia. Seller Central shows eligibility and any recommended price. Keep the discount at a level your margin supports.

Next step

If you are weighing which promotions are worth the margin, begin with your numbers and the Australia hub for related guides. Blooprint, an Amazon SPN verified partner working remotely from Bengaluru, offers Amazon Ads management in Australia if you want deals and ads planned together. The guide above works without it.