Free checklist for authors

KDP Publishing Checklist

Every field on Amazon KDP’s setup screens, in the order KDP asks for them: what to put in each one, what you can’t change later, and free tools to check your title and keywords and work out your royalty. Keep it open beside KDP and tick it off as you go.

Before you start

Do these first. KDP won’t let you publish a new book until the tax step is done.

KDP must check your tax information before you can publish a new book, so do this first, in your account settings. Outside the US, enter your tax ID so a tax treaty can apply; without it, 30% of US royalties is withheld. KDP checks bank details within about 5 business days. Payment is by direct deposit; PayPal isn’t offered.

KDP may ask at sign-up, at random, or after you change your account details. A banner says “Identity verification required,” and you can’t publish until it’s done. You need a physical, unexpired passport, driver’s license or (in some countries) residence permit, plus a selfie. A photo of a digital ID or a printout won’t work. Most failures come from the name or country in your account’s Your Identity section not matching the ID exactly, so check those first. Too many failed tries locks the section for 72 hours. This verifies the account holder, not the author name; pen names are still allowed.

An eBook needs a manuscript file (EPUB or DOCX) and a cover image (JPG, ideally 2,560 × 1,600 pixels). A print book needs an interior PDF and a full cover PDF: back, spine and front as one file. The spine width depends on your page count and paper, so finish the interior before the cover. Interior Formatter · Cover Maker

PaperbackHardcover Locked after publishing

Print books need one; an eBook doesn’t. KDP gives a free ISBN that can only be used on KDP and lists the publisher as “Independently published.” Your own ISBN (from Bowker in the US, Nielsen in the UK, free in Canada) works everywhere and carries your imprint name. Each format needs its own. You can’t change it after you publish. Do you need your own ISBN?

Doing these before you open KDP means you aren’t writing a blurb into a web form. Blurb Writer drafts one from six questions; Amazon Description Generator formats it and checks it against KDP’s rules. The keyword checker and the category advice are further down this page.

Book details

The first KDP screen: what the book is called, who wrote it, and how readers find it.

Locked after publishing

The language the book is written in. It can’t be changed after you publish.

Type the title exactly as it appears on your cover, and use the same title for every format so KDP shows your eBook and paperback on one page. Title and subtitle together can be at most 200 characters. No “bestselling,” “#1,” promotions, other authors’ names or HTML. A print book’s title and subtitle can only be edited for 72 hours after it first goes live.

Title checker

    If the book is part of a series, use the exact same series name on every book, and number them. Readers then get a series page that leads from one book to the next. Public domain and low-content books can’t join a series. Series numbering

    Locked after publishing

    Leave it blank for a first edition. A new edition is a new book: a changed title, author, ISBN, trim size or ink, or a page count that changes by more than 10%. Fixing typos isn’t a new edition. It can’t be changed after you publish.

    A pen name is fine if you use it consistently. Add an editor, illustrator or translator only if they worked on this book (up to 10 contributors). A translation credits both the translator and the original author. No keywords in name fields. The primary author is locked after publishing; on print books it can be edited for 72 hours after first going live. Publishing under a pen name

    Up to 4,000 characters, and the HTML tags count toward that. No reviews, quotes, prices, web addresses or emoji. On a phone only the first couple of lines show before “Read more,” so open with your hook. Format it for KDP · Write it with the Blurb Writer

    Choose that you own the rights, unless the book is in the public domain. Public domain books must be clearly different from free copies (a new translation, real annotations, or 10 or more original illustrations), can only earn 35% as eBooks, and can’t use KDP Select, pre-orders or series. Reprinting public domain works

    You must answer whether the cover, interior or title contains sexually explicit images or language. Answering yes keeps the book out of children’s categories. For a children’s or teen book, set a reading age range (0–2, 3–5, 6–8, 9–12 or 13–17); without one it may not appear in those categories.

    The Amazon store where you expect most of your sales, such as Amazon.com for the US.

    You choose 3. Pick the shelves your book genuinely belongs on: look at the books that would sit beside yours and check theirs. A thinly populated category only helps if readers of your book browse it. Categories and keywords, without the folklore

    Up to 7 keywords or short phrases. Write what a reader would type into the search box: “cozy witch mystery” rather than “witch.” Don’t repeat words already in your title, author name or categories; Amazon already searches those. No other authors’ names, quotation marks, program names like Kindle+ or KDP Select, or claims like “bestselling.”

    Keyword checker

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                    Uses the title and subtitle from the checker above, and the author name:

                    eBook

                    Publish now, or set up a pre-order up to 18 months ahead. The final file must be uploaded at least 72 hours before release day. Missing that deadline, or canceling, a second time takes away pre-orders for 6 months. Paperbacks and hardcovers can’t take pre-orders, but you can schedule their release 5 to 90 days ahead. Pre-orders

                    Content

                    The second screen: your files, your cover, and the print options.

                    PaperbackHardcover Locked after publishing

                    Choose KDP’s free ISBN, or enter your own and the imprint name it’s registered to. Both are locked once you publish. If you add your own barcode to the cover, make it from this ISBN. Free ISBN barcode generator

                    eBook: EPUB, DOCX or KPF works best. Print: a PDF (required if your pages have bleed), with single pages, not spreads. Paperbacks run 24 to 828 pages (fewer for color and large trims); hardcovers 75 to 550. The title, author and ISBN inside the book must match what you entered. Interior Formatter makes the print PDF and the EPUB from one manuscript.

                    eBook: a JPG or TIFF, ideally 2,560 × 1,600 pixels, at least 1,000 × 625. Print: one PDF with back, spine and front, 0.125 inch bleed on the outside edges, text at least 0.125 inch inside the trim, images at 300 DPI. Spine text needs about 80 pages or more. Leave a 2 × 1.2 inch white area for the barcode, at least 0.25 inch from the spine and edges; if it’s empty, KDP adds the barcode for you. The text on the cover must match your book details exactly. Cover Maker · eBook cover

                    KDP asks whether AI created any of the text, images (including the cover) or translations. AI-generated means an AI tool created it, even if you edited it afterward. You don’t have to disclose AI-assisted work: content you created and then used AI to edit, check or brainstorm.

                    KDP’s previewer shows how the book will look. For print, page through all of it: margins, blank pages, the spine and anything near the edge. Problems found here cost nothing to fix. Proof checklist

                    Rights and pricing

                    The last screen before you publish: where it sells and what it costs.

                    eBook

                    KDP Select puts your eBook in Kindle+ (formerly Kindle Unlimited), where you’re paid per page read. In return, the eBook can only be sold through Amazon (and public libraries) for 90 days. Print books aren’t affected. It renews automatically; turn that off if you plan to sell the eBook elsewhere later. Wide or exclusive?

                    Choose worldwide rights unless your contract limits where you can sell.

                    eBooks: 70% royalty for list prices from $2.99 to $12.99 on Amazon.com (minus a small delivery fee), and 35% outside that range. To get 70%, the eBook must be at least 20% cheaper than the print edition. Print: 60% of the list price at $9.99 and up, 50% below that, minus the printing cost. The printing cost sets your minimum price. Use the calculator to try prices. Pricing your book

                    Royalty calculator (Amazon.com)

                      US prices and printing costs from KDP’s help pages, October 2026. Other Amazon stores differ. KDP shows the exact figures when you enter your price.

                      Paperback

                      Makes your paperback available to bookstores and libraries through other distributors, at a 40% royalty, which raises your minimum price. Hardcovers, public domain books, low-content books and some crowded topics can’t use it. If you plan to use IngramSpark for bookstores, leave it off. Getting into libraries and bookstores

                      PaperbackHardcover

                      Order a printed proof before you publish (up to 5 per order, at printing cost plus shipping). Read it on paper; the screen hides things. On screen or on paper?

                      The book goes “In Review.” It can take up to 72 hours, and you can’t make changes or speed it up while it’s in review. If it comes back as Draft, KDP has found something to fix and will tell you what.

                      After you publish

                      What happens next, and what to do once the book is live.

                      Look at it as a reader would: the cover at small size, the description, the price, and whether your eBook and print editions appear together. If they haven’t linked after a few days, check that the title and author match exactly, then contact KDP support.

                      Once published, KDP locks the language, edition, ISBN, imprint, trim size and publication date. Changing any of them means publishing a new edition. Description, keywords, categories, price and files can be updated any time.

                      The image modules under “From the Publisher” on your book page. They’re set up in KDP’s Marketing section once the book is live. A+ Creative Maker

                      Your author photo, bio and the list of your books on Amazon. Author profiles and pages · Writing an author bio

                      PaperbackHardcover

                      Once the book is live you can order up to 999 copies at printing cost plus shipping, for events, reviewers and local shops. Ordering author copies

                      FAQ

                      Publishing on KDP: common questions

                      How long does KDP take to publish a book?

                      Usually up to 72 hours after you press Publish. While the book is In Review you can’t make changes, and the review can’t be sped up. Low-content books can take three to four weeks.

                      What can’t I change after publishing on KDP?

                      The language, edition, ISBN, imprint, trim size and publication date. On print books, the title, subtitle and primary author can be edited only within 72 hours of first going live. Everything else, including the description, keywords, categories, price and files, can be updated.

                      Do I need an ISBN to publish on KDP?

                      Not for an eBook. Paperbacks and hardcovers need one, and KDP will give you a free one that can only be used on KDP, with “Independently published” as the publisher. Your own ISBN works everywhere.

                      How much does KDP pay per book?

                      eBooks earn 70% of the list price, minus a small delivery fee, when priced from $2.99 to $12.99 on Amazon.com, and 35% outside that range. Paperbacks earn 60% of the list price at $9.99 and above, 50% below that, minus the printing cost. A 300-page black-and-white 6 × 9 paperback costs $4.60 to print, so at $14.99 it earns about $4.39.

                      How many keywords and categories can I choose on KDP?

                      Up to 7 keywords or short phrases, and 3 categories.

                      Can I put a paperback on pre-order on KDP?

                      No. Pre-orders are for eBooks only, up to 18 months ahead. For a paperback or hardcover you can schedule the release 5 to 90 days ahead.

                      Do I have to tell KDP I used AI?

                      Only for AI-generated content: text, images (including the cover) or translations an AI tool created, even if you edited them afterward. AI-assisted work, where you wrote it and used AI to edit, check or brainstorm, doesn’t need to be disclosed.

                      What is KDP Select, and should I use it?

                      It puts your eBook in Kindle+ (formerly Kindle Unlimited), where you earn per page read, in exchange for selling the eBook only through Amazon for 90 days at a time. It suits authors whose readers mostly use Kindle; authors who want to be in every store sell “wide” instead. Your print books aren’t affected either way.

                      Why is KDP asking me to verify my identity?

                      KDP checks the identity of account holders to fight fraud, at sign-up, at random, or after you change your account details, and you can’t publish until it’s done. You need a physical, unexpired government ID and a selfie, and the name and country in your account must match the ID exactly. It verifies who owns the account, not the name on your books, so you can still publish under a pen name.

                      How many books can I publish on KDP per week?

                      KDP allows up to 2 new titles per book format each week.

                      Sources

                      Checked against KDP’s own help pages

                      KDP changes its rules: the 70% eBook price band, the paperback royalty and the pre-order window all changed in the last two years. Everything here was checked on KDP’s help pages on October 25, 2026. If KDP shows you something different, KDP is right.

                      Keywords · Metadata guidelines · Title and subtitle · Description · eBook royalties · Paperback royalty · Printing costs · What can’t be changed · Cover requirements · Content guidelines and AI · Pre-orders · KDP Select · Verify your identity · Identity verification errors

                      Updated October 25, 2026.

                      Need the files KDP asks for?

                      The Interior Formatter makes the print PDF and the EPUB from your manuscript, and the Cover Maker builds the full cover to KDP’s exact size, spine and barcode area included.

                      Start your book Free blurb writer