If you’re an intermediate Amazon seller looking to boost repeat purchases and build customer loyalty, you’ve probably heard about Amazon Subscribe & Save (SnS). But what exactly is it, and how can you make the most of it?
This guide breaks down everything you need to know about Subscribe & Save. Read on to learn how it works, its benefits and requirements, and actionable strategies to grow your business using this powerful program.
What is Amazon Subscribe & Save?
Amazon Subscribe & Save is a program that allows customers to receive automatic, recurring deliveries of eligible products at a discount that’s typically between 5% and 15% off.
It’s designed for consumable products like household items, supplements, pet supplies, groceries, and personal care items. For sellers, Subscribe & Save offers a way to turn one-time buyers into long-term, loyal customers.
Why Sellers Should Care About Subscribe & Save
There’s more to SnS than just discounts for consistent customers. Here’s why it’s worth your attention:
Increase Customer Lifetime Value
Customers who subscribe are far more likely to keep purchasing from you over the long term, often without reevaluating their buying decision each month. This translates to lower acquisition costs, higher repeat order rates, and stronger brand loyalty.
Over time, these repeat customers can also become advocates, recommending your products to friends or leaving more reviews. Both of these things will further boost your sales.
Build Predictable Revenue Streams
Knowing your baseline recurring revenue allows you to take more calculated risks with advertising spend, product launches, or expansion without overextending your resources. The more subscribers you have, the more consistent and forecastable your monthly revenue becomes. This predictability helps with inventory planning, cash flow management, and growth strategies.
Boost Organic Ranking
Frequent, recurring sales help your visibility too. Regular sales activity feeds Amazon’s algorithm, improving your Best Seller Rank (BSR) and keyword positions over time. This creates a flywheel effect: higher rankings bring in more customers and generate more subscriptions, which in turn reinforces your rankings.
Stand Out From Competitors
Products with the SnS badge signal stability, trust, and customer satisfaction. This visual cue can increase conversion rates, especially in crowded categories where shoppers are looking for proven, reliable options.
Offering SnS can also make it harder for competitors to poach your customers. Once buyers subscribe, they’re less likely to browse for alternatives.
How Subscribe & Save Works for Sellers
There are two ways sellers can participate in Subscribe & Save:
Amazon-Funded Discounts
Amazon funds the discount (usually 5%) for eligible FBA products. You don’t have to cover the discount cost.
Seller-Funded Discounts
You can opt to fund an additional discount (typically 5% or 10%) on top of Amazon’s base. This stacked discount can help you attract more subscribers. For example: a customer could receive 5% off via Amazon, plus an additional 10% if you choose to fund it, resulting in a total discount of 15%.
Keep an eye out for updates, though. Sellers should confirm whether their discounts will stack during large promotions (like Prime Day), as Amazon has made some discounts mutually exclusive in high-traffic events.
Who Can Enroll in Subscribe & Save?
To qualify, you must meet Amazon’s eligibility requirements:
- FBA only: Subscribe & Save is available primarily to Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) sellers. Amazon began piloting SnS access for a limited number of Seller Fulfilled Prime (SFP) sellers in late 2024. While not widely available, this option may expand in the future.
- Product category: Your product must fall into eligible categories (think replenishable items).
- Account health: Your account must be in good standing with Amazon.
- Inventory history: Amazon often looks at your past in-stock performance and fill rates.
Note that Amazon more frequently auto-enrolls eligible ASINs without notice as of 2025 if they meet performance thresholds. Check your SnS dashboard regularly to monitor and adjust participation.
How to Enroll in Subscribe & Save
If your product is eligible, here’s how to get started:
- Go to Seller Central.
- Navigate to Advertising > Subscribe & Save.
- Click Manage Products.
- Choose the ASINs you want to enroll.
- Select the discount level (optional for seller-funded).
- Submit and wait for Amazon to approve.
Approval typically takes a few days. Once live, your listing will display the Subscribe & Save option for customers.
Best Practices for Subscribe & Save Success
Now that you’re opting for SnS for your products, how do you make the most of it? Follow these tips to maximize its features:
Choose the Right Products
Not every product is suitable. Subscribe & Save works best for:
- Daily or weekly use items
- Products with consistent consumption rates
- Items with a price point under $50
- Lightweight, easily shipped goods
Not sure what to place under SnS? Think toothpaste, dog food, or multivitamins, not seasonal items or one-off novelty gifts.
Keep Inventory Healthy
Nothing kills momentum faster than going out of stock. Amazon monitors your inventory performance and may pause or remove your listings from SnS if you frequently run out.
- Keep 60–90 days of inventory in stock.
- Use restock alerts and Subscribe & Save forecasting widgets in Seller Central to project future SnS demand per ASIN.
- Factor in subscriber growth when reordering.
Fund Additional Discounts Wisely
Seller-funded discounts can boost your subscriber base, but they eat into your margins. Start small (5%), test performance, and scale up if ROI justifies it.
Track your:
- Conversion rate pre- and post-discount
- Subscriber churn
- ROI after discount costs
Monitor Performance Metrics
Subscribe & Save has its own performance dashboard in Seller Central. Use it to track:
- Number of subscribers per ASIN
- Cancellation rate
- Upcoming forecasted units
- Discount cost impact
Knowing these metrics helps you fine-tune pricing, inventory, and marketing efforts.
Tips to Grow Your Subscriber Base
Done enrolling your products? Let’s talk strategy. Getting into the program is step one, but growing your subscribers is where the magic happens:
Optimize Product Listings
Great listings convert better, especially for recurring orders.
- Highlight daily-use benefits in the title or bullet points.
- Add “Subscribe & Save” in a subtle way to the product description.
- Use images that show daily use or consumption patterns (e.g. 30-day supply)
Use Amazon Coupons or Deals
Combining coupons or Lightning Deals with Subscribe & Save can create an irresistible offer for first-time buyers, as first-time buyer discounts often turn into long-term subscriptions. Consider promoting deals via Amazon advertising or external traffic.
Keep in mind that not all coupons stack with SnS during major events (e.g., Prime Day), so verify settings when planning promos.
Launch or Relaunch with PPC
Target keywords like:
- “best dog food for sensitive stomachs”
- “monthly vitamins for men”
- “eco-friendly toilet paper”
These suggest recurring intent, which is great for SnS. Layer in Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands for increased visibility.
Email Existing Customers
If you’re Brand Registered, use Amazon’s Customer Engagement tool to re-engage past buyers. Suggest Subscribe & Save as a convenient option for restocking.
Managing Cancellations and Churn
Even if you gain a lot of subscribers, you may lose them just as quickly if you’re not proactive. Common reasons for customer churn are:
- Product out of stock
- Price increases
- Poor product quality
- Customer overstocking
If you’re concerned about churn, you can reduce cancellations by doing the following:
- Maintain stable pricing (sudden jumps scare subscribers).
- Communicate updates via inserts or Amazon email tools.
- Offer occasional promotions to reward loyalty.
- Monitor reviews and address complaints quickly.
Many Amazon subscribers tend to stick around for 3–6 months on average, so the longer you keep them happy, the better your profit margins and the better your lifetime value.
Subscribe & Save and Amazon Advertising
Advertising and Subscribe & Save go hand in hand. Here’s how to combine the two to maximize your reach and get more of your target audience to buy:
Sponsored Products with SnS
When your product has Subscribe & Save enabled, it can increase the conversion rate of your ads, especially for repeat-use items.
Use this to your advantage by:
- Highlighting the SnS option in custom image creatives via Sponsored Brands
- Focus on long-tail keywords indicating repeat purchase behavior
- Creating a separate campaign for ASINs in the program
Retargeting Past Buyers
Use Sponsored Display or Amazon DSP to retarget one-time buyers and convert them into subscribers. Amazon now offers audience segments like “shoppers who canceled a subscription” or “buyers of similar items” to make retargeting more precise.
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
Even experienced sellers can run into trouble with Subscribe & Save. Here are a few traps to avoid:
Enrolling Low-Demand Products
It can be tempting to enroll every ASIN into Subscribe & Save in hopes of driving volume, but this strategy often backfires. Products with low velocity or niche appeal don’t benefit from SnS and can drag down your account performance if they suffer from poor conversion or high cancellation rates.
Underestimating Inventory Needs
Subscribe & Save orders are automatically generated based on delivery cycles. If you’re out of stock, Amazon doesn’t wait.
Inventory mismanagement can cause:
- Cancelled subscriptions
- Negative reviews
- Lower seller performance metrics
- Loss of Buy Box or SnS eligibility
- Temporary product suspension from the program if you consistently fail to fulfill SnS orders
Use Amazon’s SnS forecasting tools (under the Restock Inventory tab) to see upcoming demand based on subscriber schedules and make sure you maintain at least 60–90 days of stock for SnS-enrolled ASINs.
Avoid surprise low inventory moments by setting custom restock alerts or use 3P inventory tools with forecasting capabilities, especially around major events like Prime Day or the holiday season.
Ignoring the Math
It’s easy to over-discount and eat into your profit margins, especially if you’re not tracking actual landed cost. Many sellers forget to factor in:
- Amazon’s 5% base-funded discount
- Optional 5–10% seller-funded discounts
- FBA fees
- Referral fees
- Promotional costs (e.g., coupons or PPC)
- Returns and chargebacks
Build a contribution margin calculator that accounts for all discounts and fees and monitor your gross margin after discount monthly via business reports. This should help you keep your spending on track and determine the optimal discount that makes your bottom line and your customers happy.
Failing to Monitor Performance
SnS requires regular review to maintain and grow. If you’re not actively watching your SnS dashboard, you might miss:
- Drops in subscriber count
- Spikes in cancellations or skips
- Poor-performing ASINs that should be de-enrolled
- Opportunities to scale well-performing ASINs
Track these stats every month:
- Subscribers per ASIN
- Cancellation and skip rates
- Net subscriber growth (new vs. churned)
- Impact of recent price or discount changes
- SnS-driven sales as a % of total sales
You can start by building a simple Google Sheet or dashboard to track subscriber count, discount cost, and revenue contribution over time for your top 5–10 SnS ASINs.
Is Subscribe & Save Right for You?
It’s not for everyone, but for the right products and sellers, it can be a game changer.
It’s a good fit if:
- You sell replenishable FBA products
- Your listings are optimized and converting
- You can manage a consistent inventory
- You want to build recurring revenue
It’s not the best fit for your Amazon business if:
- Your products are seasonal or one-time-use
- You struggle with inventory planning
- Margins are razor-thin
Conclusion
Amazon Subscribe & Save can be a powerful tool to lock in customers, smooth your sales cycles, and build long-term brand equity. For intermediate sellers ready to scale, it’s one of the best programs Amazon offers to help you grow.
Another great tool for growing your business is review management. Maintaining a clean review profile and removing irrelevant or fake negative reviews is key to attracting your target audience and increasing sales. If you’re struggling with suspicious 1-star reviews, TraceFuse can craft highly targeted removal requests for you so Amazon acts on them immediately. Schedule a demo with us now to see how we do this in a 100% Amazon-compliant way!
