After Peak: Give Every SKU a Job Before You Move Stock Out of FBA
Around this time of year, plenty of sellers run their FBA numbers and start wondering whether to move everything to a third-party warehouse.
That framing usually leads to the wrong answer. For most multichannel sellers, this isn't a choice between FBA and a third-party warehouse. The more useful question is what job each SKU is doing in your inventory. Once you know that, the location mostly follows.
Where things stand
Amazon's peak fees are running. They apply from October 15, 2026 through January 14, 2027, and average about $0.32 per unit, based on when the item leaves the warehouse. A 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge also started in April, and Amazon said then that it would apply until further notice. We haven't seen a notice ending it, so check Seller Central for the current position.
The import peak looks mostly behind us. The National Retail Federation (NRF) projected about 2.25 million TEU for October, then about 2 million in each of November and December, and said the country is likely past the busiest part of the year.
Los Angeles just had a record month. The port handled about 1.04 million TEU in September, with loaded imports up 19% from a year earlier. That doesn't mean every warehouse has a queue, but it is worth asking your forwarder and warehouse about current pickup and receiving times.
Returns are still ahead. In NRF's 2025 report, retailers expected about 17% of holiday sales to come back. That is a broad estimate from large retailers, not a figure for your category, but January's returns need a plan before they arrive.
Platform rules can move. TikTok Shop dropped its plan to end seller-fulfilled shipping in February, but did not say what comes next. If you rely on seller shipping, keep a backup.
Does the peak fee justify a move?
Take a hypothetical SKU that sells 5,000 units during this period. At the average rate, the peak fee comes to about $1,600 (5,000 × $0.32).
That is real money, but it isn't what you would save by moving. Moving adds second-leg freight, third-party handling and last-mile costs. It can also change your Prime eligibility and conversion. Saving the peak fee alone may not cover all that. Run the numbers with your own dimensions and fees, because the average only shows the scale.
Four jobs, four placements
| Job | Typical SKU | Placement |
|---|---|---|
| Core seller | Stable sales that depend on Prime conversion | Mostly FBA, with some held in a third-party warehouse as a buffer and sent in as sales require |
| Swing item | Uneven demand, or still being tested | A small amount in FBA and the rest in a third-party warehouse until demand is clear |
| Shared stock | Sold on Amazon, your own site and TikTok Shop | Keep shared inventory in a third-party warehouse and send Amazon only what it needs. Check each platform's current shipping rules first |
| Returned or held stock | Returned goods, damaged packaging, items needing relabeling or repair | Keep it apart from sellable stock. Inspect and sort it, repair what is worth repairing, and clear the rest early |
These jobs change. A core seller that reaches its clearance phase should have less stock in FBA, for example.
What to do between now and January
Build one SKU sheet. Include 90-day sales, volatility, dimensions, margin and return rate.
Assign a job to every SKU. If you aren't sure, treat it as a swing item and keep less in FBA.
Cost it properly. Compare actual FBA fees with third-party handling plus last-mile, and allow for any change in conversion.
Rebuild the replenishment calendar. Anything shipping now will likely miss this year's Black Friday and Cyber Monday, so plan it against first-quarter demand.
Set return rules early. Decide what can go back on sale, what needs relabeling or repair, and what to clear, along with your minimum acceptable price.
Where a third-party warehouse helps most
A third-party warehouse usually does its best work alongside FBA rather than instead of it. It can hold what FBA shouldn't, feed replenishment in smaller lots, serve several sales channels and handle stock that needs work.
Tengloong Warehouse has a 1,000-square-meter e-commerce warehouse in the 91761 area of Southern California, about 15 minutes from Amazon's ONT8. Our services include storage, order fulfillment, labeling and relabeling, product repair and refurbishing, and FBA transfers. To talk through your SKU list, reach us through the contact page.