Amazon Stopped Prepping Your Inventory. Here's How to Prep FBA Shipments at the Factory
For years, sellers could send unlabeled or under-prepped inventory to Amazon and pay Amazon to fix it at the fulfillment center. That option is gone in the US. Amazon announced in 2025 that it would end its FBA prep and item-labeling services, and since January 1, 2026 inventory has to arrive at US fulfillment centers already prepped and labeled.
What 'prep' covers
- Labeling: a scannable FNSKU or eligible barcode on every sellable unit.
- Polybagging: for apparel, textiles, and loose items, with a suffocation warning when the opening is five inches or larger.
- Protective packaging: bubble wrap or boxing for fragile goods.
- Bundling: multi-packs and sets secured together and labeled as sold as a set.
- Special handling: expiration dates on dated products, taping, and sharp-item protection.
Your three options
1. Let the supplier do it
It's cheapest on paper, but factories rarely know Amazon's rules and nobody checks their work before the goods cross the ocean. Errors are found at receiving, when fixing them is most expensive.
2. Use a US prep center
Reliable and close to Amazon, but you pay domestic labor rates, an extra receiving and handling step, and an extra freight leg from the prep center to the fulfillment center. Every unit is touched twice in the destination country.
3. Prep at the source in China
Your goods are labeled and packed in China, during or right after a pre-shipment inspection, then shipped straight to Amazon. Labor costs less, there's no extra domestic leg, and if something is wrong the factory fixes it before you've paid the balance.
Why source prep usually wins
- Prep is labor-intensive, and labor is significantly cheaper in China than in a US warehouse.
- One freight leg instead of two: factory to fulfillment center, without a stop at a domestic prep center.
- Prep and inspection happen in the same visit, so labels, packaging, and quality are checked together.
- Problems are fixed while you still have leverage over the supplier.
Every touch in the destination country costs more than the same touch in China. Do the work before the goods travel, not after.
When a domestic prep center still makes sense
- You combine inventory from several countries into one shipment.
- You need returns processing or refurbishment.
- You kit products with components bought domestically.
- You keep buffer stock in a 3PL and replenish FBA from there.
How to brief prep in China
Give your prep partner a one-page spec per SKU:
- The FNSKU label file and where the label goes on the packaging.
- Polybag size and thickness, and whether a suffocation warning is needed.
- Bundle or set rules, and any inserts.
- Units per carton, carton size, and gross weight targets within Amazon's limits.
- Your Amazon shipment ID and box label files once the shipment is created.
Our FBA prep center in China handles labeling, polybagging, bundling, inserts, and carton labels as part of the same flow as inspection and freight. See the full Amazon FBA logistics playbook for how it fits together.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Amazon still offer FBA prep services in 2026?▼
In the United States, no. Amazon ended its FBA prep and item-labeling services for US fulfillment centers effective January 1, 2026, so inventory must arrive prepped and labeled. Check Seller Central for current rules in other marketplaces.
Is it cheaper to prep FBA inventory in China or in the US?▼
For most products, prepping in China is cheaper because labor costs less, the goods skip an extra handling and freight step in the US, and prep can be combined with pre-shipment inspection. Domestic prep centers make more sense for multi-country consolidation, returns, or kitting with local components.
What happens if my inventory arrives at Amazon without proper prep?▼
Units that don't meet prep or labeling requirements can be refused, delayed at receiving, or flagged for noncompliance. That holds up stock and can affect your inbound performance, so it's much cheaper to catch prep problems before the goods leave China.
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