Amazon Vine for Sellers: Cost, Requirements and How to Enroll
You want to know how to get your first reviews on Amazon? Amazon Vine is a good way to do it. In our article, we explain how it works!
Are you an Amazon seller launching a new product? Then you probably face the same problem as most sellers: how do you get your first reviews?
Reviews arrive after customers buy and use your product, and for a new listing that can take a while. A common tip from the internet and FBA coaches is to collect reviews from family and friends. That violates Amazon's Community Guidelines and puts your seller account at risk.
With Amazon Vine, you make eligible products available to selected reviewers free of charge. This article explains what Amazon Vine costs, which requirements apply, how to enroll in Seller Central and when Vine is worth it for your product launch.
As of: Amazon's Seller Central help for Vine, Vine fees in effect since October 19, 2023 (checked in October 2026).
What is Amazon Vine?
Amazon Vine is a review program run by Amazon. Sellers make new or lightly reviewed products available, and reviewers invited by Amazon, called Vine Voices, order these products free of charge and write honest reviews. For sellers, Vine is a way to get first reviews as early as the product launch.
Amazon does not guarantee a review, a number of reviews or a good rating. Vine delivers honest feedback: the Vine Voice alone decides the content and star rating. On the product detail page, every Vine review carries a badge for reviews of free products.
Who are the Vine Voices?
Vine Voices are Amazon customers whom Amazon invites to the program. You cannot apply. According to Amazon, customers who regularly write insightful reviews are the most likely to be invited. Vine Voices are not paid for reviews and are expected to try every product before writing a review.
As a seller, you neither choose the Vine Voices nor determine the content of the reviews. Contacting Vine Voices outside regular customer service is not allowed. Amazon does not remove a review that follows Amazon's Community Guidelines, even when the review is critical.
Amazon Vine requirements for sellers and products
Amazon lists these requirements for Amazon Vine:
Selling plan: You sell on the Professional selling plan.
Brand: Your seller account has the Brand Representative or Reseller role for a brand enrolled in Amazon Brand Registry. On amazon.com, Amazon also accepts generic products.
Fulfillment: The product has a Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) offer with available inventory. Sellers who use or have used FBA Onsite are not eligible.
Reviews: The product detail page shows fewer than 30 reviews.
Listing: The product has an image, a title, a description and a category assignment.
Not eligible: Adult and digital products. ASINs cannot be bundled or split for Vine.
You can enroll a new product as soon as the product's FBA offer exists, even before your inventory arrives at the fulfillment center. Amazon recommends making inventory available at least three weeks before the planned launch. That gives Vine Voices enough time to receive, test and review the product.
How much does Amazon Vine cost?
The Vine enrollment fee is charged once per parent ASIN. The amount depends on the number of enrolled units, not on the number of orders or reviews:
Enrolled units | amazon.com | amazon.de |
|---|---|---|
1–2 | $0 | €0 |
3–10 | $75 | €70 |
11–30 | $200 | €170 |
Amazon charges the enrollment fee only after the first Vine review is published. If no Vine review arrives within 90 days of enrollment, no enrollment fee applies. If you enroll the same ASIN in several countries, the enrollment fee applies in each country. In the US, new sellers who enroll a brand in Brand Registry receive a $200 Vine credit, according to Amazon.
Other costs come on top of the enrollment fee:
Product cost: the cost of goods for the units Vine Voices order free of charge.
Amazon fees: FBA fulfillment fees and referral fees apply to Vine orders too. Our FBA fee calculation example shows how these fees add up.
Taxes: products you give away may be taxable under local rules. Check the details with your tax advisor.
Example: You enroll 10 units of a $24.99 product with $6 in product cost and about $7 in referral and FBA fees per unit. If Vine Voices order all 10 units, Vine costs you about $205: the $75 enrollment fee plus $130 for products and fees. The product cost and fee figures are assumptions; use your own product's numbers.
How to enroll in Amazon Vine
In Seller Central, open Advertising → Vine.
Choose an eligible product. The Vine dashboard suggests products, and you can search for eligible FBA ASINs.
Set how many units you make available, at least 1 and at most 30. For variations, choose the whole product family or individual variations.
Review the enrollment fee and the terms and select “Enroll”.
The Vine dashboard then shows the enrollment status, the claimed units and the number of reviews. If Vine is missing in Seller Central, your user may lack Vine permission. The Seller Central account administrator grants the permission under Settings → User Permissions.
What to know after you enroll
Decide the unit count first: Amazon's fee page allows adding units within 30 days of enrollment, but Amazon's enrollment guide rules out changes after submission. Decide the unit count before you submit. If added units move the enrollment into a higher fee tier, the higher fee applies. You cannot reduce enrolled units.
Cancel or stop: You can cancel an enrollment only while no Vine Voice has claimed a unit. After that, you can only stop the enrollment. Stopping prevents further claims but does not prevent reviews from being published.
No second enrollment: Once a Vine Voice has claimed a unit, you cannot re-enroll the ASIN or any other variation of the same parent ASIN.
Duration and limit: An enrollment closes no later than 90 days after enrollment, or 90 days after the scheduled launch date if one is set. You can have at most 200 active enrollments at the same time.
Unclaimed units: Units that Vine Voices do not claim stay available for regular FBA sales.
No review deadline: Vine reviews have no fixed deadline, and not every claimed unit leads to a review. Claimed products are not returned.
Is Amazon Vine worth it?
Whether Amazon Vine is worth it depends on your product cost, the fees and the value of additional reviews. Reviews can help shoppers decide, especially for a new product with few or no reviews.
Reasons to use Vine:
First reviews at launch when you enroll the product in advance
Honest feedback that reveals weaknesses in the product and listing
No enrollment fee for 1–2 units per parent ASIN
Reasons against Vine:
No guarantee for the number or tone of reviews
Costs for products and Amazon fees, even in the free fee tier
Critical reviews stay up as long as the reviews follow the Community Guidelines
No re-enrollment once a unit is claimed
Use specific criticism from Vine reviews to improve your product and listing. Our article on listing optimization on Amazon shows how to revise a listing.
Whether Vine paid off for a product shows in the comparison before and after the Vine start. As an Owner or Admin, enable “Track reviews” on the product detail page in sellerfox; sellerfox then records the average rating and the rating count every day (Track reviews guide). In product analytics, you see sessions and conversion rate for the same product over the same period. A timing overlap between new reviews and changed metrics does not prove a cause on its own.
Amazon Vine FAQ
Is Amazon Vine free?
Not for sellers. Only the enrollment fee is waived for 1–2 enrolled units per parent ASIN; product cost, referral and FBA fees always apply. From 3 units, enrollment costs $75 on amazon.com (€70 on amazon.de), and from 11 units $200 (€170). For Vine Voices, the products are free.
How many reviews do I get from Amazon Vine?
At most 30 per parent ASIN, with no guarantee. Vine reviews have no deadline, and not every claimed unit leads to a review.
Can I use Amazon Vine without Brand Registry?
On amazon.com, Amazon also accepts generic products. On amazon.de, Amazon requires the Brand Representative or Reseller role for a brand enrolled in Brand Registry.
Can I get negative Vine reviews removed?
No, as long as the review follows Amazon's Community Guidelines. Contacting the Vine Voice is not allowed.
How do you become an Amazon Vine reviewer?
Only by invitation from Amazon. You cannot apply. Amazon mainly invites customers who regularly write insightful reviews.
Conclusion: Vine brings first reviews, not guarantees
Amazon Vine is an official Amazon program for getting first reviews on new products. Enrollment costs $0, $75 or $200 per parent ASIN on amazon.com, depending on the number of units, plus product cost and Amazon fees. Enroll a product before launch, calculate the costs and then compare reviews and metrics.
Ready to measure the effect? With sellerfox, you track reviews, sessions and conversion rate for your products in one place. Start your 30-day free trial.
Sources: Amazon: Community Guidelines (amazon.de) · Amazon: Vine enrollment fee for sellers · Amazon: Vine eligibility (amazon.de) · Amazon: Vine FAQ (amazon.de) · Amazon: Amazon Vine (US)