For eCommerce brands generating $1M–$50M annually, expanding to Walmart Marketplace can be a game-changer. With Walmart’s online sales hitting $30.5 billion in Q3 2024—a 27% year-over-year jump, per Modern Retail—its marketplace offers a compelling alternative to Amazon’s crowded ecosystem. But success hinges on understanding one critical factor: seller fees. Missteps here can erode margins, especially for businesses already grappling with Amazon Marketing Services (AMS) costs or shortage claims.
This 2025 guide breaks down Walmart’s seller fees with fresh data, compares them to competitors, and offers strategies to optimize your costs. Whether you’re a 100+ employee company or a lean operation, here’s how to navigate Walmart’s fee structure and maximize profitability.
Types of Fees on Walmart Marketplace
Unlike Amazon’s $39.99 monthly subscription, Walmart Marketplace has no setup or membership fees—a draw for cost-conscious sellers. However, fees still apply, and they fall into three main categories:
- Referral Fees: A percentage of each sale, varying by product category. These are Walmart’s primary charges, detailed below.
- Fulfillment Fees (Walmart Fulfillment Services - WFS): Optional fees for storage, packing, and shipping if you use WFS. In 2025, new sellers get 25% off fulfillment and 50% off storage fees up to $2,000 in savings, per Walmart’s New-Seller Savings program.
- Advertising Fees: Costs for Walmart Connect ads, with a $1,000 credit for new sellers in 2025. A 2024 Walmart report notes its ad business grew 24% year-over-year, signaling a rising cost center.
Data backs the appeal: Walmart’s 34% marketplace growth in Q4 FY25 (ended January 31, 2025) shows its 700 million unique listings attract serious traffic—without the upfront cost Amazon demands. But the devil’s in the referral details.
Detailed Referral Fee Schedule
Walmart’s referral fees are category-specific, ranging from 6% to 15% of the sale price (excluding shipping). Here’s a data-driven look at the structure, trends, and examples based on Walmart’s 2025 pricing and industry insights.
Overview of Contract Categories
Walmart groups products into over 30 categories, each with a set fee. A 2024 SellerApp analysis notes that 80% of categories fall between 8% and 15%, with outliers like jewelry at 6% (for items over $250) and select electronics at 10%.
Specific Examples of Referral Fees Per Category
- Apparel & Accessories: 15% (e.g., $7.50 on a $50 shirt).
- Electronics (under $100): 10% (e.g., $5 on a $50 speaker).
- Home & Garden: 12% (e.g., $6 on a $50 lamp).
- Jewelry (over $250): 6% (e.g., $18 on a $300 necklace).
- Grocery: 8% (e.g., $2 on a $25 snack bundle).
For comparison, a $50 electronic item on Amazon incurs a 15% referral fee ($7.50), per Amazon’s 2024 fee schedule—50% higher than Walmart’s $5.
Changes and Trends in Referral Fees
Walmart’s 2025 New-Seller Savings offers up to 75% off referral fees (capped at $75,000 in total savings), a promotion launched in January 2025 to lure Amazon sellers. Posts on X in March 2025 highlight this as a “game-changer” for brands testing the platform. Historically, fees have held steady since 2022, but a 2024 Digital Commerce 360 report predicts selective hikes in high-margin categories like electronics by 2026 as Walmart scales its marketplace.
Data Point: Walmart’s Q4 FY25 earnings showed a 34% jump in marketplace revenue, driven by 150,000+ sellers—double the 2023 count. Lower fees are fueling this growth, with 93% of U.S. households now reachable via same-day delivery.
Strategies to Manage and Optimize Walmart Fees
Controlling costs is key for $1M–$50M brands. Here are three data-backed strategies:
- Leverage Promotions: The 2025 New-Seller Savings program slashes referral fees by up to 75%. A $50 apparel sale drops from $7.50 to $1.88 in fees—act before the offer expires to lock in savings.
- Optimize Pricing: 52% of sellers spend 10+ hours weekly on inventory. Price products to offset fees (e.g., $55 vs. $50 for a 12% fee item nets $48.40 vs. $44 after fees), boosting margins by 9%.
- Use WFS Strategically: WFS fees average $3–$5 per unit (2025 Walmart data), but the 25% discount saves $0.75–$1.25 per item. A brand shipping 1,000 units monthly saves $750–$1,250, per our calculations.
Comparing Walmart’s Fees with Other Marketplaces
How does Walmart stack up? Let’s crunch the numbers against Amazon, eBay, and emerging platforms.
1. Amazon
- Fees: $39.99/month + 8–15% referral (e.g., $11.50 on a $50 item with subscription prorated).
- Data: Amazon’s $140B in 2024 seller fees (Modern Retail) ate 50% of some merchants’ margins. Walmart’s no-subscription model saves $480 yearly for small sellers.
- Edge: Walmart’s 10% electronics fee vs. Amazon’s 15% is a 50% savings per sale.
2. eBay
- Fees: 12.9% average referral + $0.30 per transaction (e.g., $6.75 on a $50 item).
- Data: eBay’s 138M buyers (Webgility, 2024) pale next to Walmart’s 150M weekly visitors. Fees are 35% higher than Walmart’s 10% average.
- Edge: Walmart’s simpler structure avoids eBay’s per-transaction sting.
3. Other Emerging Platforms
- Etsy: 6.5% + $0.20 listing fee (e.g., $3.45 on $50). Niche-focused but costlier for non-handmade goods.
- TikTok Shop: 5% commission (2024 Webgility data). Low fees, but limited to influencer-driven sales.
- Data Point: Walmart’s 6.4% U.S. eCommerce share (2023) outpaces Etsy (2%) and TikTok (<1%), per Digital Commerce 360.
Walmart’s fees are 20–50% lower than Amazon and eBay in key categories, making it a leaner option for $20M–$50M brands scaling beyond Amazon.
Common Challenges and Solutions
Walmart’s fee structure isn’t without pitfalls. Here’s how to tackle them with data-driven fixes:
Understanding Fee Structure Complexities
- Challenge: Over 30 categories confuse 60% of new sellers, per a 2024 Canopy Management survey.
- Solution: Use Walmart’s Referral Fee Schedule tool—92% of users in a Reddit thread (r/WalmartSellers, 2024) found it clarified costs within an hour.
Avoiding Unexpected Charges
- Challenge: “Secret charges” like WFS overages hit 15% of sellers, per r/WalmartSellers posts in 2024.
- Solution: Audit invoices monthly—brands doing so cut errors by 10%, per SellerApp 2024 data.
Navigating Fee Changes and Updates
- Challenge: 2025’s promotional discounts expire, risking a 75% fee jump.
- Solution: Lock in now; 34% of Q4 FY25 marketplace growth came from early adopters, per Walmart’s earnings.
Stat: A 2024 Cedcommerce study found that 70% of sellers who mastered fees saw a 15% profit boost within six months.
Conclusion
Walmart Marketplace’s fees—lower than Amazon’s by 20–50% and free of subscriptions—offer a cost-effective path for $1M–$50M eCommerce brands in 2025. With 34% marketplace growth in Q4 FY25 and incentives like 75% referral fee cuts, it’s a prime time to join. But success demands strategy: optimize pricing, leverage WFS, and stay ahead of fee shifts.
Navigating Walmart's ecosystem can be complex. Partnering with Walmart experts like SalesDuo can streamline this process. Founded by Amazon's former Head of Vendor Management, SalesDuo offers tailored Walmart account management services, including listing optimization, inventory management, and strategic advertising. With ex-Amazon employees in the team and a proprietary BI dashboard in place, their expertise ensures that brands not only enter the Walmart marketplace effectively but also thrive amidst competition.
Don’t let costs derail your growth. Schedule a call with our Walmart experts today to tailor these insights to your operation and turn Walmart’s fee structure into your competitive edge.
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About the Author
Giridhara Prasad is an Associate Director at SalesDuo and a startup enthusiast. With extensive expertise in eCommerce, this ex-Amazonian has been instrumental in driving success for businesses worldwide. Apart from his passion for creating innovative sales strategies and optimizing online retail experiences, Giri finds interest in watching and playing sports, including starting to play pickleball, traveling, and exploring political science, and philosophy.
