Digital Assets & E-Commerce
Create and sell digital products, print-on-demand goods, and online storefronts — from Etsy shops to self-hosted digital downloads.
Kindle Unlimited Pays Per Page, Not Per Book — And Your Rate Depends on Other Authors
KDP Select pays from a shared monthly fund divided by everyone's pages read, so your per-page rate is set by other authors' readers. Here's the model, the 3,000-page cap, and what exclusivity costs.
Print-on-Demand Margins: Why Your Profit Is a Subtraction, Not a Percentage
Printful charges no commission — you pay the fulfilment cost and keep the difference. That sounds better than a percentage until you work out what's left after the marketplace takes its cut too.
Stripe Fees vs Selling on a Platform: What Direct Checkout Actually Saves You
Stripe charges 2.9% + $0.30 where Gumroad takes 10% + $0.50 — but the gap buys you tax compliance, file delivery and dispute handling you'd otherwise do yourself.
eBay Seller Fees: Why Your Category Matters More Than Your Price
eBay's final value fee is not one number. It runs from 6.7% to 15.3% depending on what you sell, plus a per-order fee and a 1.65% international charge most sellers never budget for.
Amazon Associates Commission Rates: What Each Category Actually Pays
Amazon's affiliate rates run from 10% down to 0% depending entirely on category — and the products people assume are lucrative are often the worst paying. Here's the full rate card.
What Apple and Google Actually Take From App Revenue — And What Changed in 2026
The famous 30% cut is now the exception rather than the rule. Both stores drop to 15% for smaller developers, and Google Play restructured its fees entirely on 30 June 2026.
Gumroad Fees: 10% If You Bring the Buyer, 30% If Gumroad Does
Gumroad charges triple when a customer finds you through its marketplace instead of your own link — and since 2025 it handles worldwide sales tax as Merchant of Record, which most comparisons ignore.
Udemy Instructor Revenue Share: Why the Same Course Pays 97% or 37%
Udemy pays instructors two completely different rates depending on who brought the student — and a third factor, the 30% mobile app store fee, quietly cuts both before they apply.
Amazon KDP Royalties: 35% vs 70%, and the Price Change Most Guides Missed
KDP's 70% royalty band moved from $9.99 to $12.99 in July 2026, the first change since 2007. Here's how both royalty options actually calculate, including the delivery cost most articles ignore.
KDP Paperback Royalties: Why $9.99 Is the Most Important Price on Amazon
Paperbacks pay 50% or 60% depending on a single cent of list price, then subtract printing costs. Here's the formula, the breakpoint, and why page count decides whether a book is viable.
How Much Does Shopify Actually Cost? Plans, Transaction Fees, and the 2% Penalty
Shopify's plan prices are only part of the bill. Here's what each tier costs monthly and annually, and the extra transaction fee you pay on every order if you don't use Shopify Payments.
How to Sell Digital Products on Etsy: A Beginner's Blueprint to Your First $1,000
A step-by-step, fee-accurate guide to building a digital download shop on Etsy — from picking a product people actually search for to your first hundred sales.