8 out of 10 shoppers on Amazon click “Add to Cart” straight from the Buy Box without ever checking other sellers. If you’re not winning the Buy Box, you’re missing out on the majority of traffic.
But getting and keeping the Buy Box isn’t always straightforward. You may have noticed other sellers winning it even when your price is lower. This guide shows you exactly how the Buy Box works, how to track your performance, and what to do if you lose the Buy Box, so you can stop losing sales to competitors.
What Is the Amazon Buy Box?
The Amazon Buy Box is the white box on the right side of a product detail page where customers can click “Add to Cart” or “Buy Now.”
It’s the default purchase option, and when multiple sellers offer the same product, only one of them holds the Buy Box at a time. For example, if six sellers are offering the same comforter, only one of them gets featured in the Buy Box.
Now here’s why winning the buy box matters: around 82% of all Amazon sales come from the Buy Box. For mobile shoppers, that number is even higher so, if you’re not winning the Buy Box, you’re invisible to most customers.
Even if you own a private label, you still need to meet Amazon’s buy box criteria or the buy box will not be displayed when shoppers land on your product page.
Amazon Buy Box Eligibility Requirements
It doesn’t matter how low your price is or how good your product looks, if you don’t meet certain baseline requirements, you’re out of the Buy Box race from the start.
Here’s what you need to qualify:
1. A Professional Selling Plan
You must have a Professional seller account to compete for the Buy Box. This costs $39.99 monthly but the fee is a small cost when you consider how it opens the door to most of Amazon’s sales traffic.
2. A Healthy Account
Amazon checks your Order Defect Rate (ODR), Late Shipment Rate, and Cancellation Rate. While it doesn’t publish exact thresholds, you should aim for:
- ODR under 1%
- Late shipment rate under 4%
- Pre-fulfillment cancel rate under 2.5%
If you’re consistently over these limits, you may not win the Buy Box.
3. A Fast & Reliable Fulfillment Method
FBA offers are usually Buy Box eligible by default, because Amazon handles the logistics. If you’re using FBM, you need to prove you can match Amazon’s level of speed and reliability, including valid tracking and delivery (usually within 2 days).
4. A New-Condition Product
If you’re selling used, renewed, or refurbished items, your offer can appear in the “Used & New” section, but not in the main Buy Box.
5. A Competitive Landed Price
Landed price = item price + shipping. Even if you’re eligible in every other way, pricing too high compared to other offers can prevent you from winning the Buy Box.
6. Active Inventory
If your offer is out of stock, it’s automatically disqualified. For FBA, Amazon also considers where your inventory is stored. If your product isn’t available in key regions, you may lose out to a seller who can ship faster to that buyer.
7. Sufficient Selling History
If you’re a new seller, Amazon may hold back Buy Box eligibility until you’ve built up a track record. While there’s no set number of orders required, consistent fulfillment and good reviews over your first 1 to 3 months can help unlock eligibility faster.
If you’re an experienced seller, Amazon looks at your history of fulfilled orders and customer satisfaction. Focus on making sales consistently and getting good reviews to increase your chances of winning the Buy Box.
8. Active and Compliant Listings
You can’t win the Buy Box on a suppressed or incomplete listing. Make sure your listings follow Amazon’s guidelines, with proper images, bullet points, and no policy violations.
Note: The Buy Box often rotates between sellers especially if multiple offers are close in performance. You might win it in the morning and lose it in the evening. That’s normal. The key is to stay in the rotation as much as possible, for as many hours of the day as you can.
You don’t need to be perfect in every category. But the stronger your overall offer, the more time you’ll spend in the Buy Box.
How to Increase Your Chances of Winning the Amazon Buy Box
Once you’re eligible to compete, winning the Buy Box is about consistently meeting the right conditions and knowing which levers to pull when you’re falling behind.
Here’s what you can do right now to improve your chances:
1. Use a Repricing Strategy That Makes Sense for Your Margins
The Buy Box rewards competitive pricing, but you may run at a loss if you cut price blindly .
Instead, use a repricer with clear minimums so you don’t race to the bottom. A good repricer adjusts only when needed and avoids price wars that hurt your profit.
Additionally, if you’re using FBA, you can often price slightly higher than FBM offers and still win.
2. Watch Your Inventory Level
Running low on stock reduces your share of the Buy Box because Amazon wants sellers who can fulfill orders to win it.
If you’re using FBA, make sure you have stock in multiple fulfillment centers. For FBM, avoid listing if you know you’re about to go out of stock.
3. Monitor and Improve Your Account Health
Keep a close eye on your ODR, late shipments, and customer feedback. If your metrics start to drop, you’ll lose the Buy Box without warning.
If you use FBM and consistently deliver late, switch to FBA or upgrade your shipping provider.
4. Offer Fast, Reliable Shipping (for FBM)
The closer you can get to 1-2 day delivery, the better. Even small improvements, like cutting your handling time from 2 days to 1, can give you an edge. And always upload valid tracking. Amazon tracks this, and if your valid tracking rate drops below 95%, your Buy Box time will too.
5. Respond to Customer Messages Within 24 Hours
Amazon wants buyers to have a great experience, and seller responsiveness is part of that. Make it a daily habit to clear your inbox and stay within Amazon’s response time expectations even on weekends. A consistently slow response rate can quietly affect your chances.
What to Do If You Lose the Buy Box
Losing the Buy Box can feel like a sudden drop in sales and it often is. One day your listing is converting, and the next, traffic slows to a crawl.
Here’s how to troubleshoot when you lose it:
1. Don’t Panic
Many Buy Box losses are temporary. If your metrics are good, you’re probably just being rotated out. But if it lasts more than 24-48 hours, take action. Run through this checklist, adjust your price, check stock levels, and make sure nothing is affecting your listing compliance.
2. Check Your Pricing First
This is usually the issue. Is a competitor offering a better total price (including shipping)? Even a $0.50 difference can push you out.
If you’re FBA and still losing, the other offer may be FBM with a significantly lower price. Adjust your price carefully, keeping margins in mind.
3. Look at Your Inventory Status
If you’re running out of stock, Amazon may rotate you out to favor sellers with more inventory. To avoid this, monitor your inventory levels weekly.
4. Review Your Account Health Metrics
Focus on Order Defect Rate, Late Shipment Rate, and Cancellation Rate. If any of these are creeping above the thresholds, Amazon might remove you from Buy Box rotation temporarily, even if your price is strong.
Advanced Amazon Buy Box Strategies
If you’re in a competitive category or dealing with aggressive resellers, these advanced buy box strategies can give you an edge and help you hold the Buy Box for longer periods.
1. Use Min-Max Pricing Rules to Avoid Suppressions
Amazon suppresses listings that are priced significantly above its internal fair price threshold. If you’re using a repricer, always set a sensible maximum price to avoid triggering suppression.
For example, if your average market price is $24.99, setting your max at $39.99 is risky. A better range might be $22.99–$28.99.
2. Bundle Products Under a New ASIN
If you’re constantly losing the Buy Box on high-competition listings, consider creating a bundle.
For example, if you sell resistance bands, bundle them with a workout guide and create a new ASIN. You own the Buy Box by default because you’re the only seller.
This works especially well for complementary, low-cost items that increase perceived value.
3. Leverage Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF) Smartly
If you’re using FBA and also selling on Shopify, eBay, or Walmart, avoid pulling too much FBA stock for those orders. That reduces your availability on Amazon itself.
Instead, use separate inventory or limit MCF use during high-demand periods like Q4.
4. Raise Prices Gradually on Fast Movers
If you suddenly spike your price, you risk losing the Buy Box. But if you raise it slowly, say $0.50 every few days, you can often keep the Buy Box while improving margin.
This works especially well on seasonal or fast-selling SKUs where you’re the main or only seller.
5. Use Buy Box-Specific Alerts
Tools like Sellerboard, RepricerExpress, and Helium 10 allow you to track Buy Box status in real time. Using any one, set alerts to notify you instantly when you lose the Buy Box.
This helps you act fast, instead of waiting until your weekly report to find out you’ve been losing sales.
Amazon Buy Box FAQs
Here are answers to common Buy Box questions that come up as sellers start managing their listings more seriously:
1. Why am I not winning the Buy Box even though I have the lowest price?
This is because price is only one part of the equation.
If your fulfillment method is slow (like standard FBM shipping), or your seller metrics are weak (like high ODR or late shipment rate), Amazon may favor a slightly higher-priced offer that’s more reliable. ‘
FBA sellers especially tend to win the Buy Box at higher prices because of their shipping speed and trust factor.
2. Can multiple sellers win the Buy Box?
Not at the exact same at the same time, but yes, Amazon rotates the Buy Box among eligible sellers.
If two or three sellers have similar price, shipping, and performance, Amazon will alternate between them, often based on location or time of day.
The goal is to reward strong offers while still giving exposure to others who meet the bar.
3. Does Amazon always win the Buy Box when they sell the product?
Not always, but they’re very hard to beat. When Amazon Retail is on the listing, they often dominate the Buy Box because they control pricing and fulfillment directly.
You can still win some share if Amazon runs out of stock, or if you’re using FBA and have a noticeably better price. But competing head-to-head with Amazon Retail usually isn’t worth it unless you have unique leverage, like exclusive bundles or brand gating.
4. Why did my Buy Box disappear even though I didn’t change anything?
It could be due to:
- Your price crossing Amazon’s internal fair price threshold
- Temporary account health issues
- Low inventory or warehouse-level stockouts
- New competition offering faster delivery or lower price
Buy Box loss often happens quietly, so it’s smart to check your “Buy Box Percentage” in Business Reports regularly.
Additionally, use third-party tools like Helium 10 and Keepa if you want real-time tracking.
Wrapping Up
The sellers who consistently dominate the Buy Box are the ones who understand how the algorithm works, monitor relevant metrics closely, and adjust quickly when something slips.
If you build strong seller performance, keep inventory stable, and pay attention to what Amazon rewards, the Buy Box will work for you.
