How Much I Made Self-Publishing Books on KDP in May 2021 (KDP Income Report)

About this video

Sean gives his May 2021 self-publishing income report. He claims total revenue of $37,633.41 and, after $16,544.51 in expenses, net profit of $21,088.09. By channel, he claims KDP revenue of $19,169.49 — up roughly $5,000-$6,000 from April after switching to a new Amazon ads software that sharply increased spend — plus Draft2Digital $934.02, Google Play $697.14, IngramSpark amounts across US, UK, Australian and Global Connect markets, and audio income from Findaway Voices and two ACX accounts, the LLC account being the largest at a claimed $11,241.84. He says he has about 200 books including bundles, built by publishing four to five books a month for about five years, but that the top 10-15 books produce about 70% of income. Expenses included about $10,000 of US AMS spend plus UK and Canada spend, with ACOS he describes as too high, part of a deliberate strategy with the ads team to find winning keywords, though spend exceeded his expectation because he had not set a budget. His takeaways are quality, managing ad spend, and investing $100-$200 in covers. He also warns that eight months of blogging for Amazon Associates earned almost nothing.

Key takeaways

• Sean claims May 2021 revenue of $37,633.41 and net profit of $21,088.09 after $16,544.51 in expenses — presented as his own report.
• Start in KDP Select / ACX exclusive first, and only move slowed books wide to Draft2Digital, Google Play, IngramSpark or Findaway.
• About 70% of his income comes from his top 10-15 of roughly 200 books; low-quality books fade as bad reviews accumulate.
• More ad spend can lift organic sales, but ignoring ACOS destroys profit — he puts his sweet spot slightly over break-even, around 55%.
• Spend $100-$200 on a professional cover via services like 99designs rather than relying on cheap Fiverr covers.

Episode details: published July 12, 2021 · 16:31 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Sean Dollwet’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.

← Previous: 3 Hot Audible Keywords that Are Blowing Up Now! (ACX Keyword Research) · Next: Why You Shouldn’t Get Reviews For Your Book (My Approach To KDP Publishing in 2021) →

All Sean Dollwet videos · Sean Dollwet profile · Sean Dollwet on YouTube