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Expanding your customer base and reaching new markets has never been easier. With Amazon Marketplaces, you can connect with a vast audience worldwide and offer your products to customers in different countries.
Amazon has 20 international markets, so you’d never run out of new territories to conquer. You can leverage Amazon’s global state-of-the-art international logistics and bring your brand to new customers.
In this article, we’ll provide a comprehensive overview of Amazon Marketplaces and discuss how you can begin selling in them.
Amazon's international presence has grown exponentially over the years, driven by its ambition to connect sellers and buyers across the globe. With a relentless focus on expansion, Amazon has established marketplaces in multiple countries, making it easier than ever for sellers to reach international customers.
There are four markets in the Americas, with three consolidated in the North America Unified Account.
Amazon.com (United States)
Language: English
The flagship Amazon site has a massive customer base and an extensive 350 million product catalog. It attracts around 2.2 billion monthly visitors and offers various seller programs to cater to different business sizes.
Orders placed on this website can be delivered to any country with a partner Amazon carrier services, and non-US-based sellers are welcome to sell on the platform.
Amazon.ca (Canada)
Language: English
Amazon Canada, launched in 2002, is the second most popular North American marketplace, with 159 million monthly visitors. Compared to other markets, it has the second largest percentage of experienced sellers who’ve sold for five years or longer on Amazon.
Amazon.com.mx (Mexico)
Language: Spanish
Amazon Mexico launched in 2015 and is one of Amazon’s fastest-growing countries. It receives 89 million monthly visitors and is one of the biggest marketplaces in Latin America, competing with other Lat-Am eCommerce platforms like Mercado Libre.
Amazon.com.br (Brazil)
Language: Portuguese
Launched in 2012, Amazon Brazil offers a growing marketplace for sellers, tapping into one of the largest consumer markets in Latin America. It attracts 160 million monthly visitors, creating exciting opportunities for sellers looking to tap a growing Latin American market.
Amazon also lets you sell seamlessly across Europe through an Amazon Unified European Account.
Amazon.co.uk (United Kingdom)
Language: English
Amazon UK is a popular destination for online shoppers in the UK market. It offers excellent seller support and attracts 345 million monthly traffic. Established three years after the original site, it is the third most popular marketplace after the US and Canada.
Amazon.de (Germany)
Language: German
As Europe's largest economy, Germany presents a lucrative market for sellers. Amazon Germany is a thriving marketplace with 433 million monthly visitors and strong buyer engagement. It was established in 1998 and is a solid choice for sellers whose products can transcend language barriers.
Amazon.fr (France)
Language: French
Amazon France is another primary European market that provides a gateway to French-speaking customers. It has a significant presence in the region and offers excellent selling opportunities. It attracts 159 million monthly visitors, which may not be as many as the German or English marketplaces but still makes it an ideal destination for expansion.
Amazon.it (Italy)
Language: Italian
Serving the Italian market, Amazon Italy offers a variety of products across different categories, including fashion, electronics, and home goods. It has a growing customer base and attracts 162 million monthly visitors.
Italian regulators are more stringent than US ones and have previously hit the retail giant with multiple investigations and fines due to anti-competitive marketplace practices.
Amazon.es (Spain)
Language: Spanish
Amazon Spain opens the doors to the Spanish market, offering an extensive product selection and competitive pricing. It has a strong regional presence and attracts 131 million monthly traffic. Established in 2011, it attracts sellers from Latin American marketplaces looking to enter their first European market.
Amazon.nl (Netherlands)
Language: Dutch
Amazon Netherlands is a relatively new addition to the company's global sites. Initially selling only books, it launched as a full marketplace in 2020. Top product categories now include electronics, mobile phones, and clothing, making it an exciting marketplace for sellers looking to tap into the Dutch market. It attracts a decent 21 million monthly visitors.
Amazon.pl (Poland)
Language: Polish
Another recent addition to Amazon's global sites, Amazon Poland, presents an exciting opportunity for sellers to reach the Polish market. It has a growing customer base, attracting 13 million visitors monthly since it launched in 2021. Top product categories include apparel, sports goods, and handicrafts.
Amazon.se (Sweden)
Language: Swedish
Amazon Sweden launched in 2020, bringing the Amazon experience to Swedish customers. It offers competitive pricing and a growing product selection, catering to different consumer needs and attracting 13 million monthly visitors.
Amazon.com.tr (Turkey)
Language: Turkish
Amazon Turkey presents a growing marketplace for sellers looking to tap into the Turkish market. The site attracts 41 million monthly visitors, and best-selling categories include home, fashion, toys, beauty, and Amazon devices. It launched in 2017 and was the first European marketplace outside the EU.
Amazon also opened a fulfillment center in Istanbul. This has led to the creation of over a thousand jobs and enabled sellers to take advantage of Amazon FBA services.
Despite tough competition, Amazon has also established its presence in the Asia-Pacific.
Amazon.co.jp (Japan)
Language: Japanese
Amazon Japan is a dominant player in the eCommerce landscape of Japan, one of the world's largest economies. Sellers can tap into a technologically advanced market and enjoy domestic Amazon FBA services in popular categories like electronics, toys, and OTAKU products. The site draws 519 million monthly visitors.
Amazon.in (India)
Language: English
With a rapidly expanding eCommerce sector, India presents immense potential. Amazon India offers sellers access to a massive customer base and steadily growing monthly traffic, attracting 303 million visitors.
Amazon.com.au (Australia)
Language: English
A relatively young marketplace, Amazon Australia attracts US-based sellers who want to reach shoppers down south. The site attracts 53 million visitors monthly and has a steadily growing customer base, presenting sellers with the opportunity to expand their businesses in the Australian eCommerce landscape.
Amazon.sg (Singapore)
Language: English
Faced with stiff competition from SE Asia’s eCommerce giants, Amazon launched its Singapore marketplace silently in 2017. With a consistently growing market of 5 million monthly visitors, the site allows sellers to tap new customers within Southeast Asian countries.
Amazon’s million-dollar purchase of Souq, the largest Arab eCommerce platform, paved the way for the eCommerce giant to enter the Middle East market.
Amazon.ae (United Arab Emirates)
Language: English
Amazon UAE was Amazon’s first Middle East marketplace after it acquired Souq. The rebranded site now draws 22 million visitors monthly and is a lucrative venture for sellers who wants to tap a dynamic market.
Amazon.sa (Saudi Arabia)
Language: Arabic
Launched in 2020, Amazon Saudi Arabia offers reliable delivery options and customer-centric services, thanks to 12 Amazon sites in the region with more in the pipeline. The site attracts 19 million monthly visitors and is a testament to Saudi Arabia’s growing eCommerce market.
Amazon.eg (Egypt)
Language: Arabic
Amazon Egypt offers a range of products across different categories, catering to the growing eCommerce market in Egypt. It provides an easy-to-use platform for sellers and attracts 18 million monthly visitors. It’s the first Amazon marketplace in Africa.
Amazon provides a comprehensive Global Selling Guide that gives very detailed steps on how to start selling internationally. It covers everything you need to know about what marketplaces accept third-party sellers, what are the ideal products to sell, how to cope with language barriers, how to deal with taxes and regulations, and many more.
Here’s a summary of what you’d find in the guide:
Before expanding in any marketplace, decide where and what to sell. Study your target marketplace and understand the requirements of trading in that country. Create a marketplace strategy that considers the 4Ps of marketing (product, price, placement, and promotion).
A tool like SellerRunning will help you discover profitable Amazon marketplaces and help you optimize your listings to increase profitability. It will give you a one-click access to these global marketplaces, so you can spend less time managing multiple listings and more time focusing on growing your brand.
It’s also crucial to look at the competition. Regardless of the marketplace, Amazon is a highly competitive platform with thousands of sellers often selling the same items. Look for the best Amazon product categories to help you decide which products you can sell. You can also use a tool like Tactical Arbitrage to help you find profitable products to sell on Amazon.
If you already know your target audience, determine if they exist in the market you’re entering. Does the country have the same awareness and demand for your product in your primary market? For instance, you wouldn’t sell pork items on Amazon Saudi. If you’re selling electronics, you won’t sell items that don’t match the plugs in a particular country.
You should also consider the logistics of shipping your product. Depending on which fulfillment method you choose, if you have fragile items that are challenging to send, they can arrive damaged, affecting your ratings.
Different markets have different requirements for setting up an Amazon Seller Account. They can also offer seller registration in the local language, although there are also English options.
Take advantage of unified seller accounts like the North America Unified Account, which lets you sell in the US, Canada, and Mexico, and the Amazon European Unified Account, which works with marketplaces in the European network.
While it may seem intimidating, opening a seller account on various Amazon Marketplaces is straightforward. You just need the required documentation, which usually includes your tax information and bank account in a country supported by Amazon.
Amazon provides a BIL (Build International Listings) tool that helps you automatically translate listings into the required language and synchronize products across multiple marketplaces. However, you won’t be able to automatically populate listings across marketplaces, so you still need to list your items separately for each.
Decide between Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) and Fulfillment by Merchant (FBM) based on your business needs and resources. FBA allows Amazon to handle storage, packaging, and shipping, while FBM involves self-managing inventory and fulfillment logistics.
Of course, the fees are higher if you opt for FBA, but you can use Amazon’s multiple fulfillment centers worldwide. This allows you to ship items to customers faster and ensure they are handled properly.
If you already have boxes, packing tools, and other shipping paraphernalia, going with an FBM option will give you more flexibility and lower costs. Whatever approach you choose, it’s best to have extra help.
Tools like Threecolts have products that help you know when Amazon is overcharging your FBA fees or if there is lost and damaged inventory, so you can make reimbursement requests and manage your cash flow better.
Expanding to international markets means dealing with import and export regulations. You can either familiarize yourself with the rules or work with a third-party logistics provider to figure out the details. Amazon recommends signing up with a logistics provider as soon as you sign up for FBA since the paperwork could take some time.
You should also have customer service specialists who can work within the time zones of your target market. They should be available to handle customer queries promptly and efficiently. If you’re using FBA, Amazon provides 24-hour customer support in the local language on your behalf.
If you’re not using FBA, Amazon requires that you provide customers with a local return address within the country of the Amazon marketplace or offer free shipping for returns.
Expanding to a foreign market is an exciting opportunity. However, there are essential factors you should consider before deciding where to begin. Knowing these factors will help you make informed decisions so you can choose the market where you’ll be most successful.
Selling internationally requires understanding the products suitable for your target country. Each country has its own product laws and standards that will dictate the kind of items you can sell.
For example, electronic devices vary around the world due to different standard ‘residential’ voltages. Mattress sizes also differ between countries; what works for the UK may not work for the US.
If you’re selling in the Middle East market, particularly in the UAE, consider that they are a largely conservative nation that bans homosexuality. Recently, Amazon was forced to comply with local laws restricting the sale of LGBTQ+ products. A search for any item containing related keywords now turns up zero results.
Amazon charges a monthly fee for every active professional seller account. The cost differs per marketplace. In some cases, Amazon also charges a fee for each product sold. This monthly charge is separate from the fees related to Amazon FBA.
If you’re selling only a few items or no more than 50 per month, you can sign up as an individual seller. It’s an account geared toward casual sellers.
When you sell in a foreign market, you must be familiar with their tax regulations and comply accordingly. Here’s a summary of what you should know.
To sell in any European Union country, you must be registered for Value Added Tax (VAT) in that particular country. Amazon can help you complete your VAT registrations by providing the necessary resources and tools. They recommend starting the process as soon as you register your EU seller account.
Aside from VAT, you must also comply with other EU regulations like appropriate commercial invoice format, the correct markings and labels, environmental and health standards, intellectual property rights, consumer rights, and product compliance. Learn about these specific requirements via the Amazon Global Selling Guide for Europe.
Amazon charges Singapore sellers the standard 8% GST on Amazon advertising fees and Selling on Amazon fees. This also applies to non-Singaporean residents who are conducting business in the country. However, these GST fees are waived if you become GST-registered in Singapore.
Australia recently implemented new legislation to collect GST on imported goods classified as having a customs value of AUD 1,000 or less. Amazon collects and remits 10% GST on all sales within the threshold.
Australia also regularly changes compliance regulations, so you must be vigilant on laws surrounding popular and consumable categories.
Indian regulations restrict global entities from engaging directly with retail customers. Amazon India assists international brands by connecting them with third-party companies that can help with their listings using the FBA model.
Options for launching via FBA include setting up your own entity in India or partnering with a local distributor using an outright purchase model.
However, if you’re shipping orders directly to India through the FBM, you don’t need to work with a third-party company. Instead, you must contract directly with a local logistics or fulfillment provider.
Selling in Japan requires you to comply with local laws and understand the relevant Japanese customs and regulations. Specific items are subject to customs duties, and you’re obligated to taxes such as consumption tax. You must also have a local business address in Japan for customer returns.
If you’re entering the European and Japanese markets, you must have an Importer of Record (IOR) or Non-Resident Importer. Amazon and its fulfillment centers don’t offer this service but require it for all FBA shipments.
An IOR entity pays applicable import duties and taxes and ensures your goods comply with local laws. Another option is to appoint an Attorney for Customs Procedure to perform these duties on your behalf. The ACP only takes care of customs duties and taxes but leaves you to comply with local regulations.
One of the perks of selling in international markets is earning in various currencies and taking advantage of currency conversions. This can be an excellent source of additional income if the currency conversion is in your favor.
Amazon accepts payments in the marketplace’s local currency and then pays you in your local currency. You can receive payment in two ways:
Expanding to international markets through Amazon Marketplaces presents an incredible opportunity for sellers in today's digital age. With advanced technology and the robust infrastructure of Amazon's eCommerce platform, reaching customers worldwide has become more accessible than ever.
However, to expand successfully, you must understand each market's local laws and regulations. You should also have the right tools to manage your presence in multiple marketplaces. Threecolts gives you the tools required to optimize your prices, streamline your inventory, monitor your competition, and more so you can focus on strategic decisions and customer satisfaction.
With the proper preparation, research, and support, you can seize the potential of international markets and grow your business globally through Amazon Marketplaces.
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