Kindle Unlimited: How earnings are calculated for authors

For writers with publications on Kindle Unlimited, constant earnings are possible. However, these are calculated differently from conventional eBook sales. Our guide explains the basics.

Large shares desired: With Kindle Unlimited, you earn depending on page numbers read.

Subscription services mean a different form of earnings calculation for content creators. This is just as true in music streaming as it is in the eBook sector, where flat rates like Kindle Unlimited have set a precedent.

Kindle Unlimited: This is how earnings are calculated via royalties

The royalties with Kindle Unlimited are calculated in the following way:

• The basic principle is: You are paid per page read per reader. Only the first reading of the page counts, all further views play no role in the earnings.
• For example, if you have published a book with 200 pages and this is read in full by 1,000 KU subscribers, 200,000 read pages are calculated for your earnings.
• Decisive for the final amount of royalties is the fund: from this total amount, payments are paid out to all Kindle Unlimited authors, relatively. Your share is determined by the number of pages read in your books relative to the total number of pages read on Kindle Unlimited that month.

So the more pages of your eBooks are read, the higher your share in the royalty payout from the fund. Both quality and quantity - preferably in combination - thus lead to higher income.These are difficult to predict, however, because the season plays a role just like many other factors. For example, one of your eBooks may be hardly read at first, but then be discovered and suddenly find a large readership. The reverse is also possible, of course - in these basic features, a digital service like Kindle Unlimited hardly differs from the classic book market.