How to create an Amazon Ads account
This guide walks you through registering for Amazon Ads from Seller Central, Vendor Central, or KDP, setting up billing, and giving your team access, so your account is ready for a first Sponsored Products campaign.
Amazon Ads is where you run sponsored ads: Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and display ads that promote items sold in the Amazon store. You do not build a separate advertising business from scratch. Your ads account is tied to the seller, vendor, or author account that owns the products.
Amazon renamed its ads platform in September 2026. The unified platform that combined the former Amazon Ads console and Amazon DSP is now called Amazon Ads Agent. Its conversational AI features are rolling out in beta, and older guides and some menus still say console, so you may see both names. Sellers can also reach Campaign Manager from inside Seller Central.
Sponsored Products is the usual starting point and has the lightest requirements. Sponsored Brands and display ads ask more of sellers, mainly enrollment in Amazon Brand Registry.
Confirm you are eligible to advertise
Sponsored Products is open to Professional sellers, vendors, book vendors, KDP authors, and agencies. Sellers need an active Professional selling account, which Amazon lists at $39.99 a month plus selling fees, and must be able to ship to every address in the marketplace.
Each product must be in an eligible category and able to win the Featured Offer, the offer shown at the top right of a product page above the buy buttons.
Watch outAdult products, used and refurbished items, and products in closed categories are not eligible, so check before you plan a launch around a listing.
Check your Brand Registry status
Professional sellers can run Sponsored Products without Brand Registry. Sponsored Brands, display ads, and Brand Stores require the selling account to be linked to a brand enrolled in Amazon Brand Registry. Vendors can use Sponsored Brands without it.
Brand Registry is free. It requires a pending or registered trademark for your brand name or logo from a trademark office in a country with an Amazon store, plus your brand shown on the product or its packaging.
TipIf you do not have a trademark yet, Amazon's IP Accelerator program connects brands with vetted legal service providers, for a fee.
Start registration from the right place
Sellers can open Advertising in the Seller Central menu and select Campaign Manager. Vendors, and anyone who prefers it, can register at advertising.amazon.com/register. KDP authors start from the marketing tab in their KDP account and follow the Amazon Ads prompts from there.
Starting from the account that owns your products matters. Registering through it connects the ads account to your listings or books, so they are available when you build a campaign.
Choose your country and account type
On the registration page, select your country, then choose whether you are advertising products sold on Amazon. Pick the account type that matches how you sell: Seller Central for businesses selling directly to shoppers, Vendor Central for manufacturers and distributors selling wholesale to Amazon, or the Kindle Direct Publishing option for self-published authors.
Sign in with that account’s credentials and follow the prompts to name the account.
Set up billing
Open the billing section of the platform. Depending on your account, Amazon can deduct ad costs from your seller or vendor balance or charge a credit or debit card. Invoicing is offered to vendors by invitation, and in 2026 Amazon offered Pay by Invoice to a group of advertisers it contacted directly.
With card billing, Amazon charges after your first $1 of clicks, each time you reach your credit limit, which starts at $50, and on the third day of each month.
TipKDP authors pay by card, and Amazon places a temporary $50 pre-authorization hold to verify it, which is not a charge.
Give your team the right access
Account admins can add other users and choose their access level. Amazon offers standard admin and editor levels, plus narrower permissions such as billing access for a finance team. Give each person their own login instead of sharing one.
If an agency or freelancer manages your ads, add them as a user on your account rather than having them register a new ads account for your products. That way the account, its history, and its billing stay with your business.
Prepare your listings before your first campaign
Ads send shoppers to your detail page, so it has to be ready. Amazon’s new advertiser guidance suggests advertising products with five or more reviews and a rating of 3.5 stars or higher, at least four images, three or more bullet points, and a title of about 60 characters.
Confirm each product is in stock and winning the Featured Offer. Sellers can check this in Seller Central under Reports, then Business Reports, in the Detail Page Sales and Traffic by Child Item report.
Confirm the account is ready
Sign in and open the campaign area. Your products or books should be available to select when you start a new Sponsored Products campaign, and your payment method or balance deduction should show as active in billing.
If products are missing, check that you signed in with the seller, vendor, or author account that owns them, that you selected the right marketplace, and that the listings are eligible for the Featured Offer.
Before you move on
- You can sign in and reach the campaign area
- Your eligible products appear when you start a new campaign
- A payment method or balance deduction is active in billing
- Each user has their own login with the right access level
- You know whether you qualify for Sponsored Brands and display ads
Official resources
- Amazon Ads frequently asked questions
- Getting started with sponsored ads
- Advertising for Amazon sellers
- Amazon Brand Registry
- New advertiser success guide
Ad platforms update their tools often. This guide was last reviewed against the official documentation above in October 2026. If your screen looks different, the official help pages have the latest steps.
At a glance
- Level
- Beginner
- Time
- About 30 minutes
- What you need
- An active Amazon Professional seller account, a Vendor Central account, or a KDP account
- Products or books that are live and in stock in the marketplace you plan to advertise in
- A credit or debit card, or a seller or vendor balance Amazon can deduct ad costs from
- Your Brand Registry status, if you plan to run Sponsored Brands or display ads
- Admin access to the Amazon account that owns the products
Rather have it done for you?
Active Digital Marketing builds and manages Amazon advertising for businesses doing $25,000+ a month in revenue.
Apply to work with usOr get an ad account auditWhere DIY setups go wrong
The most common problems with self-built Amazon Ads setups, and what they cost.
Registering under the wrong account
Registering outside the seller, vendor, or author account that owns your listings leaves you with an ads account that is not connected to those products. You then have to sort out access before you can launch anything.
Advertising listings that are not ready
Ads amplify whatever is on the detail page. Thin images, few reviews, or a lost Featured Offer mean you pay for clicks that rarely convert, or the ad stops showing altogether.
Sharing one login
Shared credentials make it impossible to see who changed what, and removing a former contractor means changing the password for everyone. Individual user access avoids both problems.
Planning around ad types you cannot use yet
Sellers sometimes plan Sponsored Brands or display campaigns before Brand Registry is in place. Check eligibility first so your launch plan matches what the account can run.
Overlooking how billing affects cash flow
Balance deduction takes ad spend from the same funds as your payouts. That is convenient, but in a heavy month it can shrink a disbursement you were counting on for inventory.
What this guide doesn't cover
A working ads account is the starting line. Whether Amazon advertising is profitable depends on the work that comes after: knowing your margin per product, structuring campaigns so spend goes to the right search terms, and reading results against total sales, not only ad sales.
That ongoing management is what ADM does for established brands, including listing readiness checks before any money is spent.
- Campaign structure across Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and display ads
- Keyword harvesting and negative keyword management from search term reports
- Bid and placement strategy tied to product margin
- ACoS targets and TACoS tracking against total sales
- Listing readiness and Featured Offer monitoring
- Budget planning for Prime Day and holiday peaks
Common questions
Do I need Brand Registry to advertise on Amazon?
Not for Sponsored Products. Professional sellers need Brand Registry for Sponsored Brands, display ads, and Brand Stores. Vendors and KDP authors have their own eligibility rules.
Does it cost anything to open an Amazon Ads account?
No. Sponsored Products has no monthly or upfront fees, and you pay for clicks. Sellers do need a Professional selling plan, which Amazon lists at $39.99 a month plus selling fees.
What is Amazon Ads Agent?
It is the name Amazon gave its unified ads platform in September 2026, covering what was formerly the Amazon Ads console and Amazon DSP. Its AI assistant features are rolling out in beta, and you can still build campaigns manually.
Can I advertise if I do not sell on Amazon?
Yes, through display, video, and audio formats. Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands are for products sold in the Amazon store.
Keep learning
How to Create an Amazon Sponsored Products Campaign
Launch your first Amazon Sponsored Products campaign: pick products, choose automatic or manual targeting, set a bid strategy, and check it after launch.
Read the guideHow to Set an Amazon Ads Budget
How Amazon Ads budgets work: the $1 daily minimum, monthly averaging, bids, budget rules, and the ACoS and TACoS math you need to judge spend.
Read the guideHow to Create a Meta Ad Account
Set up a Meta business portfolio, create an ad account, add a payment method, and give your team the right access, step by step.
Read the guideHow to Create a Google Ads Account
Step-by-step: sign up for Google Ads without a forced campaign, set billing and time zone, add users, and complete advertiser verification.
Read the guideHow to Create a TikTok Ads Manager Account
Set up TikTok Ads Manager step by step: sign-up, business details, payment method, account approval, Business Center, and team access.
Read the guideRather have it built right the first time?
If your business does $25,000+ a month in revenue, apply and Mitch will review your accounts personally. Earlier than that? An ad account audit gives you a senior-level fix list you can work through yourself.