Modify handling time

Amazon provides the estimated delivery time to buyers on the offer listing and checkout pages. We base this estimate on the time between when the buyer places an order until the delivery reaches the buyer's address.

What is handling time?

Handling time is the number of days taken by a seller to procure, pack, and ship a product after the order has been received. “Ship by date” for an order is defined based on handling time.

Total Delivery Time = Handling Time + Transit Time (+ any holidays)

Can I set different handling times for different ASINs?

Yes, you can set different handling times for different ASINs.

What is default handling time?

Default handling time refers to the handling time set by default for offers where you leave the Handling Time field blank in the Manage Inventory page. The default handling time can be set by you to either 1 day or 2 days.

How can I update the default handling time?

To update the default handling time on Seller Central, follow the below steps:

1. Go to Settings on Seller Central and click Shipping Settings.
2. On the Shipping Settings page, navigate to General Shipping Settings tab.
3. Scroll down to Handling Time and click Edit.
4. Select 1 Day or 2 Days and click Save.
   Note: You can change your default handling time only once in a 24-hour window.

How do I change the handling time for an ASIN?

Go to the Manage Inventory page. Click Edit for any ASIN for which you wish to change the handling time. A product information page will open where you have the option to set a handling time for that ASIN. Handling time can be changed in bulk for all ASINs using a Listing Loader file.

Where can I get the Listing Loader file?

Follow these steps to download the Listing Loader file:

1. Log in to Seller Central.
2. Go to Inventory. Click Add Products via Upload.
3. Click Download an Inventory File tab.
4. From the list of inventory files, click Listing Loader.
5. Click Download Now.

How do I use Listing Loader?

1. Read through the instructions in the Data Definitions tab in the Listing Loader file.
2. In the Listings tab, fill all the required fields and the lead-time-to-ship field (One ASIN per row).
3. Save the file in text-tab-delimited format.
4. Upload it through Inventory > Add products via inventory > Upload your inventory file.

Why is setting the correct Default Handling Time important?

You can check the default handling time applicable on all your seller-fulfilled offers under the Settings tab of Shipping Settings page. The Estimated ship date for your seller fulfilled orders is calculated based on order date + handling time. For example, if the default handling time is 1 day, then estimated ship date for an order placed till 12 midnight will be the next day. If you don’t ship orders by the estimated ship date, your late shipment rate will increase and may result in order cancellation.