How Much Does Amazon KDP Pay Per Page Read? 2025 Calculator & Complete Breakdown

If you’re enrolled in Kindle Unlimited (KU) or publish through Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), understanding how much you earn per page read is critical to calculating your potential income. Unlike traditional book sales, KU pays authors based on pages read—but the payment rate changes monthly and varies by marketplace.

In this guide, you’ll learn exactly how KDP pays for page reads, current payment rates for 2025, how to calculate your earnings, and strategies to maximize your page read income.

Quick Answer: Current KDP Page Read Rates (2025)

As of January 2025, Amazon pays approximately $0.0040 – $0.0045 per page read for books enrolled in KDP Select and read through Kindle Unlimited.

This means:

100 pages read = $0.40 – $0.45
1,000 pages read = $4.00 – $4.50
10,000 pages read = $40.00 – $45.00
100,000 pages read = $400.00 – $450.00

Note: This rate fluctuates monthly based on the Global Fund pool and total pages read across all KDP Select titles.

What is KENP (Kindle Edition Normalized Pages)?

Amazon doesn’t count physical pages in your book. Instead, they use KENP (Kindle Edition Normalized Pages), which standardizes page counts across all books based on:

Font size
Line spacing
Margins
Character count

A 300-page paperback might translate to 250 KENP or 350 KENP depending on formatting. You can see your book’s exact KENP count in your KDP dashboard after publication.

How to Find Your Book’s KENP Count

Log into your KDP dashboard
Click on “Bookshelf”
Find your book and click the ellipsis (three dots)
Select “Edit eBook pricing”
Scroll to the “Kindle Unlimited” section
Your KENP count appears under “Kindle Edition Normalized Page Count”

KDP Pay Per Page Read Calculator (2025)

Use this simple formula to calculate your estimated earnings:

Earnings = KENP × Pages Read × Current Rate

Example: 300 KENP × 1,000 borrows (fully read) × $0.0043 = $1,290

Example Scenarios

Book Type	KENP	Monthly Borrows	Completion Rate	Estimated Earnings
Novella	150 KENP	500	80%	$258
Standard Novel	300 KENP	500	65%	$420
Epic Fantasy	600 KENP	200	45%	$232
Short Romance	100 KENP	2,000	90%	$774

Based on $0.0043 per page read rate. Your actual earnings may vary.

How Amazon Determines the Page Read Rate

The payment per page read isn’t fixed—it changes every month based on two factors:

1. The KDP Select Global Fund

Amazon allocates a monthly fund (typically $30-40 million globally) to pay KDP Select authors. This amount fluctuates based on:

Kindle Unlimited subscription revenue
Amazon’s strategic priorities
Total marketplace activity

2. Total Pages Read Across All Books

The more pages readers consume across ALL Kindle Unlimited books, the smaller each author’s share becomes. The formula is:

Pay Per Page = Global Fund ÷ Total Pages Read (All Authors)

Historical KDP Page Read Rates (2020-2025)

Year	Average Rate	Trend
2020	$0.0044	—
2021	$0.0042	↓ 4.5%
2022	$0.0041	↓ 2.4%
2023	$0.0040	↓ 2.5%
2024	$0.0042	↑ 5.0%
2025 (Est.)	$0.0043	↑ 2.4%

KDP Select Page Reads vs. Regular Sales: Which Pays More?

The eternal question: Should you enroll in KDP Select for page reads, or go wide and rely on direct sales?

Page Reads Earnings Example

300 KENP book, fully read through Kindle Unlimited:

300 pages × $0.0043 = $1.29 per borrow

Direct Sale Earnings Example

Same book priced at $3.99:

$3.99 × 70% royalty = $2.79 per sale

Verdict: Direct sales earn more per transaction, BUT Kindle Unlimited borrows often exceed sales volume significantly. Many authors report 3-5× more borrows than purchases.

Real Author Example

“My $2.99 romance novellas (200 KENP) earn about $0.86 per borrow. I get 2,000 borrows/month vs 400 sales/month. That’s $1,720 from KU vs $836 from sales. KU earns me 2× more despite lower per-unit revenue.”

— Sarah T., Romance Author, 2024

Strategies to Maximize Page Read Earnings

1. Optimize Book Length for Your Genre

Romance/Thriller: 200-300 KENP (sweet spot for completion rates)
Fantasy/Sci-Fi: 350-500 KENP (readers expect longer)
Mystery/Suspense: 250-350 KENP (fast-paced completions)

Longer books earn more per borrow BUT have lower completion rates. Find the balance.

2. Improve Completion Rates

Hook readers early: Engaging first chapters prevent abandonment
Pace properly: Sagging middles kill completion
End with satisfaction: Readers who finish are more likely to read your next book

3. Write Series, Not Standalones

KU readers consume series voraciously. A 7-book series (each 300 KENP) with 500 monthly borrows at 70% completion = $6,300/month.

4. Use KDP Select Bonuses

All-Star Bonus: Top 100 most-read books get extra payments ($500-$25,000)
Kindle Countdown Deals: Price promotions that boost visibility
Free Book Promotions: Build readership for series starters

5. Monitor Your KENP Carefully

Sometimes Amazon recalculates KENP after publication. If your 300-page book shows 220 KENP, you’re losing 27% of potential earnings. Consider reformatting.

Common Questions About KDP Page Reads

Do I get paid if someone only reads 10 pages?

Yes. Amazon pays for every page read, even if the reader doesn’t finish the book. If someone reads 50 pages of your 300-page book, you earn 50 × $0.0043 = $0.215.

When does Amazon pay KDP page read royalties?

Amazon pays approximately 60 days after the end of the month pages were read. For example, January page reads are paid around March 31st. Payments require a minimum $100 threshold (or lower depending on your marketplace).

Can I see which pages readers actually read?

No. Amazon only provides total KENP read per book. You cannot see which specific pages or chapters readers consumed, or where they stopped reading.

Do page reads count for Amazon bestseller rank?

Yes. KU borrows count toward your book’s sales rank, though possibly at a reduced weight compared to direct purchases. High page read volumes improve visibility and category rankings.

What if someone reads the same book twice?

Amazon only pays once per account per book. If a KU subscriber reads your book, returns it, and borrows it again, you don’t get paid for the second borrow. This prevents gaming the system.

Is KDP Select worth it in 2025?

For most genre fiction authors (romance, thriller, fantasy), yes. Page read income often exceeds direct sales, especially for newer authors. However, non-fiction and literary fiction may perform better going wide to all retailers.

Recommended Tools for KDP Authors

Track and optimize your page read earnings with these tools:

Publisher Rocket – Keyword research and category selection to boost KU visibility ($97 one-time)
K-lytics – Genre market analysis showing which categories have highest KU readership ($47/month)
KDP Dashboard – Free built-in analytics showing daily page reads and earnings

Final Thoughts: Is KDP Select Right for You?

Understanding KDP’s pay-per-page-read model is essential for making informed publishing decisions. At approximately $0.0043 per page in 2025, a well-optimized 300-page novel can earn $1.29 per complete read-through.

While that’s less than a direct $3.99 sale, the volume advantage often compensates. Most successful KDP Select authors report that Kindle Unlimited borrows represent 60-80% of their total income.

Bottom line: If you write series in popular KU genres (romance, fantasy, thriller, mystery), KDP Select typically outperforms going wide. For non-fiction, literary fiction, or authors with strong international audiences, keeping rights and distributing broadly may yield better results.

Calculate your potential earnings using your book’s KENP and estimated borrow rate, then test for 90 days. KDP Select requires exclusivity, but you can opt out after the initial period if results disappoint.

Ready to publish on KDP? Read our complete step-by-step guide to publishing on Amazon KDP.

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