Zepto onboards brands, not sellers. You register on the Zepto brand portal, a Category Manager decides whether your range fits the assortment, you negotiate margin and cities, submit a New Product Introduction catalogue, add Zepto's warehouse to your GST registration in each state, and then deliver stock against purchase orders. Zepto's brand page says you can "register to sell in 4 easy steps with valid GST, address, & bank details", and its partner page promises onboarding within 15 business days for qualifying brands. As of September 2026 nothing else is published: no rate card, no metrics, no rejection reasons. This guide sets Zepto's own wording next to what onboarding consultants and brands report so you can plan the application and the first ninety days. For the money side, read our Zepto seller fees guide; for a comparison across platforms, how to sell on Blinkit, Zepto and Instamart.
Zepto guide
Zepto Brand Onboarding 2026: Brand Portal, Category Manager Approval, APOB, NPI and Documents
By Blooprint team · Published 25 September 2026 · 7 min read
Key takeaways
- Zepto brands register at brands.zepto.co.in with GST, address and bank details, then wait for a Category Manager; there is no self-serve listing and no automated rejection.
- Zepto's partner page promises onboarding within 15 business days for qualifying brands, but guides report 2 to 6 weeks to first contact and 30 to 45 days of verification.
- Stock ships to Zepto's central warehouses, not dark stores, so APOB is needed in every state you supply and a central FSSAI licence avoids a per-city block.
- NPI images must be readable at a 200 by 200 pixel thumbnail with a picker view showing brand and barcode; failed images add 5 to 7 days per resubmission.
Official portals
- Zepto brand portal → brands.zepto.co.in/
- Zepto brand onboarding form → brands-onboarding.zepto.co.in/
In this guide
- How does the Zepto brand portal application work?
- What does a Zepto Category Manager look for?
- Which documents does Zepto require?
- What is APOB on Zepto and when do you need it?
- What is NPI on Zepto?
- How do you pick cities and what does it cost?
- What fill rate and SLA does Zepto expect?
- Why do SKUs get delisted on Zepto?
- FAQ
- Get past the Category Manager
How does the Zepto brand portal application work?
Registration lives at brands.zepto.co.in with the form itself at brands-onboarding.zepto.co.in. Verify your mobile by OTP, create the account, then complete the Brand Information section: contact details, brand name, whether you are a manufacturer or distributor, product category, turnover range, selling price band, website, existing platform presence and geographic reach, plus a product portfolio upload. Consultants estimate one to two hours if your catalogue is ready. Zepto uses this submission to decide whether the brand is worth assigning a Category Manager to.
What follows, according to guides that have taken brands through it:
| Stage | What happens | Reported time |
|---|---|---|
| Initial review | Business authenticity, product suitability, supply capability, category fit | 2 to 6 weeks to first contact; one guide says verification alone "typically consumes 30 to 45 days" |
| Category Manager assignment | A CM becomes your single point of contact | On approval; Zepto's own figure is 15 business days for qualifying brands |
| Commercial negotiation | Margin on MRP, cities, PO cadence, launch support, any deposit | 1 to 2 weeks |
| NPI catalogue | Per-SKU data and images reviewed; failures return for resubmission | 3 to 7 days per pass; 5 to 7 days added per image resubmission |
| APOB and FSSAI coverage | GST amendment per state; FSSAI must cover each state supplied | 5 to 14 days per state; 2 to 4 weeks per city if FSSAI is state-only |
| First PO and inwarding | Deliver to Zepto's central warehouse for the city; barcode and shelf-life checks | 1 to 2 weeks |
What does a Zepto Category Manager look for?
A Category Manager is an internal buyer who "controls what gets listed in their category", negotiates terms, evaluates your NPI and "decides whether your brand fits their assortment strategy". They are reviewing dozens of brands against a category P&L and a fixed number of shelf slots. Consultants list four questions: whether you fill a genuine gap in the current assortment; whether you can supply at the required volume and cadence; whether your pricing survives Zepto's margin; and whether your presentation signals operational readiness.
Product fit is stricter than on a marketplace because a dark store is small and a picker spends about three seconds with your pack. High-frequency, impulse and replenishment items work; one guide's contrast is that "a Rs 200 snack works; a Rs 3,500 blender doesn't". Bring sell-through data from Amazon, Flipkart or modern trade, a hero range of 5 to 10 SKUs and a per-SKU cost sheet to the CM call.
Which documents does Zepto require?
| Document | Who needs it |
|---|---|
| GST registration certificate | All brands; legal name must match PAN and bank |
| Business PAN | All brands |
| Bank account details and cancelled cheque | All brands; current account in the business name |
| Business registration certificate | All brands |
| Identity proof of authorised signatory | All brands |
| FSSAI licence | Food and beverage brands; central licence if supplying more than one state |
| Trademark certificate | Brand owners |
| Brand authorisation letter | Distributors and importers; Zepto does not take grey-market stock |
| Product catalogue with EAN barcodes, MRP, HSN, shelf life, dimensions | All brands |
| Warehouse address proof | Brands with their own facility |
Optional but useful, according to consultants: Udyam registration, live Amazon or Flipkart listings and a brand website, all of which support the "authenticity" check.
What is APOB on Zepto and when do you need it?
Zepto brands "ship to Zepto's central warehouses, not to individual dark stores". Each central warehouse holds your stock, so its address must be on your GST registration as an Additional Place of Business (APOB) in that state. If you supply only your home state, one amendment covers it; expanding to a second city in another state means a second APOB, and if you have no GST registration in that state, a new registration first. Consultants report 5 to 14 days per state on the GST portal. File as soon as your CM confirms the warehouse address, in parallel with NPI.
FSSAI works the same way. A state licence "only covers the state it's issued in", and expanding without coverage "creates a compliance block that costs two to four weeks per city". Apply for a central licence at the start if there is any chance you will sell in more than one state.
What is NPI on Zepto?
New Product Introduction is the per-SKU catalogue Zepto's content team reviews before a purchase order can be raised. Beyond the usual title, MRP, EAN, HSN and shelf-life fields, Zepto's image rules are shaped by the app and the picker:
- A front image that stays readable as a 200 by 200 pixel thumbnail: brand name and variant legible, no clutter.
- A picker-view image that shows the brand name and the barcode together, so a picker can confirm the item in the three seconds they have.
- A back or information-panel image showing ingredients, net quantity and best-before.
Images that fail go back for resubmission, which adds 5 to 7 days each cycle. Common rejections are poor images, incomplete descriptions, incorrect pricing and barcode errors.
How do you pick cities and what does it cost?
Zepto assigns dark stores; you agree cities. Third-party sources describe Zepto at more than 1,000 dark stores in early 2026, with delivery across more than 1,500 pin codes; Zepto's IPO prospectus has the official figures. Start where your existing demand is and where you already hold GST and FSSAI coverage, then earn the next city on sell-through.
The margin worked example matters more than the deposit here. Consultants report Zepto margins of roughly 18 to 22% on packaged food and beverages and 10 to 15% on staples; Zepto publishes nothing. Take a Rs 200 snack: at an 18% margin Zepto pays Rs 164 per unit against your purchase order invoice, at 22% it pays Rs 156. If your landed cost including packaging, freight to the central warehouse and GST is Rs 110, and you commit 10% of MRP (Rs 20) to ads and brand-funded discounts, you keep Rs 26 to Rs 34 per unit before returns and expiry write-offs. Some new brands are also asked for a refundable deposit of about Rs 25,000; treat that figure as unconfirmed until it is in your term sheet.
What fill rate and SLA does Zepto expect?
Zepto publishes no thresholds. The operating expectations brands report:
- Fill rate: service every PO in full; "repeated stockouts get you deprioritised quickly" and "frequent stockouts can negatively affect supplier performance and future purchase orders". Aim for 95% or better.
- Inwarding SLA: deliver to the central warehouse in the booked appointment with PO, invoice and e-way bill; batches with less remaining shelf life than the category norm are rejected.
- Packaging: every unit and case must scan first time; damaged or unscannable packs are short-received and the shortfall counted against you.
- In-stock at dark stores: the app hides out-of-stock SKUs; a week out of stock resets whatever ranking the SKU had earned.
Why do SKUs get delisted on Zepto?
Delisting is SKU-level and mostly commercial: low sell-through against the shelf slot in the first month, a fill rate that leaves the shelf empty, expiry or damage complaints, MRP mismatches with the pack, or the category being rationalised in a city. Brand-level exits are rarer and usually follow document or authenticity problems, counterfeit findings or an unresolved compliance notice. Blooprint does not offer standalone reinstatement of suspended Zepto accounts; that runs through your Category Manager. Our work is the submission, the launch and the weekly PO and fill-rate discipline that keeps SKUs live.
FAQ
How long does Zepto brand onboarding take? Zepto's partner page says 15 business days for qualifying brands. Consultants report 2 to 6 weeks to first Category Manager contact and 30 to 45 days of verification; plan two to three months from application to first PO.
Can I list products on Zepto myself? No. There is no self-serve listing. A Category Manager approves the brand, then each SKU goes through NPI review before Zepto raises a purchase order.
Is FSSAI mandatory on Zepto? Yes for any food or drink. A state licence covers only its state, so take a central licence if you will supply more than one.
What is APOB and do I need it for every city? Additional Place of Business on your GST registration for Zepto's central warehouse in each state you supply. One per state, not per city.
Does Zepto charge a registration or deposit fee? Registration is free. Some new brands report a refundable deposit of about Rs 25,000 or a prepaid launch package; Zepto has not published either.
Where does my stock go on Zepto? To Zepto's central warehouse for the city, against a PO. Zepto disperses it to dark stores; products go live only once they are physically on a dark-store shelf.
Get past the Category Manager
Most Zepto applications fail quietly: an unconvincing brand form, a portfolio without sell-through proof, or images that never pass NPI. Blooprint Automation prepares Zepto brand submissions, negotiates with Category Managers, files APOB, builds NPI catalogues and runs the weekly PO cycle for brands from Bengaluru. See what is included at /services/zepto-account-management/.
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