The per-order fee decides everything at liquidation unit costs, and the fix is pack size. Modelled against real closeout catalogues, August 30 2026. Fee rates are 2026 published figures, so verify before committing money.
At a penny to a dime a unit, the sale price is almost irrelevant. The fixed cost of fulfilling one order is the whole game, and it does not care what the item cost you.
| Sell price | Amazon FBA | Walmart WFS | eBay | Whatnot | TikTok Shop | In person |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1 | -$2.80 | -$2.60 | -$3.94 | -$3.91 | -$3.56 | +$1.00 |
| $3 | -$1.10 | -$0.90 | -$2.21 | -$2.13 | -$1.68 | +$3.00 |
| $5 | +$0.60 | +$0.80 | -$0.48 | -$0.34 | +$0.20 | +$5.00 |
| $10 | +$4.85 | +$5.05 | +$3.84 | +$4.11 | +$4.90 | +$10.00 |
A $1 single unit order loses roughly $4 every time it sells, on every channel that ships it. Fulfilment and shipping run about $3.45 to $4.50 per order no matter what is in the box.
Break even pack size at a dollar a unit is five units on TikTok Shop and Amazon, six on Whatnot and eBay.
Same product, same channel, at $1 a unit:
| Units per order | Net per order | Net per unit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | -$3.91 | -$3.91 |
| 5 | -$0.34 | -$0.07 |
| 10 | +$4.11 | +$0.41 |
| 50 | +$39.75 | +$0.80 |
| 100 | +$84.30 | +$0.84 |
The same inventory that is a guaranteed loss as singles is workable as ten packs. Nothing about the goods changed. The order count did.
It is the only channel with zero per order drag, so you keep the whole dollar. At a penny to a nickel a unit, a physical selling spot is not a side idea, it is the only channel where dollar items work at all. That is the real argument for a table, a booth or a storefront, and it is an argument about arithmetic rather than about vibes.
Pricing freight lot by lot overstates your landed cost badly. One 53 foot trailer moving up to 26 pallets runs about $900 to $1,500 on a regional lane, which is roughly $46 a pallet, against $300 to $500 a pallet if you book each lot as its own LTL shipment. Buy wide, ship once.
Sell through is the risk, not price. Model at 25% to 40%, never at 100%. Tens of thousands of units is a lot of boxes to move, and the arithmetic above only happens on the units that actually sell.
What it cost landed, what channel it fits, and the ones that did not clear.
Get in free More cheatsheets