Read this first: the dates that matter are not the event dates
Amazon publishes its deadlines long before it announces its events. For the 2026 season it posted the deadline calendar to Seller Central on 7 July 2026 — and as of this page's last check it still has not said when Prime Big Deal Days runs, or what its Black Friday Week window is.
That gap is the whole problem. You commit stock and discounts to an event with no announced date. If you stock for an event you assume is 7 October and it runs on the 20th, you carry two extra weeks at pre-peak storage and then cross into the peak fee window before the event even starts.
Confirmed — Prime Big Deal Days (October, date unannounced)
| What | Date |
|---|---|
| Deal submissions open | 8 July 2026 |
| Early-submission discount deadline | 5 August 2026 |
| Deal submissions close | 8 September 2026 |
| AWD inbound — stock must arrive | 2 September 2026 |
| FBA inbound, minimal shipment splits | 9 September 2026 |
| FBA inbound, Amazon-optimised splits | 16 September 2026 |
| The event itself | Not announced by Amazon |
Confirmed — Black Friday and Cyber Monday
| What | Date |
|---|---|
| Early-submission discount deadline | 5 September 2026 |
| Deal submissions close | 20 October 2026 |
| AWD inbound | 14 October 2026 |
| FBA inbound, minimal shipment splits | 21 October 2026 |
| FBA inbound, Amazon-optimised splits | 28 October 2026 |
| Black Friday falls on | 27 November 2026 (calendar arithmetic, not an Amazon announcement) |
| Amazon's Black Friday Week window | Not announced |
Costs that apply across the season
| Cost | Detail | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Deal fee | $100 per promotion upfront, plus 1.5% of promotional sales, capped at $5,000 | Per deal |
| Peak fulfilment surcharge | Average ~$0.32 per unit — an average only; the real figure varies by size tier and weight | 15 Oct 2026 – 14 Jan 2027 |
| Fuel and logistics surcharge | 3.5%, in place since April, stacks with the peak surcharge | Until further notice |
| FBA New Selection enrolment | Automatic migration ends — after this you must actively confirm or benefits stop | Confirm by 31 Oct 2026 |
The part almost nobody recalculates
The peak surcharge does not just cut your margin — it moves your ACOS target. Break-even ACOS is derived from margin, so when fulfilment costs more, the point at which an advertised sale stops making money drops. A campaign that is comfortably profitable in September can be quietly losing money in November against exactly the same target, with nothing about the campaign having changed.
Re-run it per ASIN with the holiday fee in, before peak rather than after: break-even ACOS calculator, or the UK / US revenue calculator if you want the fee maths and the max cost-per-click alongside it.
What this page will not do
Guess. Where Amazon has not announced something it says so. Every date above is taken from a post on this site that cleared our corroboration standard — an official Amazon page, or two independent outlets — and the sources are linked below. When Amazon announces the event windows this page gets updated and the change is noted.
Replace your own Seller Central. Inbound deadlines depend on your shipment plan and facility type, and fees vary by size tier. Confirm yours in your account.
Sources
- Q4 2026 inbound deadlines — the submission and inbound cut-offs
- 2026 holiday FBA fees — the peak surcharge and window
- FBA New Selection 2026 — the 31 October enrolment deadline